Tri-State Area Commemorates Earth Day With Series Of Events
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- The 44th Anniversary of Earth Day is being commemorated with a series of events around the Tri-State area.
In New York, the state Department of Environmental Conservation is celebrating Earth Day with a weeklong series of events around the state. Activities include hikes, wildlife watching, tree-planting and educational exhibits.
Tri-State Area Commemorates Earth Day With Series Of Events
For a complete list of DEC events around the state, click here.
There are also several Earth Day events Tuesday in New York City, Westchester County and Long Island.
MORE: Fun Ways To Celebrate Earth Day In New York City
Three days of Earth Day celebrations will take place at Grand Central Terminal and Union Square with live performances, kids activities and more.
Other events include an Earth Day festival Tuesday afternoon in Queens and a gathering at Zuccotti Park in lower Manhattan.
Students at the Goddard School on the Upper West Side are celebrating Earth Day by using recycled materials to make skirts, hats and jewelry and will show them off in a fashion show later in the day.
In Yonkers, officials will begin posting "leave no trace" signs in parks and playgrounds and in New Jersey, a tree will be planted at City Hall in Newark.
There are a series of Earth Day events being held in Connecticut as well. For more information, click here.
NASA is celebrating Earth Day by encouraging people around the world to post a selfie with their local environment as a backdrop.
It says people can post their photos to Twitter, Instagram or Google+ using the hashtag #GlobalSelfie. NASA says any pics with the #GlobalSelfie tag will then be used to create a mosaic image of Earth.
For more information on the project, click here.
You can also watch a time-lapse video released by NASA of Earth in 2013:
Earth Day was founded by Wisconsin Sen. Gaylord Nelson in 1970 after he toured the devastation of the 1969 massive oil spill in Santa Barbara, California.
On April 22, 1970, demonstrations by an estimated 20 million Americans advocated for a healthy, sustainable environment.
DEC and the Environmental Protection Agency were created the same year as Earth Day and the Clean Air Act was enacted. The Clean Water Act and Endangered Species Act followed in 1972 and 1973.
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