By Rebecca Rooy

I did a Google search on “Going Green.” The conclusion? Environmentalists rejoice! Normally there is a surge in environment consciousness around Earth Day anyway, but this year, Earth Day doesn’t seem to be the major cause of environmental awareness. This year, the recognition of Earth Day merely reinforced the already existing and mounting environmental concern.

As Newton roughly states, for every past action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Finally this law is incorporated into our environment-human interaction. Citizens of the world are now seriously concerned about the effects of climate change, how human actions have an impact, how to take responsibility for our earth, and how to equalize and oppositely react to the environmental impact we have made thus far.

With the recent governmental economic incentives for ethanol plant development and the continuation and growing popularity of solar, wind, and hydroelectric power, Americans are beginning to embrace an alternative lifestyle in support of alternative energy and new fuel standards. Thus, note the declining sales of Hummers and the rising demand for environmentally friendly, fuel efficient cars, such as Toyota ‘s hybrid Prius. A portion of this environmental realization could very well be attributed to world exposure through our most popular medium: television and film. The world is now reached by the environmental message in the fast-paced manner we have come to expect in all other points of our lives, giving films such as An Inconvenient Truth and Who Killed the Electric Car? a chance to reach millions.

Standard offices. Restaurants. Hotels. Auto manufacturers. Airlines. Aircraft engineers. Grocery stores. From turning off office computers at night to utilizing high-tech recycling to building wind-powered facilities to using the methane byproduct of cow waste to create electricity (yes, that would be PG&E), companies within the United States are fully embracing and announcing their “Going Green” efforts. It is accountable. It is savvy. It is responsible. It is a marketing tool. And some of the biggest companies in the nation are involved.

These national environmental steps towards “Going Green” are, indeed, creating the United States into a giant and green force. The jolly part? We’ve had that down for years.