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Students at PS 124 wrote letters to President Barack Obama for Earth Day, pledging to help take care of the planet. A total of 2,500 letters were sent on their way to the White House from four city schools, in a program sponsored by greeting card company "Cards Direct."

"Dear President Obama, I think Earth Day is a very great day because a lot of people are saving energy and other things," said Ambrie Rodriguez, a PS 124 student.

The students weren't the only ones observing Earth Day, as there were activities going on all across the city.

There was an invasion of pedi-cabs on the streets of Harlem, offering residents a chance to get to their destinations without using a car or taking a bus. The free service was provided by the group called "SHARE," which stands for safe, healthy, affordable and reliable energy.

"It's an opportunity to talk about the environmental problems that Harlem faces, the asthma rates, the dirty power plants, buses, and it's a time to get a dialogue started about how we create a clean energy future," said SHARE Deputy Director Gregory Joseph.

"We must begin to focus on clean air and pollution in our community, and so it takes all of us to do that," said Hazel Dukes of the NAACP.

Over in East Harlem, volunteers were planting trees. In Times Square, the New Year's ball was looking a lot like our planet, as environmental advocates were already looking ahead to next year's Earth Day, which is the 40th anniversary. A year-long celebration was launched with the help of the organizer of the first Earth Day back in 1970, Dennis Hayes, who says there is a lot of work to be done.

"We've made very little progress on most of the issues facing us as a planet, the big international things like climate, endangered species, threats to the world's oceans," said Hayes.

Actor Matthew Modine was also on hand to lend his support.

"Our body is our environment and the earth is our greater macro environment, and we all have to do everything that we can to protect our home," said Modine.

Organizers hope a billion people worldwide will be inspired to make a personal commitment to the environment during the next year and beyond.