Earth Day

Happy Earth Day. April 22nd, 2010

The first Earth Day, observed across the country on April 22, 1970, crystallized a growing public concern about ecological crises. Earth Day was the product of local grassroots action to increase environmental awareness but it also focused the nation's political agenda on urgent environmental issues.

It was Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson who in September 1969 proposed a national teach-in on the environment to send a message to Washington that public opinion was solidly behind a bold political agenda on environmental problems.

Inspired by the campus activism of the late 1960s, he employed a team of experienced students to help him respond to the immediate and overwhelming public excitement for a national day on the environment. However, Nelson insisted the first Earth Day's activities be created not by organizers in Washington, but by individuals and groups in their own communities. As a result of this empowering vision, 1 in 10 Americans participated in the first Earth Day, drawing extensive attention from the media and jump-starting an era of bold environmental legislation.

Today marks the 40th anniversary of Earth Day! Get out and celebrate your earth!