Earth Day reminds us to think about environment
The first Earth Day took place on April 22, 1970, when more than 20 million Americans took to the streets on behalf of a healthy, sustainable environment.
Rallied by Earth Day founder Gaylord Nelson, then a U.S. senator from Wisconsin, the sheer number of demonstrators proved the environment was important to the public and forced politicians to take a look at the issue.
According to Nelson, who had spent seven years trying to convince politicians to look at the environment, his objective was “to organize a national demonstration of concern for the environment so large that it would shake up the political establishment and force this issue onto the national agenda.”
That first grass-roots event later sparked federal legislation including the Clean Air Act of 1970 and the Clean Water Act of 1972. Earth Day went global in 1990, attracting 200 million people from 141 countries to worldwide events and activities including demonstrations, tree plantings, Earth fairs, river cleanups, cultural events and government-sponsored initiatives.
Today, Earth Day is widely celebrated around the world, bringing people together in support of their environment and their interest in creating a sustainable society. Earth Day activities are designed to educate, inspire and mobilize people to work on environmental protection issues that often launch projects that benefit our local communities and garner political attention.
Although Earth Day celebrations have not caught on in a big way in North Idaho, most area teachers are planning classroom activities and there are a couple of area activities you might check out. The Coeur d’Alene Chamber of Commerce is celebrating Earth Day at the Harding Family Center on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Raptor biologist Jane Cantwell, of the nonprofit Raptor Chapter, will be on hand to present her program. There will be eco-art projects for the kids, a tree climber, story telling and face painting. Vendors will be on hand to share their Earth-friendly products. Contact: 659-4213 or curleyredd@aol.com.
In an attempt to create awareness about recycling, the Associated Students at NIC plan to build Mount Trashmore, a mountain built out of the trash produced by their student union building in one day. After donning hazard suits, the students will sort the trash into recyclables, showing how much of the waste can be recycled. The Mount Trashmore event will take place at 9 a.m. on Earth Day, Tuesday, in the Edminster Student Union Building Plaza. Contact: 769-7761.
The Idaho Conservation League and city of Sandpoint are sponsoring an Earth Day Festival at the Sandpoint Community Hall from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. There will be food, music games, kids art and educational displays. Call 265-9565.
There is still time for those who would like to organize an Earth Day activity. A few suggestions from the Earth Day Web site include an Earth Day parade featuring alternative vehicles and nonmotor floats; an art or writing contest with an environmental theme; place an educational display in a library or other public place; or an earth fair, an educational event that brings the community together to learn about environmental issues and what they can do to help.
With a 2008 focus on global warming, the Earth Day Network has released a “Top 10 list of actions for individuals, organizations and businesses to take as a first step in reducing your contribution to global warming.” They ask that you “send them an e-mail with a pledge of the actions you can commit to right now and begin your journey to save the earth.”
The Top 10 Actions you can take to reduce your effect on global warming include: (1) Replace regular light bulbs with highly efficient compact fluorescent bulbs. (2) Conserve energy and be more fuel efficient when driving. (3) Replace older household heating and cooling systems with new efficient models or tune up your current systems. (4) Replace older, less efficient refrigerators if possible. (5) Monitor other appliances that are big energy users. Turn down the thermostat on your hot water heater, hand-wash dishes once in a while, wash your clothes in warm water and don’t over-dry your clothes. (6) Plant more trees and find plants that need less water. (7) Buy green energy, and invest in green energy stocks. (8) Buy organic. (9) Buy recycled goods. (10) Be a minimalist. Those who compiled the list for Earth Day believe this last suggestion, to simply use – and buy – less, “may be the single biggest way to make a dent in the global warming problem.”
For more information on Earth Day and the steps you can take to reduce your impact on global warming, visit earthday.net.