Earth Day

The first Earth Day organizers: Denis Hayes, Andrew Garling, Arturo Sandoval, Stephen Cotton, Barbara Reid and Bryce Hamilton. 

Today is Earth Day, first observed in 1970.  If you're my age, you might remember Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson.  He started a grassroots conservation movement by tapping into the energy of the Viet Nam War protests. Gaylord (we loved his nerdy name) was admired and trusted by college students, despite being a member of The Establishment. He brought together a group of young activists who organized the environmental movement from the ground up.  They worked in a dingy office above a Chinese restaurant in a Washington DC ghetto.  Oh, to be a fly on the wall...

Twenty million people participated in the first Earth Day, and thousands of colleges and universities held protests and rallies. I remember feeling like part of something big that day, although unfortunately I can't recall exactly what I did. Perhaps something fun like this.

Anyway, that first Earth Day achieved a rare consensus across political groups at a time of great social strife.  Earth Day led to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water and Endangered Species Act.

Earth Day is celebrated by a billion people, according to the Earth Day Network.  And that would make Earth Day the world's largest secular holiday.  Since I probably won't be climbing up on some young man's shoulders ;-) I will celebrate by planting tomatoes today.