While the world recognizes Earth Day annually on April 22, the first day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere, everyday is Earth Day for Heifer International.

"Everything about our work to end hunger and poverty is founded upon getting the very best the earth has to offer - eggs, milk, fruits, vegetables, grains, animal-sourced foods" said Pierre Ferrari, Heifer's CEO, but with the least possible impact.

"We work with families to zero graze their animals in their pens to minimize impact to grasslands and native plants. We teach agro-ecological farming to protect the earth's resources, to improve the soil, which helps sequester carbon. We provide trees that help guard against soil erosion, and work with them to develop and protect water resources."
     - Pierre Ferrari - CEO - Heifer International

Being green is also represented in the hunger-fighting agency's headquarters, a Platinum LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified building. Heifer's Murphy Keller Education Center is green as well, winning recognition for its energy-efficient and environmental design through the Green Globe Initiative.

"We celebrate, along with everyone else, the power and promise of Earth Day, but for us, being green is part of our DNA," said Ferrari.

For Earth Day 2011, Heifer International had a booth at the Arkansas Earth Day Festival on the North Shore Riverwalk in North Little Rock last Saturday, April 23.

Volunteers shared information about Heifer and its work with families in need around the world, about ways to get involved with Heifer through volunteerism and activism, and also how to help protect the earth through reuse, water conservation, recycling and other earth-friendly habits.

Earth Day was founded by in April 1970 by U.S. Sen. Gaylord Nelson, of Wisconsin. Today, the event is coordinated by the Earth Day Network and is celebrated in more than 175 countries. This year's theme is "A Billion Acts of Green®," recognizing the power of personal, organizational and corporate pledges to live and act sustainably. To date, more than 45 million actions have been catalogued. The goal is to register one billion actions in advance of the global Earth Summit in Rio in 2012.

Heifer's mission is to end hunger and poverty while caring for the Earth. Since 1944, Heifer International has provided livestock and environmentally sound agricultural training to improve the lives of those who struggle daily for reliable sources of food and income. Heifer is currently working in 50 countries, including the United States, to help families and communities become more self-reliant.

For more information, visit www.heifer.org or call (800) 696-1918.