Today we commemorate the 40th annual Earth Day, a cause for celebration but also a reminder that more work than ever remains to be done to protect our planet. As Rabbi Saperstein said today:
The environment we take for granted will not be here for our children and theirs if we fail to move swiftly away from fossil fuels that dirty our air and warm our planet. We have the resources and the willpower to move to a clean energy future, and as we celebrate this Earth Day we call on Congress and the President to lead the way.
We know we face great environmental challenges but also have incredible opportunities to do better, and protect people living in poverty, create green jobs, and encourage sustainable development worldwide in the process. (Read our full statement on the 40th annual Earth Day here.)
And while Earth Day is a great rallying point for all those working for a more sustainable future, we cannot speak up on this day alone. Yesterday we were proud to have Rabbi Saperstein’s words about our religious obligation to protect the earth published in a special section on environmental leadership in the Washington Post (read the full op-ed here or at the bottom of this post). Rabbi Saperstein’s op-ed, which appears alongside words from leaders like New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson, reminds us that, while Earth Day is important:
For many people of faith, the tradition of setting aside time to honor our environment and our work to guard it predates by centuries the modern-day environmental movement. Influential strands of our religious traditions have long argued that the treatment of our natural world is a pressing human and moral issue.
On this day, as every day, our Movement and our allies throughout the faith community speak out for a safe and healthy environmental future for all people; on this Earth Day we commit once again to work toward a future powered by clean sources of energy, in which all people enjoy abundant clean water and breathe clean air. We’ve made great progress since the first Earth Day, but together we remain dedicated to taking greater strides forward in the years to come.
It’s not too late to celebrate – plan an Earth Day event this weekend with our programmatic and advocacy resources, and let us know what you are doing to commemorate the 40th annual Earth Day!