Ecotourism and Earth Day Activities

Earth Day activities are where tourism and environmental issues can come together under the ecotourism banner. There are two strands to this - The natural effects of mother nature and the actions taken to limit environmental harm by humans.

Earth Day April 22, 2008 - Earth Day 2008 activities

Earth Day Activities 2007 - Calendar of events and featured Earth Day activities

The natural effects of mother nature - Earth Day activities

I believe that there are natural effects on humans which occur at certain times of the year such as the Spring Equinox. Those who follow such beliefs are said to be "tuned in" to mother nature. We may want to follow these beliefs by visiting icons and other representative physical points of reference in order to experience more directly these influences at the appropriate Earth time. It is this type of visit that I have categorised as Earth Holidays. The following are examples of Earth Day activities:

The Equinoctial Earth Day
The equinoctial Earth Day is celebrated on the vernal equinox to mark the precise moment that spring begins in the Northern Hemisphere and autumn in the Southern Hemisphere. On equinox, night and day are in equal length anywhere on Earth. Therefore, a perfectly vertical pole standing on the equator at noon during equinox will not cast a shadow. At the South Pole, the sun sets and ends a six-month-long day while at the North Pole, the sun rises and hence ending six months of continuous darkness.

Actions to limit environmental harm by humans - Earth Day activities

Earth Day activities - a global evironment

The United Nations marks Earth Day each year on the vernal equinox (around March 21). On February 26, 1971, UN Secretary-General U Thant signed a proclamation to that effect. At the moment of the equinox, it is traditional to observe the day by ringing the Japanese Peace Bell, a bell donated by Japan to the United Nations.[2] The United Nations also works with organizers of the April 22nd global event.

John McConnell first introduced the idea of a global holiday called Earth Day at a UNESCO Conference on the Environment in 1969, the same year that he designed the Earth flag. The first Earth Day proclamation was issued by San Francisco Mayor Joseph Alioto on March 21, 1970. U Thant supported John McConnell’s global initiative to celebrate this annual spring equinox event. Secretary General Waldheim observed Earth Day with similar ceremonies in 1972. The United Nations Earth Day ceremony continued each year on the day of the March equinox (20th or 21st), with the ringing of the U.N. Peace Bell at the very moment of the equinox.

Now observed in 175 countries and coordinated by the non-profit Earth Day Network, Earth Day activities comprise the largest secular holiday in the world. The first Earth Day is commonly credited with creating environmentalism, and/or giving a tremendous boost to the pre-existing conservation groups and the relatively new and radical grassroots ecology movement, as well as spurring the growth of environmentally sensitive spiritual paths such as Wicca and Neopaganism.

Earth Day Activities 2007 - Calendar of events and featured Earth Day activities

Earth Day April 22, 2008 - Earth Day 2008 activities

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