The day the earth went green

This year on the 22nd of April, the world will celebrate the 40th edition of “Earth Day”.The world earth day was founded in the 1970 by an American senator Gaylord Nelson. The United Nations picked up the trend the following year and officialised the event celebrating it every year on the spring equinox.
EDN (Earth Day Network) expect more than a billion people to participate in events and programs worldwide this year.
As the years go by, the necessity to raise awareness for our planets environmental issues seems to be more and more crucial. The Earth Day is the ideal excuse to promote green living, and point out the ecological flaws in our modern world.
After the Kyoto & Copenhagen summits failed to deliver substantial measures on Co2 cut down, and the lack of efforts made by governments of developed countries to tackle global warming, it is left to us, to become responsible consumers and raise awareness among our friends and family on the state of our planet.
Even if the event is a great way to broadcast the danger our planet is facing some of the measures used can be quite useless, like the “Earth Day Anthem” bellow.
“Joyful joyful we adore our Earth in all its wondermentSimple gifts of nature that all join into a paradiseNow we must absolve to protect herShow her our love throughout all timeWith our gentle hand and touch,…..”
Singing “Eco Hymns” on an acoustic guitar with your mates around a beach fire has never stopped an Iceberg from melting as far as I know.
One of the main problems seems to come from consumer behavior (our behavior), we buy more than we need, we always want faster, stronger, “better” products, we drive 4x4 when we could take the bus,…
So why not start to buy smart, recycle your belongings: buy second hand items and sell what you don’t need any more instead of throwing it away .Many internet sites like PriceMinister make selling online easy if you have never done it before.
When going food shopping, always favour local, natural, fresh products rather than microwave dishes (with containers made in Taiwan, beef from Texas, tomatoes from Spain,…). Take public transport as much as possible if you live in the city.
It’s all about realizing that every action has a consequence, no matter how small it is. We have to break loose of our old habits and rethink our world together.
The Earth day is great excuse to get out there and organize events, talk to your children about endangered species, raise money for an NGO and start looking towards a greener future.
Don’t underestimate your power to change world.