Earth Day calls for commitment to renewable energy

On April 22 we celebrated the 55th anniversary of Earth Day, a powerful reminder of our collective responsibility to protect and preserve the planet for future generations. 

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

This year’s theme ‘OUR POWER, OUR PLANET’ calls for everyone to unite around renewable energy so we can triple clean electricity by 2030, ensuring cleaner air, improved health, and a more sustainable and equitable climate for generations to come.

Renewable energy comes from replenishable sources, like the sun, which do not produce greenhouse gasses and therefore do not drive climate change. It is energy that ends our reliance on fossil fuels and the damage they cause to both our environment and human health and wellbeing.

Forty-nine nations already generate more than half of their electricity from solar, wind, water, and geothermal resources, including New Zealand, Canada, Switzerland, Austria, Brazil, Norway, Sweden and Denmark. Iceland obtains 99.99 per cent of its electricity from renewable sources.

“For years we have been fed the lie that only fossil fuels can power the planet, that is not true,” said Denis Hayes, the organizer of the very first Earth Day, and Board Chair Emeritus of EARTHDAY.ORG. (EDO)

“By the 2030s the largest source of electricity generation on the planet will be solar power.”

“We need people power to support the big switch to renewable energy,” said Kathleen Rogers, President of EDO. “We encourage everyone to talk to your local mayor, boss, neighbors, community leaders, and local and national legislators, to explore and to champion switching to renewables.”

Grassroots power has always driven positive change — from the civil rights movement to advances in gender equality and Indigenous rights. The 20 million people who marched on Earth Day in 1970 sparked the modern environmental movement, leading to cleaner air, water, and wildlife protections. In 2024, EARTHDAY.ORG’s campaign for a reduction in global plastic production helped to win US Government support.

Renewable energy is not only cleaner and healthier — it represents a huge economic opportunity and will according to Earthday.org create 14 million new jobs globally. In 2023 renewable energy, worldwide, was worth USD$1.21 trillion and is projected to grow 17.2% annually from 2024 to 2030.

“Change can be daunting, but we must move away from our dependence on fossil fuels and embrace a sustainable future,” adds Rogers.

Click HERE for more info and to see how you can take action not just today, but every day.