Restore Our Earth: World Earth Day 2021

Thursday April 22nd is Earth Day. This year’s theme is ‘Restore Our Earth’.

Earth Day was first observed in 1970, when 20 million took to the streets to protest against environmental degradation. The event was triggered by the 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill, as well as other global issues like increased smog levels and polluted rivers. For over the next half century, Earth Day continued to play an important role in environmental activism.

This year marks the 51st anniversary of the international event celebrated around the world to pledge support for environmental protection.  The landmark Paris Agreement, was signed on Earth Day 2016 and brings almost 200 countries together to set a common target to reduce global greenhouse emissions.

But most importantly of all, this day provides an opportunity to raise public awareness around the world to the challenges regarding the safety and protection of our planet and all the life it supports.

This Earth Day, Google has published a doodle on its homepage of a woman reading a book under a large tree while her daughter carries a sapling to plant. A video of the doodle shows people teaching their young ones to plant trees, a lesson passed from one generation to the next.

“This year’s annual Earth Day Doodle highlights how everyone can plant the seed to a brighter future — one sapling at a time!” Google wrote.

“This Earth Day — and everyday — we encourage everyone to find one small act they can do to restore our Earth. It’s bound to take root and blossom into something beautiful,” the company added.

According to the United Nations, International Mother Earth Day is celebrated to remind each of us that the Earth and its ecosystems provide us with life and sustenance. This Day also recognizes a collective responsibility, to promote harmony with nature and the Earth to achieve a balance among the economic, social and environmental needs of present and future generations of humanity.

“Recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic is a chance to set the world on a cleaner, greener, more sustainable path,” said UN Secretary-General António Guterres in a statement.

Header Image: Anna Shvets/Pexels