Earth Day - April 22

➡️ EARTH DAY, April 22 - #OurPowerOurPlanet

Earth Day is now the largest international civic event on the planet, as millions stand up to safeguard our planet and build a better future. Now in its 56th year, the event began in 1970 as millions of Americans united to stand against rampant pollution and indifference towards environmental protection.

Today, over 1 billion people across 200 countries participate in Earth Day activities.

The Global Tipping Points Report in 2025 revealed that we have already crossed the first major tipping point, the widespread mortality of warm-water coral reefs, with several others on the brink of tipping.

"We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children." - Native American Proverb

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Jump straight to our resources on ➡️ Earth Day

Explore our comprehensive guides on -

• Environment & Nature

• The Climate Crisis

• The 2015 Paris Climate Agreement

• The United Nations Climate Conferences (COP)

• The Plastics Crisis & UN Treaty on Plastic Pollution

• The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

• The Fossil Fuel Industry & Renewable Alternatives

• The Biodiversity Crisis

German speakers are invited to visit our partner site, Bessere Welt Info.

Earth Day continues to raise huge public awareness and has led to the establishment of major landmark environmental laws in the U.S., such as the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Acts. The first nationwide demonstration sparked political action, which led to the creation of the EPA. Earth Day also played a pivotal role in creating global commitments such as the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change.

The 2026 theme 'Our Power Our Planet' emphasises that real change does not always come from policy negotiations, but rather from everyday people, community leaders, and activists. Local grassroots efforts add up to create lasting, sustainable change.

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The State of Our Planet

• The Earth is approximately 1.42°C warmer than pre-industrial levels.

• Greenhouse gas emissions reached a record high of 57.7 gigatonnes in 2024.

• The ocean absorbs 90% of the planet's excess heat, resulting in a 30-40% increase in its acidity.

• Ice sheets and glaciers are losing about 1.2 trillion tons of ice annually.

• Sea levels are rising at an accelerating rate of 4.4mm per year.

• Humanity is using resources 1.7 times faster than the planet can regenerate them.

• An estimated 11.2 billion tonnes of waste are generated annually. Only 9% of all plastic ever produced is being recycled.

• Total fossil fuel consumption remains roughly 31 times higher than wind and solar.

• Global wildlife populations have declined by an average of 73% between 1970 and 2020.

• Approximately 1 million animal and plant species are now threatened with extinction, many within the next few decades.

• Sustainable Development Goal 13, Climate Action, is severely off track. Wars and global crises have hindered international cooperation, and investment in climate solutions needs to increase by 58% for us to reach a net-zero pathway.

What are the Planet's Most Pressing Environmental Issues?

CLIMATE CRISIS

Climate change is now the single biggest health threat facing humanity.

Extreme weather events have become more frequent and severe due to climate change. The Emergency Events Database reports a record rise in natural disasters globally since the 1960s, detailing over 26,000 mass disasters.

The consequences of climate change include wildfires, rising sea levels, hurricanes, flooding, heatwaves, melting of the Arctic and Antarctic ice, drought, hunger, increased conflict over land, the widespread displacement of climate refugees, and the huge financial cost of inaction.

There are currently 250 million people displaced by environmental changes.

A 2024 report by the International Chamber of Commerce estimates that climate-related extreme weather events have cost the global economy more than $2 trillion over the past decade.

BIODIVERSITY LOSS

Biodiversity loss refers to the decline in the biological diversity of all living things on the planet. It encompasses endangered animals but also the loss of their habitats, their food supply, and everything around them that they need to survive.

We are in the midst of a biodiversity crisis caused by large-scale land use changes for agricultural systems, the illegal wildlife trade, the logging industry, wildfires, ocean pollution, coral bleaching, deforestation, intensive farming, and climate change.

Nature provides the very foundation that humans need to survive, yet we continue to exploit it beyond sustainable limits.

PLASTIC POLLUTION

The world produces around 430 million tonnes of plastic waste a year. Fourteen million tonnes of it end up in our oceans. As the vast majority of plastics are not recycled and take between 20 and 500 years to decompose, this is one of our biggest environmental problems.

Plastic is one of the world's most devastating marketing failures. Future generations will be left dealing with the irreversible effects of today's irresponsibility for their whole lives.

