EARTH DAY
INTRODUCTION
In 1990 a global Earth Day was organised, which was observed by some 200 million people in more than 140 countries. Since then, Earth Day has been international in scope. By the early 21st century, Earth Day’s many activities included raising awareness about a number of growing environmental concerns, especially the threat of global warming and the need for clean renewable energy sources. Indeed, in 2016 the international Paris Climate Agreement was emblematically opened for signatures on Earth Day. Although in 2020 and 2021 many of the planned marches and other activities for the 50th anniversary celebration of Earth Day were cancelled or forced online because of the COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t prevented some big, influential names continuing to get behind the message Earth day seeks to recognise.
First celebrated in 1970 on the 22 April Earth Day is now an annual event around the world in more than 193 countries. The purpose of Earth Day is to celebrate the planet's environment and raise public awareness about pollution through the holding of rallies, conferences, outdoor activities and service projects. In the decades leading up to the first Earth Day, Americans were consuming vast amounts of leaded gas through massive and inefficient automobiles. The industry produced large amounts of smoke and sludge with little fear of the consequences from either the law or bad press. Air pollution was commonly accepted as the smell of prosperity. US Senator Gaylord Nelson, a junior senator from Wisconsin, became concerned about the deteriorating environment in the United States and inspired by the student anti-war movement, Senator Nelson wanted to infuse the energy of student anti-war protests with an emerging public consciousness about air and water pollution.
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