BIRTH OF A FAR-REACHING AND LONG LASTING MOVEMENT

It was on April 22^nd 1970 that Earth Day gave birth to the modern-day environmental movement in the Untied States upon the initiative of Wisconsin senator, Gaylord Nelson.

At a time when automobiles ran on leaded gas, produced exhaust fumes and grease without fear of legal consequences or a deteriorated reputation and where air pollution was generally a symbol of prosperity, Earth Day turned around this order of affairs.

On that day, 20 million Americans marched and publicly demonstrated on behalf of a sound and sustainable environment via a very rare consensus. That is how Earth Day won the support of the major political parties and the population as a whole.

The first Earth Day was behind the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, as well as the devising of the Clean Air and Clean Water and the Endangered Species Acts.

Events, planting operations, Earth festivals, cleaning of rivers and beaches, cultural events and governmental initiatives led to thousands of activities occurring and in 1990 Earth Day attracted 300 million participants and 141 nations from around the world!

Today, Earth Day means:

More than 1 billion people implicated,

More than 17000 active members and 184 participating countries,

A genuine boost for global environmental stakes.