By Nneka Nwogwugwu and Abdulrahman Abdullahi
Earth Day aims to inspire awareness and appreciation for Earth’s environment. The United Nations calls the event International Mother Earth Day.
Earth Day is usually celebrated on April 22 with outdoor performances, where individuals or groups perform acts of service to Earth.
Typical ways of observing Earth Day include planting trees, picking up roadside trash, conducting various programs for recycling and conservation, and using recyclable containers for snacks and lunches.
Some people are encouraged to sign petitions to governments, calling for stronger or immediate action to stop global warming and to reverse environmental destruction. Television stations frequently air programs dealing with environmental issues.
Earth Day is not a public holiday. Transport schedules and opening hours for schools and businesses are not affected.
Earth Day, founded by Senator Gaylord Nelson, was first organized in 1970 to promote ecology and respect for life on the planet as well as to encourage awareness of the growing problems of air, water, and soil pollution.
Some people prefer to observe Earth Day around the time of the March equinox. In 1978, American anthropologist Margaret Mead added her support for the equinox Earth Day, founded by John McConnell. She stated that the selection of the March Equinox for Earth Day made planetary observance of a shared event possible.
Symbols used by people to describe Earth Day include an image or drawing of planet earth, a tree, a flower, leaves, or the recycling symbol. Colors used for Earth Day include natural colors such as green, brown, or blue.
The Earth Flag, which was designed by John McConnell, has been described as a “flag for all people.” It features a two-sided dye printed image of the Earth from space on a dark blue field, made from recyclable, weather-resistant polyester. Margaret Mead believed that a flag which showed the Earth as seen from space was appropriate.
All over the world, environmentalists have planned events to commemorate the celebration of the day.
After four years of disregard for the issue under former President Donald Trump, President Joe Biden will be hosting a virtual summit with dozens of world leaders on April 22 to April 23.
The summit will be “an opportunity for the U.S. to come back onto the scene to show it is taking climate change seriously,” said David Waskow, International Climate Initiative director at the World Resources Institute, a Washington-based environmental research and advocacy group.
The White House said it will announce an “ambitious” 2030 target for greenhouse gas emissions before the summit, Free Press reports.
Advocates are calling for a 50% cut from 2005 levels, a “highly ambitious but still achievable” goal, Hultman said.
And it would show other major polluters that the largest cumulative contributor to global warming is ready to take action.
Younger environmentalists are also not left behind as eight-year-old Licypriya Kangujam has taken climate issues to heart.
Initially motivated by natural disasters like the earthquake that struck Nepal in 2015, Licypriya’s climate crusade started at the age of six, when she attended the Third Asia Ministerial Conference of Disaster Risks Reduction. Today, her attempts validate, in part, the Earth Day Network’s (EDN) Earth Day 2021 theme – ‘Restore Our Earth’.
After actively lobbying state governments in India to follow Italy’s move to mandate climate education in schools, Licypriya’s efforts finally saw success. The state governments of Rajasthan and Gujarat confirmed that they will implement mandatory climate education for the 2020–21 academic year. The move also makes them the first in Asia to move in this direction.
In Nigeria, the Ekiti state government is partnering with a non-governmental organization to celebrate the day.
The organization, Triple G Eco-Revival solution stated that they are celebrating it by raising consciousness of the people and creating awareness about the import and essence of a clean environment to the availability of eco-facility and tourism traffic.