Microplastics are found in water, soil and the air. In 2020, an estimated 2.7 million tonnes of microplastics seeped into the environment. This amount is expected to double by 2040. Microplastics are incredibly damaging to plants, animals, humans, and the wider environment.

AIR POLLUTION

Air pollution kills an estimated seven million people worldwide every year. Nine out of 10 people worldwide are breathing in high levels of pollutants, with Bangladesh, Pakistan, and India taking the top spots as the most polluted countries. In these places, air pollution cuts life expectancy by 5 years.

Industrial emissions, transport, and waste burning are the biggest contributors, which are then exacerbated by poor governmental regulation, ageing infrastructure, and insufficient healthcare.

FOOD & WATER INSECURITY

An estimated 800 million people suffer from chronic hunger due to decades of unsustainable farming practices, the impacts of climate change, massive economic inequalities, and rampant food waste.

The world currently produces enough calories to feed the entire population, yet we are facing an unprecedented hunger crisis. Sudan, South Sudan, Yemen, and the Gaza Strip are all experiencing crisis-level food shortages.

Topsoil laden with fertilisers and pesticides is being eroded 100 times faster than it can naturally be replenished. As well as seriously limiting the soil's ability to produce food, it is also a key factor in the contamination of drinking water.

Roughly 2.2 billion people, one in four globally, lack access to safely managed drinking water. Driven by climate change, population growth, and poor management, the world is entering a water crisis in which 4 billion people face severe water scarcity for at least 1 month of the year.

NUCLEAR WEAPONS & WAR

The military is one of the largest consumers of fossil fuels, as tanks, aircraft, ships, submarines, and other vehicles consume vast amounts of fuel on their warpath. It now accounts for 6% of global greenhouse gas emissions, not to mention the devastating impact it has on the environment, water sources, and biodiversity.

With military spending reaching unprecedented highs of $2718 billion in 2024, the focus of militaries around the world is very much on expansion and upgrades, with emission reductions and environmental considerations a mere afterthought.

Oil is fuelling today's national security. In the ultimate paradox, military actions are not only a cause of the climate crisis, but the climate crisis is now officially a cause of war.

In war, ecocide has been used for decades to cripple the enemy and civilian populations. A population simply cannot survive without a healthy and clean environment.

Clean air, safe water, fertile soil, and arable land sustain life. Without these things, the survival and well-being of a population, its ecosystems, and biodiversity are at serious risk.

The scorched earth policy is a military strategy to destroy anything of value which might enable armed forces or civilians to fight a war. It is considered a war crime under modern international humanitarian law.

Even just one nuclear warhead is capable of destroying an entire city and all of its inhabitants. Radiation exposure results in devastating long-term health implications, birth defects, and untold damage to the environment and atmosphere. Fallout contamination remains a hazard for many decades.

A study by International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW) calculated that the detonation of 100 nukes would lead to a nuclear winter and the starvation of 2 billion people. The predicted 9% reduction in rainfall and cooling temperatures would be enough to trigger global crop failures and famine.

How Can I Get Involved In Earth Day?

• Join activities prepared by environmental organisations near you.

• Plant trees, join or organise a local litter collection or clean up.

• Show your support at a local protest.

• Get active on social media, spread awareness and use your voice.

• Write to representatives in your country responsible for environmental and climate policy.

• Share Better World Info's platforms for Earth Day and the Climate Crisis with your peers.

• Use the Earth Day tool kits for further inspiration.

While individual actions may seem small, global participation in Earth Day creates a powerful force for change, influencing policy, corporate practices and raising public awareness of environmental issues that require the urgent attention and action of global leaders.

Earth Day For A Better World

As an essential platform for dialogue among nations, Earth Day helps to foster a collaborative approach to address global environmental challenges and push for stronger environmental governance and commitments.

It serves as a call to action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, end fossil fuel subsidies, transition to renewable energy sources, protect the planet's precious natural resources, end nuclear proliferation, and divest from the military.

This Earth Day, let us commit to the future of our planet for a healthy, sustainable, equitable, prosperous, and peaceful future for everyone.

"What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make" - Jane Goodall

Author: Rachael Mellor, 22.04.24 (Updated 02.04.26) licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

For further reading on Earth Day see below ⬇️