Earth Day is the designation of April 22 as a day to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth's environment. Earth day was a day founded by U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson as an environmental teach-in held on April 22, 1970. While this first Earth Day was focused on the United States, an organization launched by Denis Hayes, who was the original national coordinator in 1970, took it international in 1990 and organized events in 141 nations. Earth Day is now coordinated globally by the Earth Day Network, and is celebrated in more than 175 countries every year.

April 22 corresponds to spring (season) in the Northern Hemisphere and autumn in the Southern Hemisphere. Numerous communities celebrate Earth Week, an entire week of activities focused on environmental issues. World Environment Day, celebrated on June 5 in a different nation every year, remains the principal United Nations environmental observance.

世界地球日即每年的4月22日，是一項世界性的環境保護活動。

活動起源于美國。1970年4月22日，在美國民主黨參議員蓋洛德?尼爾森（Gaylord Nelson）和哈佛大學學生丹尼斯?海斯的倡議和組織下，美國數十萬群眾參與了聲勢浩大的“地球日”活動，呼吁創造一個清潔、簡單、和平的生活環境。作為現代環保運動的開端，“地球日”活動推動了多個國家環境法規的建立。

1990年4月22日，全球140多個國家、2億多人同時在世界各地舉行形式多樣的環境保護宣傳活動，呼吁改善全球整體環境。這項活動得到了聯合國的肯定。

2009年4月22日，第63屆聯合國大會一致通過決議，決定將今后每年的4月22日定為“世界地球日”。

（中國日報網英語點津 Helen 編輯）