Let’s take a trip back in time forty years ago to the year 1970 and look at what the world was like back then. If we managed to accomplish this I’m sure all of us would be stunned to see how different things were and would be amazed at how people lived their lives. It’s certain that a majority of you reading this are picturing an age before the advent of the internet, when no computers, cell phones, or ipods existed- the Stone Age essentially. Well, technically you’re right, but this isn’t what I’m trying to get at. During this period when Disco was emerging and short shorts were all the rage, nature was being degraded to such a level that instead of saying “Mother Earth” Minnewaska Park people were sarcastically muttering “Mother-in-law filth”. This was a time when polluted rivers (one of which actually caught fire), smog filled skies tainted with lead from gasoline, and mass deforestation were commonplace. Eventually, when people began to have their fill of this corrupted world, there were talks about what could be done to improve it, and this is where Earth Day came in handy. A U.S. Senator had the brilliant idea of creating a holiday based on raising people’s environmental awareness; and the first Earth Day occurred on Apr. 22, 1970.
As we already know, this unusual holiday quickly took root and became highly successful, not because of religious or national events, but because of a global crisis. The world was put into peril by us through our thoughtless actions, and it was solely up to us to correct it. As the famous environmentalist and philosopher Henry David Thoreau once noted: “What’s the use of a house if you haven’t got a tolerable planet to put it on.” Back before the “Green” movement gained momentum a house certainly wasn’t much use on account of the rampant pollution. But luckily through years and years of remediation the earth in many (but not all) respects has become much cleaner, mainly through newly implanted laws, recycling, and a myriad of other programs that transformed the earth from a cesspool into a more pristine place. Despite this cleanup, many problems still exist and a greater effort will be required in the future to correct it. And we must act quickly if we want to avoid having our cities and towns along the coast inundated, due to global warming. If we continue to journey down the path we’re on right now and keep increasing our environmental awareness however, it is almost certain our negative actions will be undone and destruction will be averted; but that’s assuming though that the world doesn’t end in 2012 first, so I guess we’ll just have to wait to see!
It’s pretty amazing though to think about how far we have come since the advent of Earth Day, and in the last ten years alone things have drastically changed. At the arrival of the millennium the word “green” was hardly heard anywhere, but now anytime the T.V. is turned on every commercial is using the word ten times in a minute. And within the last few months the packing of SunChips has been made out of plant-based material that’s completely biodegradeable.
It’s almost unimaginable to think where we’ll be a decade from now. Who knows, we could be eating our meals off of edible plates made from vegetables. I’m sure Homer Simpson would have a field day with this- an all you can eat buffet of dinnerware…. hmm but on second thought maybe not, considering it would be healthy, I suppose it would have to be smothered in butter first.
Regardless of what new techniques we implement, it’s a certainty that we’ll have changed a great deal- hopefully for the better. Things may constantly change, as they always do, but this will not happen if we don’t change ourselves first.
This holiday which was celebrated for the first time forty years ago has helped us along. Today, here at Manhattanville the college offers a little known degree in Environmental Studies. And while most people tend to stay away from courses that deal with environmental science in the fear that they’re too hard; believe me, as long as you make a conscious effort to learn and understand the fundamentals of ecology and sustainability, you will not only find yourself receiving good grades, but you will look at the world in a different way, and will realize it’s not all about consumption and modernization. As an Environmental Studies major, I strongly advise each student to take at least one course that teaches about some sort of environmental policy. However, if you really are against taking a science class, I still highly recommend increasing your awareness either by joining some club that relates to it, one such being ACT on campus, or simply just by spending some time outdoors. Why not take a hike? There are plenty of places to go around Westchester and if you’re really daring you may feel compelled to do a section of the 2,179 mile long Appalachian Trail which stretches from Georgia to Maine, and can be reached in less than an hour from here. The point I’m trying to make is that you should do something to help make the environmental situations at hand known and cared about. The smallest of things can make a big difference, just like Earth Day. In the beginning it was paid little attention to, but now look at it. So in conclusion, if we truly want to make an effective change, we have to first shift our attitudes and actions in order to obtain it- and that’s what this holiday preaches.
Something to think about: “If a man walks in the woods for love of them half of each day, he is in danger of being regarded as a loafer. But if he spends his days as a speculator, shearing off those woods and making the earth bald before her time, he is deemed an industrious and enterprising citizen.” -Thoreau
