Look who’s 40…EARTH DAY!
Earth Day is celebrated in thousands of communities on April 22nd every year. This year marks the 40th anniversary of Earth Day; the first Earth Day was celebrated on April 22nd, 1970. Over 20 million Americans joined the demonstration. The founder of Earth Day was Gaylord Nelson, a Democratic Senator from Wisconsin. Senator Nelson envisioned an environmental demonstration or “teach-in” with a goal to put environmental concerns on the political radar. In 1969 Gaylord hired Denis Hayes, who left Harvard after being selected by Senator Nelson, as the national coordinator of Earth Day.
The demonstration on April 22, 1970 was a success because it was organized by people on a grassroots level. People everywhere were talking about it at the kitchen table. This helped the celebration succeed at making environmental topics a priority nationwide. It gave the population a venue to express their concerns about the environment, from air, water and the degradation of natural resources and land. The grassroots initiative was one of the reasons why Earth Day succeeded; people were searching for a venue where they could come together and take action and they found it in Earth Day.
Gaylord Nelson quote:
“It was truly an astonishing grassroots explosion, … The objective was to get a nationwide demonstration of concern for the environment so large that it would shake the political establishment out of its lethargy.”
To this day communities hold special events in honor of the day. A rally in Washington, DC is expected to bring tens of thousands of people, including Director James Cameron. Some Critics such as Alex Steffan from the online magazine “worldchanging” argue that the celebration of Earth Day has outlived its usefulness; he claims it may weaken environmental protection. The fact still remains that Earth Day helped put Environmental issues on the political agenda and at the family kitchen table throughout the nation and continues to do so. Earth Day grew to become more than just a demonstration; it has evolved over 40 years into something much bigger. Earth Day is a day of action, where communities everywhere hold events and take action to protect the planet. The day of action has helped to change human behavior and develop important policies as well as the creation of the Government agency responsible for environmental affairs, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It is believed that Earth Day is now the most celebrated and observed holiday in the world.
Celebrate Earth Day today, do your part to keep environmental protection on everyone’s mind. Make everyday, EARTH DAY!