Earth Day Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Earth Day
The unofficial Earth Flag created by John McConnell includes The Blue Marble photograph taken by the crew of Apollo 17.
Significance	Support for environmental protection
Begins	1970
Date	April 22
Next time	April 22, 2026 (2026-04-22)
Frequency	Annual

Earth Day is an annual event on April 22 to demonstrate support for environmental protection. First held on April 22, 1970, it now includes a wide range of events coordinated globally by Earthday.org (formerly Earth Day Network) including 1 billion people in more than 193 countries. Earth Day celebrated its 55th anniversary in 2025.

History
Interesting facts about Earth Day
Earth Day 2024
Earth Day Canada
Significance of April 22
Related pages
Images for kids
See also

History

In 1969 at a UNESCO Conference in San Francisco, peace activist John McConnell proposed a day to honor the Earth and the concept of peace, to first be observed on March 21, 1970, the first day of spring in the northern hemisphere. This day of nature's equipoise was later sanctioned in a proclamation written by McConnell and signed by Secretary General U Thant at the United Nations. A month later, United States Senator Gaylord Nelson proposed the idea to hold a nationwide environmental teach-in on April 22, 1970. He hired a young activist, Denis Hayes, to be the National Coordinator. Nelson and Hayes renamed the event "Earth Day". Denis and his staff grew the event beyond the original idea for a teach-in to include the entire United States. More than 20 million people poured out on the streets.

The first Earth Day was focused on the United States. In 1990, Denis Hayes, the original national coordinator in 1970, took it international and organized events in 141 nations.

Interesting facts about Earth Day

Julien Koenig, an American copywriter known for his creative advertising campaigns, is credited with choosing the name for the event. Other suggested names were "Ecology Day," "Environment Day, and "E Day." Koenig said that his personal favorite was Earth Day – in part because April 22 happened to be his birthday, and "birthday" rhymes with "Earth Day." Nelson and Hayes agreed and that's how the event got its present name.
Earth Day is now observed in 192 countries, and coordinated by the nonprofit Earthday.org (formerly Earth Day Network).
The first Earth Day remains the largest single-day protest in human history.
On Earth Day 2016, the landmark Paris Agreement was signed by the United States, the United Kingdom, China, and 120 other countries.
On Earth Day 2020, over 100 million people around the world observed the 50th anniversary in what is being referred to as the largest online mass mobilization in history.
A similar but separate event, World Environment Day, is organized by the United Nations and observed annually on June 5.
Nelson was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom award in recognition of his work.

Earth Day 2024

The theme for Earthday.org 2024 is Planet vs. Plastics and to mark that Earthday.org has called for a 60% global reduction in plastic production by 2040.

In November 2023, to bring public attention to the health threat that microplastics pose, earthday.org released its report Babies vs. Plastics, which collated some of the latest science on the subject. The Guardian newspaper carried an Op Ed about the report highlighting that it is the children of the Global South who are being the most impacted by exposure to microplastics.

Earth Day Canada

Paul Tinari officially launched the first Canadian Earth Day on September 11, 1980 – included are Flora MacDonald MP, Ken Keyes and Dr. Ronald Watts

The first Canadian Earth Day (French: Jour de la Terre) was held on Thursday, September 11, 1980, and was organized by Paul D. Tinari, then a graduate student in Engineering Physics/Solar Engineering at Queen's University. Flora MacDonald, then MP for Kingston and the Islands and former Canadian Secretary of State for External Affairs, officially opened Earth Day Week on September 6, 1980, with a ceremonial tree planting and encouraged MPs and MPPs across the country to declare a cross-Canada annual Earth Day. The principal activities taking place on the first Earth Day included educational lectures given by experts in various environmental fields, garbage and litter pick-up by students along city roads and highways, and tree plantings to replace the trees killed by Dutch elm disease.

Significance of April 22

NASA-14147-EarthDay20140422-GlobalSelfie-20140522

Global selfie – Earth Day, April 22, 2014.

Nelson chose the date to maximize participation on college campuses for what he conceived as an "environmental teach-in". He determined the week of April 19–25 was the best bet as it did not fall during exams or spring breaks. Moreover, it did not conflict with religious holidays such as Easter or Passover, and was late enough in spring to have decent weather. More students were likely to be in class, and there would be less competition with other mid-week events – so he chose Wednesday, April 22. The day also fell after the anniversary of the birth of noted conservationist John Muir. The National Park Service, John Muir National Historic Site, has a celebration every year on or around Earth Day (April 21, 22 or 23), called Birthday–Earth Day, in recognition of Earth Day and John Muir's contribution to the collective consciousness of environmentalism and conservation.

Images for kids

President Richard Nixon and First Lady Pat Nixon plant a tree on the White House South Lawn to recognize the first Earth Day.
U.S. Senator Edmund Muskie speaking at Fairmount Park, Philadelphia on Earth Day, 1970
The official logo of the Mount Everest Earth Day 20 International Peace Climb
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres addresses the Leaders Summit on Climate
Volunteers at Sure We Can clean McKibbin Street for Earth Day 2021

Earth Day facts for kids

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