Earth Day started in the United States in 1970, with 20 million Americans taking to the streets in coast-to-coast rallies.  It was a rare, across the political spectrum, beginning to a new politically and socially active emerging awareness of the needs of the Earth and our future.

In 1990, the movement went international with 200 million people in 141 countries participating. In the year 2000, it involved 184 countries and 5,000 environmental groups around the world with hundreds of millions of people involved.   Now it is the largest secular observance in the world, with more than a billion people advocating for our world and the future of life.   

This celebration and call to action on so many fronts represents a dramatic shift in the consciousness of humanity.  As a "Mass Extinction" of life is in progress on the planet, humanity is recognizing our dependence, connection and responsibility for the world and for the future.