LOS ANGELES, CA - On April 22, 1970, 20 million people across America celebrated the first Earth Day. At the time, the smog in U.S. cities was at its highest level, and polluted rivers were a cause for concern. Now Earth Day is celebrated annually around the globe. U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson (D-Wis.) organized the first Earth Day as a nationwide grassroots demonstration on the environment. He hired Denis Hayes as the national coordinator, and his staff organized massive coast-to-coast rallies.
Staying in politics, On April 22, 24% of Americans say they will do something to celebrate Earth Day. The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that 64% have no such plans. In fact, in a survey conducted just days before the celebration, just 54% of Americans correctly guessed that it was celebrated in April. Given a list of four possible months, 54% named the current month, 30% were not sure, and 15% guessed either January, July or October.
Still, 32% say they consider Earth Day Very Important, 32% say it's Somewhat Important, and 30% say it's Not Very Important or Not at all Important. Women consider the day more important than men. Most Americans (69%) think individuals can improve the environment and reduce global warming by their actions. Only 18% disagree. Democrats (76%) are much more optimistic on environmental improvements than Republicans (57%).
Overall, most (78%) adults also believe that it's possible to develop major sources of energy that are environmentally-friendly. Just 6% say otherwise. A separate Rasmussen Reports survey found that 47% of Americans consider global warming a serious concern. However, people are divided as to the cause--47% believe human activity is to blame, while 34% think long-term planetary trends are the culprit.
After Sen. Nelson's efforts, thousands of colleges and universities organized protests against the deterioration of the environment. Groups that had been fighting against causes such as oil spills, pollution, toxic dumping, the use of pesticides, the loss of wilderness, and the extinction of wildlife joined together in the fight toward the common goal of lifting the status of environmental issues onto the world stage. In 1990, Earth Day gave a huge boost to recycling efforts worldwide and helped pave the way for the 1992 United Nations Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro.
As the 21st Century approached, Hayes focused his efforts on a new cause -- global warming and the push for clean energy. The 2000 Earth Day combined the big-picture feistiness of the first Earth Day with the international grassroots activism of Earth Day 1990. The Internet helped link activists around the world, and by the time April 22 rolled around, 5,000 environmental groups around the world were on board, reaching out to hundreds of millions of people in a record 184 countries.
Earth Day 2000 sent the message loud and clear that the world wanted quick and decisive action on clean energy. The 2007 celebration was one of the largest Earth Days to date, with an estimated billion people participating in the activities in thousands of places. Many organizations and are now involved with Earth Day, and some of the largest and most recognizable companies in the world contribute to the cause.
Google is asking people to share their ideas and get themselves plotted on a map, Yahoo is focusing its efforts on having people give and get things for free while reducing waste , MySpace is counting down to Earth Day by revealing tips provided by the MySpace community that will be part of a new book called "Our Planet," and Whole Foods Market is making its own statement by doing away with plastic bags for good at all of its stores starting Earth Day.
Source: AllHeadlineNews.com