World Earth Day, Book & Copyright Day at Shridhar University Pilani Rajasthan

Online, May 1, 2011 (Newswire.com) - The importance of Earth Day on April 22 comes from the Native American Proverb - We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children. The first Earth Day event took place in the United States on April 22, 1970 and four decades later, the annual observance has become a global event, with an estimated one billion people from around 200 countries taking part in a multitude of activities which include a renewed call to combat global warming and protect the environment as well as focus on "A Billion Ways to Remain Green". To raise awareness on sustainable management, conservation and sustainable development of all types of forests, year 2011 also has been declared by the United Nations as the International Year of Forests - IYF.

It is a matter of pride that the master plan for Shridhar University Pilani has envisaged extensive lush green lawns as well as tree plantations across the 60 acre campus and to evolve an eco friendly campus, there is a massive green house covering an area of over 3000 square feet and rain water harvesting systems installed in buildings. India today has undoubtedly emerged as a decisive environmental, social, economic and political power. Considering that Education is the key component of any environmental initiative, as it provides for sustainability and prepares future generations of global citizens, Shridhar Univeristy also offers a B.Sc in Environmental Science at the Undergarduate level and MTech in Environmental Engineering at the Post Graduate Level.

April 23 is just no ordinary date as its a symbolic date for world literature, for this day happens to be the birth or death date of many renowned authors who include Cervantes, Shakespeare, Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, Maurice Druon, K.Laxness, Vladimir Nabokov, Josep Pla and Manuel Mejia Vallejo. The idea for this celebration is said to have germinated in Catalonia where on 23 April, Saint George's Day, a rose is traditionally given as a gift for each book sold.

By celebrating this day throughout the world as World Book and Copyright Day, UNESCO seeks to promote reading, publishing and the protection of intellectual property through copyright. Books are the legacies that a great genius leaves to human race, which are delivered down from generation to generation as presents to the posterity of those who are yet born.

The global book market is deeply affected by the rise of e-books and downloadable content which is transforming the publishing industry, impacting on publishers apart from touching the conscience of authors and readers. Such a transformation is giving rise to new debates about strengths and weaknesses of different kinds of books, about the nature of copyright today, about the role of libraries in the context of on-line knowledge and most importantly in a world of blogs and wikis and social networking of the twitter and facebook kind about the very meaning of 'authorship'.

It is in this context, for the 2011edition of the Day; UNESCO has suggested that focus be given to the evolution of book production, from writing to digital, their complementarity and future challenges.

Addressing the students of Shridhar University, Prof Natarajan Pro Vice Chancellor highlighted the significance of both the world days and reiterated that God has given us earth to satisfy our need and not our greed and urged them to leave a legacy for the future generation by following the 5Rs - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Restore and Replenish. Pointing out that the task of a University is the creation of future and no university in the world has ever risen to greatness without a correspondingly great library, Prof Natarajan urged the students to utilize the university library in the most responsible manner.