For almost four decades now, on every April 22nd, we celebrate Earth Day as a reminder that the environment should be on our agenda not only as a one-day issue, but all year round. It’s a time for environmentalists to draw attention on the severe environmental problems we’re confronting with and the repercussions on all of us.

In 1969, Gaylord Nelson came with the proposal of a grassroots demonstration on the environment for the spring of 1970. Millions of Americans gathered on the streets, parks and other public places to express their support for a healthier environment that at the end of the day will benefit all of us.

"Rising concern about the environmental crisis is sweeping the nation's campuses with an intensity that may be on its way to eclipsing student discontent over the war in Vietnam...a national day of observance of environmental problems...is being planned for next spring...when a nationwide environmental 'teach-in'...coordinated from the office of Senator Gaylord Nelson is planned....," The New York Times reported at the time.

It was and still is a day of raising awareness on problems we’re confronting with, but maybe most of us choose to ignore. Toxic waste, air pollution, oil spills, endangered species, these are all elements that we’ve created, and we can’t fix as fast as we want to.

The amazing thing about the first celebration of Earth Day was that it gathered 20 million Americans showing support for a sustainable environment.

“Earth Day worked because of the spontaneous response at the grassroots level. We had neither the time nor resources to organize 20 million demonstrators and the thousands of schools and local communities that participated. That was the remarkable thing about Earth Day. It organized itself,” Nelson said.

Last year, almost 1 billion people participated in Earth Day activities all over the world, which was a sign that we’re becoming aware of the problems around us and we’re looking for ways to fix them before it is too late.

Greenhouse gas emissions and global warming have been among the most talked about subjects in the past years, and scientists call for more immediate solutions. Just last week, the Bush administration has been pressured to adopt a bill to combat global warming and stop the growth of greenhouse emissions by 2025.