Earth Day

Hello there. My name is Gaylord Nelson, and for many years, I served as a United States Senator from Wisconsin. I have always loved America's wild and beautiful places. The tall, quiet forests, the sparkling rivers, and the wide-open skies filled me with wonder. But back in the 1960s, I started to feel a deep worry growing in my heart. I saw the air in our big cities getting thick with smog that made it hard to breathe. I read about rivers so full of pollution that they could actually catch on fire. It was heartbreaking. Then, on January 28th, 1969, something terrible happened off the coast of Santa Barbara, California. A massive oil spill blackened the beautiful ocean and beaches, harming countless birds and sea animals. Seeing those images made me realize that we had to do something, and we had to do it together. Around that time, I noticed how students across the country were holding events called 'teach-ins' to talk about the war in Vietnam. They were passionate and organized, and their energy was powerful. That's when a lightbulb went on in my head. What if we could use that same energy, not to protest a war, but to stand up for our planet? What if we had a nationwide teach-in for the environment? It was a simple idea, but I felt a jolt of excitement. It just might work.

My idea needed a lot of help to become a reality. A senator can make speeches, but you need people on the ground to create a movement. So, I put together a small team, and I asked a very energetic young man named Denis Hayes, who was a student at Harvard, to lead the national effort. He had the passion and drive we needed. He and his team of college students set up an office in Washington, D.C., and worked tirelessly, sending thousands of letters and making countless phone calls to schools, community groups, and cities all across the country. We chose a date, April 22nd, 1970, because it was between spring break and final exams, and we hoped students would be on campus to participate. We called it Earth Day. The excitement spread like wildfire. We didn't have the internet or social media back then, so the news traveled through newspapers, radio, and word of mouth. When the day finally arrived, it was more incredible than my wildest dreams. From coast to coast, twenty million Americans—one out of every ten people in the country at the time—stepped outside to show they cared. It was an amazing sight. In New York City, the busy Fifth Avenue was closed to cars, and it was filled with people marching peacefully for cleaner air. In Philadelphia, a huge rally was held at Fairmount Park. In other towns, families gathered to plant trees and clean up trash from local parks and rivers. Thousands of schools and universities held special events to teach students about ecology—the way living things interact with their environment. I traveled around the country that day, and everywhere I went, I felt a powerful wave of hope. The air buzzed with energy. Seeing so many people—young and old, from all different backgrounds—united for a single, peaceful cause was one of the most moving experiences of my life. We weren't just a crowd; we were a community making a promise to our planet.

That first Earth Day was more than just a one-day event; it was the beginning of something much bigger. Because twenty million people spoke up with one voice, the politicians in Washington, D.C., had no choice but to listen. The message was loud and clear: Americans wanted a healthier, cleaner country. The impact was almost immediate. Later that year, in December of 1970, the United States government created a new agency called the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, whose job is to protect our air, water, and land. In the years that followed, important new laws were passed, like the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act. These laws helped stop factories from pouring smoke into our skies and waste into our rivers. That one day truly changed our nation. Looking back, I see that Earth Day wasn't just my idea. It belonged to everyone who participated. And now, it belongs to you. That promise we made to the planet on April 22nd, 1970, is a promise that needs to be renewed by every generation. Every time you recycle a bottle, plant a tree, or turn off a light, you are keeping that promise alive. You are showing that every day can be Earth Day. The future of our beautiful planet is in your hands.