Earth Day 2012: When Is It And What Is It all About?

The global event is focused on building grassroots community activism to address some of the most pressing issues facing our planet, such as global warming, pollution, waste management, food supply, and energy production.

One of the common questions people ask is what they can do to participate in Earth Day.

The possibilities for getting involved are endless, reads a statement on the Earth Day Network's website. Volunteer. Go to a festival. Install solar panels on your roof. Organize an event in your community. Change a habit. Help launch a community garden. Communicate your priorities to your elected representatives. Do something nice for the Earth, have fun, meet new people, and make a difference.

The first Earth Day was held in 1970, and organized by the founders of the Earth Day Network, based in Washington, D.C. The non-profit organization says it works with over 22,000 partners in 192 countries year-round to help build public awareness of environmental issues around the globe.

Two of the EDN's primary environmental campaigns focus on greening U.S. schools and the global economy.

Its Green Schools Campaign aims to makes schools more energy efficient and water conserving, while also promoting education for students on environmental issues and fostering a sense of responsibility for the planet.

Greening the global economy is a much larger and difficult task, but EDN aims to keep a dialogue going among civil society and corporate and government leaders about how to transition from a petroleum-based economic system to one of clean and sustainable energy sources.

Our planet, our home is being neglected, reads a statement from EDN. Climate change continues unabated. It seems there's a new ecological disaster happening almost daily. This Earth Day it's time to mobilize the planet from the ground up to send a message that the Earth won't wait!