Earth Day 2022 – A day for our Earth

For 52 years, Earth Day has been celebrated on 22 April in over 190 countries. The aim of the day is to raise people’s awareness of the importance of the Earth and the ecosystem and the consequences of environmental degradation in all its facets. People should rethink their own behaviour and question their everyday conduct.

Every year there is a different Earth Day motto. The motto for Earth Day 2022 is «Invest in our Planet». In order to keep global temperatures below 1.5 °C, net greenhouse gas emissions must fall to zero by mid-century. One important solution to this is to make businesses sustainable. Corporate sustainability impacts not only climate change and all of us, but also themselves. Companies that develop strong environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards have better profitability, better financial performance, happier employees and more stable share performance.

In contrast to the international motto of «Earth Day 22», the motto of «Earth Day 22» in Germany is «Your clothes make the man». On the one hand, the campaign aims to raise awareness among consumers and encourage them to dress sustainably, wear their clothes longer and dispose of them in an environmentally friendly way. The campaign calls on consumers to invest sustainably in our planet, because it is our only home. The choice of theme was not accidental, as the fashion industry is responsible for a large proportion of global emissions. Sustainability in the fashion industry covers many aspects: the processing of textiles, the use of ingredients without animal testing, the treatment of our planet, people, the use of materials, etc.

Actions on Earth Day

In Germany, various projects have been launched every year since 1997, especially for the younger generations, which not only draw attention to the problems, but also enable them to actively shape and participate in projects. Topics such as sustainable nutrition, dealing with increasing waste pollution or decreasing biodiversity are addressed. For example, the project «Bee2025» was launched to address the acute death of bees and how this can be prevented.