22 Apr Charities to Support on Earth Day 2022
Today, we come together to celebrate Earth Day by recognizing the negative impact our society has on the planet, while also demonstrating how we can take action to protect the planet moving forward.
In the decades leading up to the first Earth Day, air and water pollution were commonly accepted, industries were mass-producing waste, and mainstream America remained oblivious to the growing amount of environmental concerns. The first Earth Day was celebrated on April 22, 1970, when Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson organized national teach-in demonstrations to raise awareness of the growing environmental issues. That year, almost 20 million Americans took to the streets, parks, and auditoriums, marking the birth of the modern environmental movement. While Earth Day originally began as a concept to educate people on how their actions impact the environment, it evolved to put environmental issues on the national policy agenda. In the following years, government representatives began to take note of the importance surrounding environmental issues, ultimately leading to several environmental policies being passed and the establishment of the Environmental Protection Agency. Finally, in 1990, Earth Day went global, bringing environmental issues onto the world stage by mobilizing over 200 million people across 141 countries.
As a day to create meaningful local, national, and global environmental policy changes, more than a billion people come together each year to celebrate Earth Day. Not only does Earth Day allow us to raise awareness of environmental issues but it also encourages us to enact real change. With the ravaging climate crisis beginning to have a significant impact on our daily lives, it is now more important than ever to come together and learn how to take action, educate others on environmental issues, and bring about meaningful change.
While the following is by no means an exhaustive list of organizations you can support, we hope it can help serve as a starting point.
Charities:
As the world’s largest recruiter of the environmental movement, the Earth Day Network is working to diversify, educate and activate the environmental movement worldwide.
EIN: 13-3798288
Known as a premier nonprofit public interest environmental law organization, Earthjustice is committed to preserving wildlife, combating climate change, and advancing clean energy.
EIN: 94-1730465
Actively placing conservation at the center of every project, the Conservation Fund works to protect America’s ecosystem to provide greater access to nature, strengthen local communities and enhance climate resiliency.
EIN: 51-1388917
The Natural Resources Defense Council
By combining the power of activists with the expertise of scientists, lawyers, and policy advocates, the Natural Defense Council internationally advocates for policies that support and protect the environment.
EIN: 13-2654926
The Nature Conservancy is a global environmental nonprofit that is committed to finding paths to solve climate change and biodiversity loss.
EIN: 53-0242652
Working at the intersection of business, agriculture, and forests, the Rainforest Alliance is striving to protect forests and improve the lives of farmers and forest communities.
EIN: 13-3377893
WCS works to save wildlife and wild places worldwide through science, global conservation, education and the management of the world’s largest system of urban wildlife parks.
EIN: 13-1740011
350.org is an international environmental organization that is addressing the climate crisis by working to end fossil fuel use and create a world built on community-led renewable energy for all.
EIN: 26-1150699