So, Earth Day. What’s the Deal?
With yesterday’s festivities in Santa Fe behind us and the last flourishes going on this Sunday’s party, we thought you might like a little Earth Day history. For the fuller version, pay Wikipedia a little visit.
Earth Day, 1970
The first Earth Day came about in 1969, the result of then-US Senator Gaylord Nelson’s efforts to organize a national teach-in, highlighting the myriad environmental issues facing humankind. The response of over 20 million people on April 22 rivaled (in size) crowds who’d recently gathered to protest US activities in Vietnam. Much of its success was due to New York Mayor John Lindsay providing office space and staff to the organizers, as well as shutting down 5th Avenue and offering Central Park for a home base. New York being home to NBC, CBS, ABC, the New York Times, Time Magazine, and Newsweek, it the media coverage couldn’t have been better.
It repeated on the decade until 1990, when two groups—Earth Day 1990 and Earth Day 20—produced the largest event to date. With Earth Day 1990, they realized in order to take up substantial space in the public consciousness, they would need to turn it annual, and for five years an associated group, Earth Day USA, took organizing responsibilities, passing it to Earth Day Network.
Earth Day at the Nob Hill Co-op, 2009
A lot of technology has been employed ahead of the curve in the production of Earth Day. The 1990 event made extensive use of email and satellite calling; earthday.org was established in the early 90s; internet communication cast an even wider net by 2000. Remember when you hooked up your first cable modem? Yeah, so do we.
Missed the party yesterday, or haven’t gotten it out of your system? Countless communities celebrate Earth Week from the 16th to the 22nd, and we figured we’d round out the fun this year on the 25th. Come down to the Nob Hill Co-op for food, crafts, samples, art, spring fashion and more local vendors than you can shake a biodegradable coffee cup at. The fun starts at 10:00 and runs till 6:00. We suggest you plan an extra few minutes into your travel schedule; with an expected turnout of 8,000 folks, it’s gonna be one of our biggest Earth Day celebrations ever.
I’ll be there, taking pictures like the ones in this post (I’ll be the guy in the brown fedora). Come fill up on yummy organic treats and say hi!
The full schedule is available in the Alibi and the Co-op connection. Lucky you, the newsletter is available right here for download.