Earth Day 2025
Fresno Bee April 17?
April 22 is Earth Day all over the world. If you missed the free festival at Fresno City College on Saturday April 12th, you can still find fun and informative events around town this month. The Fresno State Sustainability Club is sponsoring a Campus Earth Day on Monday April 21 from 10am-2pm. There will be live music, plants and free activities like screenprinting (bring your own t-shirt or sweatshirt). At the educational booths, you can find out what local groups are doing to address problems like plastic pollution, childhood asthma, climate change, water management and the need to protect natural habitats for a good future for the next generations.
If you have kids aged 5-17 they might enjoy the Tuesday April 22 event at the Frank H Ball Community Center from 3-5p. They can join a coloring contest, paint flower pots, make Dirt Cups, and help beautify the park. End the day with Glow in the Dark Dodgeball. Call (559) 621-7529 for more information.
The first Earth Day events in April 1970 gave voice to the growing public concern about the need to protect our water, air, soil and biodiversity. Huge participation in those teach-ins, rallies and marches lead to the Nixon administration's establishment of the Clean Air, Clean Water and Endangered Species Acts. The Environmental Protection Agency was also established at that time to provide accurate data and enforce regulations to keep our water and air clean. Unfortunately, the federal agency is undergoing major cuts and changes in policy that are likely to lead to increased pollution, health risks and a weakening of environmental protections. In these hyper partisan times, it can seem surprising that much of our major environmental laws came about under a Republican administration.
Back then, global warming and the climate chaos it causes were not yet in the public eye, though some scientists were trying to warn us beginning in the 1960s. Attention increased in 1988 after the well respected NASA scientist, James Hanson, testified before Congress about the risks of global warming from the gases released from burning oil, coal and gas. These days, awareness of climate (and air pollution) issues has grown; this year's International Earth Day theme is Our Power, Our Planet to highlight the need for less polluting energy solutions.
In our Valley, we are seeing some of our Republican members of Congress reach across the aisle to embrace common sense clean energy solutions. For example, Congressmembers Vince Fong (CA-20) and David Valadao (CA-22) recently signed a letter along with 19 other Republican Congress people asking the House Ways and Means Committee to preserve the clean energy tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act.
Even though this bill was passed by Democrats, millions of dollars are flowing to Republican districts, bringing good jobs and innovation in the clean energy industry to those areas. Clean energy tax credits are responsible for 50% of the reductions in greenhouse gas emissions expected from the Inflation Reduction Act. And that means cleaner air, energy independence and steps towards a more stable climate. You can look up your own district to see all the projects and jobs that are being funded by the Inflation Reduction Act. At the Fresno State Earth Day, you can get help to contact your member of Congress about this at the Citizens' Climate Lobby booth. At least stop by to make a jumping origami frog!
Check out more local earth day and environmental volunteer opportunities at https://allevents.in/fresno/earth-day and Ecocencal.org.
Andrea Farber De Zubiria is a healthcare provider and concerned grandparent. She volunteers with Citizens' Climate Lobby Fresno and the League of Women Voters of Fresno, non partisan, non profit organizations.
