Our planet is truly a magnificent place. Known as the Blue Planet due to its abundance of water, the Earth is an incredibly complex and vibrant ecosystem, where living organisms interact with each other and their environment to create the ideal conditions for life. We have it all: it’s warm but not too warm, lots of water but again, not too much. It’s perfect. And it’s in trouble.

Which brings us to Earth Day on April 22nd every year.

In this day and age of instant information, we are finally beginning to understand the consequences of our actions and the impact they are having on our world and our survivability as a species. Wherever you look, nature is under assault and if we don’t take steps now to try and repair the damage, there might not be much of a world left for our children to pass onto theirs.

Did You Know?

• Rainforests once covered 14% of the earth’s land surface; now it’s only 6% and experts estimate that the last remaining rainforests could be consumed in less than 40 years.

• Experts estimate we are losing 137 plant, animal and insect species every single day.

• Every year, U.S. factories release over 3 million tons of toxic chemicals into the land, air and water.

Earth Day is important. It educates us about what we have and what we are losing by acting in ways that aren’t environmentally friendly or energy efficient. Earth Day reminds us that we need to take action now to protect our environment before it’s too late.

How Did Earth Day Begin?

The first one took place on April 22, 1970 and was launched by the trio of U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson (of Wisconsin), Harvard student Denis Hayes and a well-known Eco-activist named Paul Erlich, as a call to global environmental awareness. Although it started in the United States, Earth Day has since blossomed into an international celebration of our planet, observed by nearly 175 countries worldwide.

What Has Earth Day Accomplished?

Without it, some landmark accomplishments might never have happened, such as:

• The establishment of Environmental Protection Agency in 1970

• The Clean Air Act of 1970

• The Clean Water Act of 1972

• The Endangered Species Act of 1973

• The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976

• The Federal Occupational Health and Safety Act aimed at “in-plant pollution”.

What’s Happened Since Then?

Quite a lot, actually. Thanks to succeeding Earth Days, people have become more aware of the role that the environment plays in helping sustain life in this fragile world of ours and that we need to take an active role in protecting it. For instance, since that very first Earth Day in 1970, we now:

• Practice recycling, which was nearly non-existent 40 years ago.

• Have alternative, energy efficient forms of energy, such as CFL light bulbs

• In 1975, catalytic convertors became mandatory for all cars in the U.S.; and now we have hybrids and the first electric cars

• SO2 emissions have dropped by 40%

• Acid rain levels in the U.S. have decreased by 65% since 1976

• Depletion of the ozone layer has been controlled.

So why is Earth Day important? Watch your kids playing ball in the park; go for a walk in the woods with your dog; or simply stand in the backyard and fill your lungs with fresh air until they’re fit to burst. That’s why Earth Day is important.

Source: https://www.hersindex.com/articles/earth-day-why-its-important/

Discussion questions:

1. What did you find interesting from this article?

2. What things are you concerned about related to the environment?

3. How are you personally helping to preserve the environment on earth?

4. Share a few things that you learned ( from any source ) that you could apply to your daily life and help preserve the environment.

5. Why is Earth Day (saving the environment on earth) important to you?

世 界 地 球 日

我们的星球确实是一个宏伟的地方。地球因其丰富的水而被称为“蓝色星球”，是一个极其复杂而充满活力的生态系统，生物在其中相互影响，并与周围环境相互作用，为人们创造了理想的生活条件。我们拥有一切：温暖但又不太温暖，有很多水，但又不是太多。这是完美的星球，但是也有麻烦。

因此，我们就有每年的4月22日为我们的世界地球日。

在当今即时信息时代，我们终于开始了解我们的行动的后果以及它们对我们的世界以及我们作为一个物种的生存力所产生的影响。无论您在哪里看，大自然都在遭受攻击，如果我们现在不采取措施来修复破坏，那么我们的孩子可能就没有那么多的世界了。

你是否知道：

• 雨林（雨林是雨量甚多的生物区系）曾经覆盖了地球14％的土地； 现在只有6％，专家估计剩余的雨林可能会在不到40年的时间内会消失。

• 专家估计，我们每天都会损失137种动植物和昆虫。

• 每年，美国工厂向土地，空气和水中释放超过300万吨的有毒化学物质。

世界地球日很重要，在这一天让我们警觉我们现在所做的和想要做的，可能是既浪费能源又不环保。同时也提醒我们如果现在不采取行动，就可能为时过晚了。

世界地球日是怎么开始的？

第一次是在1970年4月22日，由美国参议员盖洛德·纳尔逊（威斯康星州），哈佛大学学生Denis Hayes和著名的生态活动家Paul Erlich三人共同发起，以唤起全球环保意识。 尽管地球日始于美国，但此后它已发展成为国际上对地球的庆祝活动，全球近175个国家都在庆祝。

世界地球日有些什么样的成就？

没有世界地球日，某一些里程碑式的成就可能永远不会发生。例如：

• 1970年成立环境保护局

• 1970年《清洁空气法》

• 1972年《清洁水法》

• 1973年濒危物种法

• 1976年资源保护和恢复法

• 《联邦职业健康与安全法》旨在“工厂内污染”。

从此之后发生了什么？

实际上，很多。 由于接连不断的“地球日”，人们变得更加意识到环境在帮助维持我们这个脆弱世界中的生命方面所起的作用，我们需要在保护环境方面发挥积极作用。 例如，自1970年第一个地球日起，我们现在：

• 尝试回收，这在40年前几乎不存在。

• 具有替代的节能形式的能源，例如组合式日光灯

• 1975年，催化转化器在美国成为所有汽车的必修产品。

• 现在我们有混合动力车和第一辆电动车

• 二氧化硫排放量下降了40％

• 自1976年以来，美国的酸雨水平下降了65％

• 臭氧层的消耗已得到控制。

那么为什么地球日很重要？ 看着孩子们在公园里打球； 和你的狗在树林里散步； 或者只是站在后院，让肺充分地吸满新鲜空气。 这就是为什么地球日很重要。

思考问题：

1. 您觉得本文中有哪些有趣的内容？

2. 您关心与环境相关的哪些方面？

3. 您个人如何保护地球环境？

4. 分享（从任何来源）学到的一些知识，这些知识可以应用于日常生活并有助于保护环境。

5. 为什么地球日（保护地球环境）对您很重要？