Aerial images of the Mato Grosso state in southwest Brazil taken 14 years apart illustrate the rapid rate of deforestation taking place in the Brazilian Amazon. (Credit: NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS and the U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team. / April 21, 2012)

Today is the day after Earth Day 2012, if you missed it yesterday (and to be fair it was a Sunday, but no excuses really!) here is another reminder why this Earth Day is so important and why everyday should be an Earth Day!

We are not going to bring you pictures of melting ice packs, disappearing glaciers and sad-looking polar bears. That’s so 47 seconds ago, according to the Tribune who kindly first brought these images to our attention. Instead, we bring you a stunning photo gallery documenting the ways in which the world’s explosive population growth has aggressively changed the landscape. The aerial photos above are just one example. They illustrate