What is Earth Day?

On April 22, 1970, 20 million Americans took to the streets, parks, and auditoriums to call for a healthy, sustainable environment in massive coast-to-coast rallies. Thousands of colleges and universities organized demonstrations and teach-ins against the deterioration of the environment. That December, Congress authorized the establishment of a new federal agency, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), to ensure environmental protection. The passage of the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act and many other landmark environmental laws followed soon after, according to the EPA.

Earth Day is now a global event each year, and the organization believes that more than 1 billion people in 192 countries take part in what is the largest civic-focused day of action in the world.

This year’s theme?

This year's Earth Day is dedicated to protecting threatened and endangered species. According to Earth Day Network, The unprecedented global destruction and rapid reduction of plant and wildlife populations are directly linked to causes driven by human activity: climate change, deforestation, habitat loss, trafficking and poaching, unsustainable agriculture, pollution and pesticides to name a few.

5 ways to get involved?

1. Learn about endangered species in your area. Teach your friends and family about the wonderful wildlife, birds, fish and plants that live near you.
2. Visit and/or Volunteer at a national wildlife refuge, park or other open space. These protected lands provide habitat to many native wildlife, birds, fish and plants.
3. Reduce your personal footprint by recycling and buying sustainable products. Drivingless, walking more. Refilling a water bottle instead of using multiple plastic ones.
4. Slow down when driving. Many animals live in developed areas and this means they must navigate a landscape full of human hazards. One of the biggest obstacles to wildlife living in developed areas is roads.
5. Clean up your community by organizing a group to pick up litter in a local park or roadway.

There is so much we can be doing to protect these animals and vulnerable species from extinction, but we must make these changes now!