earthday

‘Are you aware our present-day ‘green revolution’ is a relatively new phenomenon?’ It was in 1942 that Jerome Rodale published his Organic Farming and Gardening, renamed Organic Gardening. In 1949, Aldo Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac espoused ethical land usage and in 1962, Rachel Carson published Silent Spring, emphasizing the effect of pesticides on wildlife.

As a result, focus shift toward organic gardening: mass-produced organic grown farm produce, nontoxic methods for pest control, recycling in the form of composting, and regional natural garden designs. Recognizing the effect, gardeners not only respect an existing vista but began to preserve and enhance it; in other words, North American gardeners adopt the concept of being a caretaker of space, an ecological gardener.

Nevertheless, the average American still slurp leaded gas through massive V8 sedans. Industry belched out smoke and sludge with little fear of legal consequences or bad press. And, air pollution was commonly accepted as the smell of prosperity. More often, the environment was a word that appeared in spelling bees rather than on the evening news. Then, on April 22, 1970 an event occurred that ignited our present-day 21st. Century Green Revolution. Earth Day founder Gaylord Nelson, then a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, proposed the first nationwide environmental protest "to shake up the political establishment” and force this issue onto the national agenda.

More than 20 million Americans took to the streets, parks and auditoriums to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment. Groups that had been fighting against oil spills, polluting factories and power plants, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides, freeways, the loss of wilderness, and the extinction of wildlife suddenly became well-known.

On Wednesday the 22nd of 2009, what are you doing to mark this celebrated event, Earth Day? While you could choose to participate in publicly organized events, there is another option, create your own. Won’t you join me in an effort to inspire the opening of individual backyard garden gates? Together, let's celebrate the living green in our own backyard!

It's hard to believe that another year has passed, and today is Earthday again. That's right, it's Earthday 2008! Earthday is one of those days that always makes us stop and wonder, what is this day all about?

We first visited Senator Gaylord Nelson's account -- he was the founder, so he it seemed like a good place to start.

We then took the opportunity to visit some of our favorite sites to find out what others were seeing, thinking and how they were honoring Earthday today.

Planet Green had a few links to last minute Earthday events, suggesting that people were getting together in many different local celebrations.

WorldChanging wrote a fantastic piece about how the tone of the day has shifted from facts and figures about pollution, to discussions about solutions spanning business practices, innovative technologies, and lifestyle behaviors.

In one of our favorites posts of the day, JetsonGreen gives a simple photographic homage to the earth, and announces that he'll be publishing material from his readers all week.

And finally, we enjoyed the Earthday at theme at Youtube (where one of ours was featured on the front door--thanks youtube!), which allowed us to watch the living web celebrate Earthday around the world.

Please come check out the Share section of our site, and tell us what Earthday means to you, and how you spent the day.

Happy Earthday everyone!