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Celebrate Earth Day on April 22 with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and learn ways you can engage to make a better planet for fish, wildlife, their habitats and people.
Since 1970, Earth Day [6] has been observed around the globe each spring as a day to raise environmental awareness and involve citizens and communities in creating a cleaner, healthier world.
Growing out of the burgeoning global environmental movement of the 1950s and 1960s, Earth Day played a pivotal role in shaping the modern environmental consciousness, moving it from counterculture to mainstream and helping drive the push towards recycling, fuel-efficient cars and renewable energy that we take for granted today. It foreshadowed formation of the U.S. EPA and legislation such as the Endangered Species Act and Marine Mammal Protection Act that still play significant roles in protecting wildlife and their habitats.
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While climate change is perhaps the greatest ecological challenge of our time, Earth Day reminds us that we all can take steps to help protect the environment, which touches the human spirit, contributes to human health and well-being and promotes a healthy economy.
This year, take action on Earth Day by checking out our Web pages here featuring eco tips, podcasts and numerous ways to get involved. In addition, you will find a host of fun and meaningful activities taking place around the country at wildlife refuges, fish hatcheries, ecological field stations, as well as partner events in local towns, parks and surrounding areas.
Can’t find an event near you? There’s plenty you can do at home, in your neighborhood and with your families and friends. On the Service’s Earth Day pages, you will find a range of easy to do action items. Plant a tree, remove invasive plants, clean-up a beach…the opportunities are endless! Get started now and read our 20 eco tips for easy ways you can take action.
Earth Day remains a day to honor our planet and build a healthy environment for future generations.