We have to take care of the world around us. This is a big task, but we have to start somewhere. One day a year, people come together to celebrate Mother Earth by picking up litter and planting trees to reduce pollution and deforestation. Earth Day is a great way to get involved and make a difference. The first Earth Day was in 1970, when a senator from Wisconsin organized a rally to raise awareness about environmental issues. By the end of that year, the U.S. government had created the Environmental Protection Agency. In 1990, Earth Day had expanded to more than 140 countries around the world. Think about this: If you laid out all the trash trucks full of garbage that Americans throw away each year, they would stretch halfway to the moon. Toilet paper tubes are made from cardboard, which takes two months to decompose in a landfill. A plastic bottle can take 450 years to break down! Instead of throwing things in the trash can, consider whether you can turn them into something new. For instance, you can turn an old pair of shoes into a telescope or a flower pot. Before you throw anything away, think about how it might be re-purposed. You can also reduce waste by limiting your purchases to only what you need.

Earth Day is an annual event on April 22!

In 1969, the idea of Earth Day was born at a UNESCO conference. On March 21, 1970, the United Nations officially declared it a holiday.