Every year, April 22 is celebrated as the global Earth Day. The year 2020 marks 50 years since the start of this environmental movement in 1970.

With the lockdown in place due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Earth Day has gone digital. The theme for this year is Climate Action.

Earth Day is being celebrated by different types of digital events, global conferences call to actions, performances, and video teach-ins to name a few. Moreover, many online activities will be focused on different environmental issues across the globe.

Earth Day 2020 will be far more than a day. It must be a historic moment when citizens of the world rise up in a united call for the creativity, innovation, ambition, and bravery that we need to meet our climate crisis and seize the enormous opportunities of a zero-carbon future.

20 million Americans participated on the first earth day

The first Earth Day in 1970 mobilized millions of Americans for the protection of the planet. On April 22, 1970, 20 million Americans — 10% of the U.S. population at the time — took to the streets, college campuses and hundreds of cities to protest environmental ignorance and demand a new way forward for our planet.

The first Earth Day is credited with launching the modern environmental movement and is now recognized as the planet’s largest civic event.

Earth Day led to the passage of landmark environmental laws in the United States, including the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Acts. Many countries soon adopted similar laws, and in 2016, the United Nations chose Earth Day as the day to sign the Paris Climate Agreement into force.

Climate Action!

The theme set for this year’s Earth Day is Climate Action. As glaciers continue to melt, droughts and floods increase, species go extinct, heat waves get intense, and weather patterns change, the call for climate action has grown louder than ever.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), has warned of severe impacts if the warming crosses 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. The change is majorly attributed to the increase in carbon emission over the past few decades due to human activities.

On the occasion of Earth Day, PM Modi sent out a tweet, expressing his gratitude towards Mother Earth and the abundant gifts she has showered on us. In the same tweet, he also called upon and lauded the efforts put in by COVID-19 warriors, who are working at the forefront against the Coronavirus pandemic.