CELEBS JOIN EARTH DAY NETWORK’S BILLION ACTS OF GREEN® CAMPAIGN

EARTH DAY 2011 WILL BE OBSERVED THIS FRIDAY, APRIL 22 AROUND THE WORLD (Washington, DC – April 21, 2011) — Eco-minded celebrities have joined Earth Day Network’s Billion Acts of Green® Campaign, along with millions around the world, proving that people everywhere are eager to act in unity to support a sustainable future.  Leonardo DiCaprio, Jewel, Ed Begley, Jr., Sienna Miller, Matthew Modine, Maria Menounos, Edward Norton and Ian Somerhalder are among the many who have “committed” more than over 100 million Acts of Green since the campaign kicked off last Earth Day during the Climate Rally on the National Mall in Washington, DC (participants included Sting, The Roots, Joss Stone, James Cameron). “The tremendous influence of these notable activists is an inspiration and a reminder that we all have a responsibility to contribute our time, talents and voices to preserving the planet we all call home,” said Kathleen Rogers, President of Earth Day Network. The following celebrities have registered their Act of Green at www.billionactsofgreen.org in hopes of inspiring others to do the same: Leonardo DiCaprio – An avid environmentalist, DiCaprio pledged $1 million to World Wildlife Fund for urgent tiger conservation. DiCaprio and the WWF teamed up to launch www.SaveTigersNow.org, where supporters can learn more about the rapidly dwindling tiger population, why tigers are important to the planet and humanity, and how to take action to prevent this species from going extinct. Jewel – Volunteered to perform at a benefit concert for the Clearwater Project to raise funds to provide education to people in developing countries about their right to have access to clean water. Ed Begley, Jr. –Chooses to ride a bike when weather and fitness permit and takes public transportation if available to cut down on traffic and pollution and lessen our dependence on foreign oil. Sienna Miller – Visited India as a Green ambassador for Global Cool to help raise awareness among the people of India about the harmful effects of global warming. Matthew Modine– A well known environmental activist, Matthew has most recently designated that all the proceeds from opening weekend of the new, animated film MIA AND THE MIGOO will support Earth Day Network’s Canopy Project, which is part of the Billion Acts of Green Campaign. The movie opens in theaters on Earth Day, 4/22/11. Maria Menounos– Her commitment to organic gardening and carrying the message forward in her book, The EveryGirl’s Guide to Life. Last year, Maria also spoke at the Earth Day Network’s Climate Rally in Washington, DC about the health and cost effectiveness of greener living through things such as home gardening. Edward Norton – Ran the New York City Marathon with a team of Maasai warriors in support of the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust, raising over $1 million through his site, Crowdrise.com. Crowdrise is a place for online fundraising, event fundraising, volunteering and having the most fun in the world while doing it. Ian Somerhalder – Created the IS Foundation to educate and collaborate with people and projects to positively impact the planet and its creatures – the organization recently collaborated with Conservation International to save over 300 acres of forest. Kelly Preston – Chosen to highlight her work with The Earth Organization as her addition to the Billion Acts of Green Campaign for Earth Day 2011 Brandi Carlile – Established The Looking Out Foundation to financially support causes and organizations including many environmental groups.  She pledged to continue offsetting the carbon emissions from her tour. Leilani Munter – Pledged to “continue to adopt an acre of rainforest for every race I run, which I have been doing since 2007. Represent green companies on my race car and spread environmental awareness to the 75 million race fans in the USA.” This year, Earth Day will be celebrated on Friday, April 22, 2011. Earth Day Network has designated one day in April – Earth Day – as the annual culmination of their year-round efforts to recruit world leaders to adopt strong environmental policy, partner with like-minded organizations, and engage individuals and communities as environmental caretakers who are accountable for their levels of energy consumption. THE BILLION ACTS OF GREEN® CAMPAIGN: Last year on the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day, the Earth Day Network launched the Billion Acts of Green® campaign from the National Mall in Washington, DC. Notables like Sting, John Legend, The Roots, Joss Stone, director James Cameron and an array of environmental “rock stars” came to DC, while 1 billion people in 192 countries around the world also took part. A total of over 100 million Acts of Green have since been logged at billionactsofgreen.org, making this campaign the world’s largest environmental service project. Earth Day Network’s goal is to reach 1 billion before the U.N. Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio in 2012. People can also register their “act of green” through the brand new Facebook app, created in collaboration with Facebook to engage people worldwide to take actions to reduce their impact on the environment. The “app” can be found at http://apps.facebook.com/billionactsofgreen. Billion Acts of Green rewards simple individual acts AND larger community initiatives that support sustainability and bring us closer to measurably reducing carbon emissions. Participants record their Acts of Green at www.billionactsofgreen.org where they can also send messages to government officials, sign petitions, and make pledges to live a greener life. What counts? Earth Day events, planting trees; cleaning up beaches and parks, community meetings on energy efficiency, sustainability and green economy issues; large-scale light bulb changes and workplace renewable energy retrofits are some examples. Simple gestures like choosing to bike instead of drive and washing laundry in cold water may be also recorded. EDN has partnered with prominent organizations to expand A Billion Acts of Green, including the United Nations, the U.S. State Department, the International Union on Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the Peace Corps, Boy and Girl Scouts of America, AARP, K-12, Colleges and Universities and Libraries across the U.S. and Youth Service America. ABOUT EARTH DAY NETWORK: The first Earth Day, on April 22, 1970, activated 20 million Americans from all walks of life and is widely credited with launching the modern environmental movement. The passage of the landmark Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act and many other groundbreaking environmental laws soon followed. Growing out of the first Earth Day, the Earth Day Network (EDN) works with over 25,000 partners in 192 countries to broaden, diversify and mobilize the environmental movement. More than 1 billion people now participate in Earth Day activities each year, making it the largest civic observance in the world. archiveedn.wpengine.com,www.billionactsofgreen.org