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Have you ever been to an Earth Day Celebration? Earth Day began on April 22nd, 1970 and has been celebrated every year since. The original purpose of Earth Day was to bring different groups together to raise awareness about environmental issues.

Before Earth Day, there were different groups of people who focused on certain environmental issues. Some groups focused on protecting wildlife, regulating pesticides or recycling. Earth Day brought everyone together to show the world how important it was the care for the environment.

Gaylord Nelson, a Wisconsin Senator, came up with the idea of an Earth Day Rally that would force politicians and civilians to pay attention to the different issues affecting the planet. He recognized that everyone would have to work together to help the environment.

The first Earth Day was the beginning of a chain of events that would result in the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, a government supported agency that makes sure people follow rules that care for the environment. Earth Day also paved the way for the Clean Air, Clean Water and Endangered Species Acts.

Two big Earth Day celebrations happened in 1990 and 2000.

• Earth Day 1990 marked the 20th Anniversary of Earth Day and involved 200 million people in 141 countries, making environmental protection a global issue.
• Earth Day 2000 utilized the internet to help organize people across 184 countries. What began with 20 million Americans in 1970 grew to include hundreds of millions of people in 2000.

This year, Earth Day will again be celebrated April 22nd. The celebration kicks off April 19th in Washington DC with performances from musicians like the Flaming Lips and Los Lobos. Urban Impact will dance and environmental activists will speak to motivate people to contribute to environmental protection efforts in their cities.

How will you celebrate Earth Day?