Earth Day 2020!
- ywacc.ngo
- Apr 22, 2020
- 2 min read
While Earth Day has seemed like it has been around forever, this year only marks its 50th anniversary. We want to take some time and explain the history behind Earth Day.
Earth Day was first created April 22nd, 1970. In the 1970s, the public was really starting
to voice their growing concerns about the state of our beloved planet. While some environmental movements started during Teddy Roosevelt’s time in office around the 1900s, it wasn’t until during the late 1960s that the climate change movement became a multifaceted movement in the United States. In the decades leading up to the 70s, most Americans were oblivious to the growing concerns regarding pollution and the burning of fossil fuels. In fact, “air pollution was commonly accepted as the smell of prosperity” (Earth Day). Increased locomotive transportation and industry contributed to record high levels of greenhouse gas emissions, such as carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and methane.
So what changed in the 1970s? Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring. This book soon became a New York Times bestseller, selling more than 500,000 copies in 24 different countries. Carson aimed to bring awareness for all “living organisms, the environment, and the inextricable links between pollution and public health” (Earth Day). In response to Silent Spring, Al Gore replied by stating, “Silent Spring was a cry in the wilderness that changed history.” And change history it did. For the first time in American history, environmental issues were put on the front page for all to see. Climate change and our environmental impact were finally becoming topics incorporated into mainstream American media and culture.
So what do we do now? It has been 50 years since its conception. For me at least, Earth Day serves as a tangible reminder of our human responsibility towards our planet. And while Earth Day is officially only on April 22, as cliché as it sounds, Earth Day should really be every day. So go outside today, take a deep breathe in, and thank the planet that has given us so much. Now, it’s our turn to return the favor.
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