Earth Day 2021, And The Global Climate Summit

 

The first Earth Day was celebrated on April 22, 1970, and marked the beginning of the organized environmental movement.  Much of what flowed from that era -- the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act -- has made us safer and healthier.  But with the abandonment of the Paris Climate agreement and environmental and wildlife regulations being rolled back or eliminated under the former guy's anti- environment administration, much progress was halted or reversed.

Until now.

From the EARTHDAY.ORG toolkit:

EARTHDAY.ORG’s theme for Earth Day 2021 is Restore Our Earth™, which focuses on natural processes, emerging green technologies, and innovative thinking that can restore the world’s ecosystems. In this way, the theme rejects the notion that mitigation or adaptation are the only ways to address climate change. It is up to each and every one of us to Restore Our Earth not just because we care about the natural world, but because we live on it. We all need a healthy Earth to support our jobs, livelihoods, health & survival, and happiness. A healthy planet is not an option — it is a necessity.

More than 1 billion people in 192 countries now participate in Earth Day activities each year, making it the largest civic observance in the world. Today, we invite you to be a part of Earth Day and to help further climate action across the globe.

Today is also the day the Biden Administration is convening a virtual Global Climate Summit with 40 other world leaders.  Immediately upon taking office, the Biden Administration established its priority of taking on global climate change, starting with rejoining the Paris Climate agreement and by issuing a series of Executive Orders putting the full power of the Executive Branch behind that effort.   The summit is President Biden's initial international meeting, in which he will set greenhouse gas emission goals for the United States:

President Joe Biden on Thursday will kick off a climate summit attended by 40 other world leaders by announcing an ambitious cut in greenhouse gas emissions as he looks to put the US back at the center of the global effort to address the climate crisis and curb carbon emissions.

At the White House summit, which will take place virtually on Thursday and Friday, Biden will commit the United States to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by 50%-52% below its 2005 emissions levels by 2030.

Officials said Biden and his team arrived at the final number in a meeting at the White House on Wednesday morning.

The figures were struck after lengthy consultations with government agencies, scientists, industry representatives, governors, mayors and environmental researchers. The move underscores the President's commitment to addressing the climate crisis and follows on his pledge to work with other countries to find joint solutions to global issues.

We have a lot to be hopeful about, but we also have a long, long way to go and many powerful, reactionary forces to defeat before we can "Restore Our Planet." Having an American administration that wants to lead, and that believes in science and believes in climate change, makes an important, positive difference.  If there's ever been an inflection point in that struggle, this surely must be it.