Article Written By: Minseo Cha
Earth Day is an annual event celebrated on April 22, by one billion people in 192 countries. On the day, both political action and civic participation, such as marching, petitions and planting trees, are held to show support for environmental protection.
The idea for a national day to focus on the environment first came up by Gaylord Nelson, a U.S Senator back then. He was inspired after witnessing the 1969 oil spill in California, and by the student anti-war movement. On April 22, 1970, when 20 million Americans protested in the streets against the negative impacts of 150 years of industrial development. Earth Day events are now coordinated by Earth Day Network and include world-wide events.
Last year, Earth Day Network (EDN) has chosen the theme for 2018 Earth Day as “End Plastic Pollution”. The “End Plastic Pollution” campaign included four major components:
1. Leading a grassroots movement to support the adoption of a global framework to regulate plastic pollution
2. Educating, mobilizing and activating citizens across the globe to demand that governments and corporations control and clean up plastic pollution
3. Educating people worldwide to take personal responsibility for plastic pollution by choosing to reject, reduce, reuse and recycle plastics
4. Promoting local government regulatory and other efforts to tackle plastic pollution
On 2018 Earth Day, various events were successfully held across the globe, under the theme of “End Plastic Pollution”. In India, “No-Plastic” Pop-up event workshops were led by leaders of environmental organization leaders to discuss low-pollution living. In the U.S, “The Great American Cleanup” was held to involve citizens in removing waste from Palm Beach, Florida. Not only that, Thailand planted 300 trees on the day.
Some of the ways suggested by EDN to end plastic pollution includes:
- Use our plastic calculator to track how much plastic you use
- Download our End Plastic Pollution Toolkits
- Find ways to reduce your plastic waste
- Make a pledge to reduce your use of plastic
However, if you think they are too much for you, simply remember this: “If you can’t reuse it, refuse it!”
Bibliography (MLA 8 FORMAT):
Website Citations:
Website 1:
Earth Day Network. “Earth Day.” Earth Day Network, 2015, www.earthday.org/.
Website 2:
NDTV. “NDTV.com.” Www.ndtv.com, 2015, www.ndtv.com/.
Photo Citations:
Photo 1 (Right):
One Earth. “Earth Day 2018.” One Earth Film Festival, 2012, www.oneearthfilmfest.org/earth-day-2018.
Photo 2 (Left):
Win Calendar. “Earth Day History.” Spacer, Win Calendar, 2018, www.wincalendar.com/Earth-Day.