Earth Day | Research & Encyclopedia Articles

The first Earth Day, April 22, 1970, attracted over 20 million participants in the United States. It launched the modern environmental movement and spurred the passage of several important environmental laws. It was the largest demonstration in history. People from all walks of life took part in marches, teach-ins, rallies, and speeches across the country. Congress adjourned so that politicians could attend hometown events, and cars were banned from New York's Fifth Avenue.

The event had a major impact on the nation. Following Earth Day, conservation organizations saw their memberships double and triple. Within months, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was created; Congress also revised the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and other environmental laws.

The concept for Earth Day began with Senator Gaylord Nelson, a Wisconsin Democrat, who in 1969 proposed a series of environmental teach-ins on college campuses across the nation. Hoping to satisfy a course requirement at Harvard by organizing a teach-in there, law student Denis Hayes flew to Washington, DC, to interview Nelson. The senator persuaded Hayes to drop out of Harvard and organize the nationwide series of events that were only a few months away. According to Hayes, Wednesday, April 22 was chosen because it was a weekday and would not compete with weekend activities. It also came before students would start "cramming" for finals, but after the winter thaw in the North.

Twenty years later, Earth Day anniversary celebrations attracted even greater participation. An estimated 200 million people in over 140 nations were involved in events ranging from a concert and rally of over a million people in New York's Central Park, to a festival in Los Angeles that attracted 30,000, to a rally of 350,000 at the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

Earth Day 1990 activities included planting trees; cleaning up roads, highways, and beaches; building bird houses; ecology teach-ins; and recycling cans and bottles. A convoy of garbage trucks drove through the streets of Portland, Oregon, to dramatize the lack of landfill space. Elsewhere, children wore gas masks to protest air pollution, others marched in parades wearing costumes made from recycled materials, and some even released ladybugs into the air to demonstrate alternatives to harmful pesticides. The gas-guzzling car that was buried in San Jose, California, during the first Earth Day was dug up and recycled.

Abroad, Berliners planted 10,000 trees along the East-West border. In Myanmar, there were protests against the killing of elephants. Brazilians demonstrated against the destruction of their tropical rain forests. In Japan, there were demonstrations against disposable chopsticks, and 10,000 people attended a concert on an island built on reclaimed land in Tokyo Bay.

The 1990 version was also organized by Denis Hayes, with help from hundreds of volunteers. This time, the event was well organized and funded; it was widely-supported by both environmentalists and the business community. The United Auto Workers Union sent Earth Day booklets to all of its members, the National Education Association sent information to almost every teacher in the country, and the Methodist Church mailed Earth Day sermons to over 30,000 ministers.

The sophisticated advertising and public relations campaign, licensing of its logo, and sale of souvenirs provoked criticism that, Earth Day had become too commercial. Even oil, chemical, and nuclear firms joined in and proclaimed their love for nature. But Hayes defended the professional approach as necessary to maximize interest and participation in the event, to broaden its appeal, and to launch a decade of environmental activism that would force world leaders to address the many threats to the planet. He also pointed out that while foundations, corporations, and individuals had donated $3.5 million, organizers turned down over $4 million from companies that were thought to be harming the environment.

The 30-year anniversary of the event was also organized by Hayes. Unfortunately, it did not produce the large numbers of the prior anniversary celebration. The movement had reached over 5,000 environmental groups who helped organize local rallies, and hundreds of thousands of people met in Washington to hear political, environmental, and celebrity speakers.

Hayes believes that the long-term success of Earth Day in securing a safe future for the planet depends on getting as many people as possible involved in environmentalism. The Earth Day celebrations he helped organize a have been a major step in that direction.

Borrelli, P. "Can Earth Day Be Every Day?" Amicus Journal 12 (Spring 1990): 22-26.

Hayes, D. "Earth Day, 1990: Threshold of the Green Decade." Natural History 99 (April 1990): 55-60.

Stenger, Richard. "Thousands observe Earth Day 2000 in Washington." CNN.com (22 April 2000) [June 2002]. <http://www.cnn.com/2000/NATURE/ 04/22/earth.day/index.html>.

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