Earth Day 2022 All About Earth Day
Ocean Blue Project

Let us rewind to the 1960s when three pivotal events took place: Rachel Carson’s New York Times bestseller Silent Spring had been published, the Santa Barbara, California oil spill just happened, and less than half a year after the oil fire on the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, Ohio occurred. These events and many others led people to prioritize the environment, raise awareness, and make their voices heard.

Carson’s masterpiece, Silent Spring, explained the harmful effects chemical pesticides — a large part of agriculture in the United States — had on the planet. She detailed how pesticides such as DDT made their way up the food chain — from killing bugs to birds to even sickening children. This book played a crucial part in raising awareness regarding environmental deterioration.

Both disasters garnered plenty of media coverage, which was uncommon with previous events. People saw first-hand the damage from these environmental disasters from video footage and photographs taken in Santa Barbara of oil-soaked birds, deceased fish, and blackened beaches ridden with oil.

The second incident occurred five months later in Cleveland, Ohio. Cleveland was one of the oil refining centers in the United States, and its waterways were constantly in use. The Cuyahoga River oil fire only lasted for 30 minutes; however, within those 30 minutes, there was plenty of media coverage — even Time magazine covered the disaster.

Who Started Earth Day?

In 1969, with inspiration from the anti-Vietnam War teach-ins, taking place across college campuses in the United States, Senator Gaylord Nelson was one of the leaders to develop Earth Day. He was ready for change. At a conference in Seattle, Nelson spoke about the concept of Earth Day and invited everyone to get involved.

A young activist from Stanford named Denis Hayes had been selected as the national coordinator for Earth Day. Hayes worked alongside student volunteers and staff members from Senator Gaylord Nelson’s cabinet to make Earth Day a success.

Local communities and hundreds of schools fueled by pure passion led to the massive number of participants on the first Earth Day in 1970. Over 20 million people across the United States raised awareness to process our planet.

Earth Day Theme for 2022

Today, Earth Day is celebrated by over 1 billion people in more than 193 countries. The theme for Earth Day 2022 is “Invest in Our Planet.” What would it look like for the Ocean if we all offset our plastic use and invest in a clean world ocean? What if we all give $1 to Ocean Blue for every pound of plastic we use so Ocean Blue can recover a pound for every $1? How much less plastic would that look like for marine wildlife that call the ocean home?