April has many celebrations, including Earth Day, which had its inaugural event in 1970. It was two years later when the event’s banner image, the “Blue Marble” photograph, was captured by the crew of the Apollo 17 spacecraft 28,000 miles from Earth on its way to the moon.
The world had its first look at the now famous photo on Christmas Eve 1972, although it did not make front-page news due to coverage of the Vietnam War and the death of former President Harry Truman.
For photography buffs, a Hasselblad camera and Zeiss lens were used to take the awe-inspiring photograph with its solid black background of space, which was the last ever taken by an astronaut using analogue film. To this day, the crew has remained silent about who clicked the shutter.
The Blue Marble has been used on the cover of books and featured on a stamp, and it also became a symbol of science and technology. And it was adopted by activist groups and annual events such as Earth Day.
Twenty million people participated in the first Earth Day, which was organized by Wisconsin Sen. Gaylord Nelson and Harvard student Denis Hayes on April 22, 1970, to educate participants in the importance of environmental conservation.
Two decades later, Earth Day was celebrated by 200 million participants in 140 countries. Today’s organizers say the event brings together more than 20,000 partners, 190 countries and over 1 billion people — one of the biggest secular events in the world.
The theme for this year’s Earth Day is “Invest in Our Planet.” It never hurts to be reminded how important it is to reduce, reuse, recycle and renew.
It’s also a time for children and adults to do something special, from taking part in Earth Day birthdays and music festivals to helping in beach cleanups and tree planting. Trees are considered to be one of the most beneficial for the planet, and gratefully our community is filled with them.
Two of my favorite spots that are perfect for celebrating Earth Day are in Laguna Niguel and Mission Viejo. If you haven’t visited the Niguel Botanical Preserve on Crown Valley Parkway, volunteers are always welcome Saturdays from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. to help plant, weed and clean up areas of the preserve. The city of Mission Viejo is sponsoring a tree-planting event near Oso Creek Trail plus a Green Expo from 8 a.m. to noon.
However, regardless of where you were and what you did on April 22, remember that Earth Day should be celebrated each and every day. Our planet depends on us.
Writer, editor and speaker Cheryl Russell is a Laguna Woods Village resident. Contact her at Cheryl@starheart.com.
