Thursday is Earth Day, when people around the world gather to celebrate the planet’s environment and raise public awareness about pollution. This year’s theme is Restore Our Earth and focuses on restoring the world’s ecosystems through natural processes, emerging green technologies and innovative thinking.
To mark the occasion, Google has created a video Doodle that highlights how we can all have a hand in helping create a brighter future for the planet. Our environment sustains us, and as Google points out, we can return the favor — one sapling at a time.
Through their leaves and their bark, trees help slow climate change and improve air quality by absorbing carbon dioxide, one of the major contributing elements to the greenhouse effect. They also help preserve soil and support wildlife.
The Doodle shows a variety to trees being planted, which could help mitigate climate change. A study published in the journal Science in 2019 found that by planting more than half a trillion trees, we could capture about 205 gigatons of carbon, reducing atmospheric carbon by about 25% and negating about half of all carbon emitted by humans since 1960.
EarthDay.org, the nonprofit that organizes the celebration each year, is hosting a livestreamed event Thursday that’ll include workshops, panel discussions and special musical performances reflecting this year’s theme. The event starts at 9 a.m. PT and will feature world climate leaders, activists, industry leaders and artists.