The "Unplug America - Give Mother Earth a Rest Day" tradition was started in 1992 by

Indigenous Peoples Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

and is observed on October 13 each year. It is a day to live simply and

off grid Off-the-grid or off-grid is a characteristic of buildings and a lifestyle designed in an independent manner without reliance on one or more public utilities. The term "off-the-grid" traditionally refers to not being connected to the electrical g ...

, enjoy the nature around you and breathe fresh air. Unplug your TV, computers... and take a walk. The campaign focuses primarily on America because of massively high per capita consumption in the US. In the early 1990s, the UNPLUG from Mother Earth Campaign was initiated by three Indigenous-based organizations. These organizations and leaders were Tom B.K. Goldtooth,

Indigenous Environmental Network The Indigenous Environmental Network (IEN) is a coalition of indigenous, grassroots environmental justice activists, primarily based in the United States. Group members have represented Native American concerns at international events such as ...

(IEN);

Winona LaDuke Winona LaDuke (born August 18, 1959) is an American economist, environmentalist, writer and industrial hemp grower, known for her work on tribal land claims and preservation, as well as sustainable development. In 1996 and 2000, she ran for Vice ...

, Indigenous Women's Network (IWN)and Christopher Peters, 7th Generation Fund (SGF). Nilak Butler (deceased), member of IEN and IWN also assisted in the development of this UNPLUG Campaign during the 1990s in her capacity as an Indigenous staff organizer within the Indigenous Nuclear Free Campaign of U.S. Greenpeace. Periodically throughout the 1990s and 2000s the UNPLUG from Mother Earth Campaign was initiated by these organizations, expanding to include other organizations such as Honor The Earth and White Earth Land Recovery Project. There is no ownership of the concept of this campaign. It has been the principle of IEN, IWN and SGF for people of the United States, Canada, other industrialized countries and of the world to adopt this campaign.

See also