green infrastructure

How did Earth Day get its start?

The first Earth Day took place on April 22nd, 1970 when 20 million people participated in peaceful demonstrations to protest the industrial revolution and advocate for a healthy sustainable environment. Earth Day founder Senator Gaylord Nelson was inspired to create Earth Day after witnessing the devastating 1969 oil spill in Santa Barbara. He sought to tap into the passion and energy from the anti-war movement to environmental protection.

Earth Day became internationally recognized in 1990 when Denis Hayes mobilized 20 million people in 141 countries. This led to a boost in recycling efforts and set the stage for the UN Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. Earth Day 2000 focused on global warming and clean energy, when hundreds of thousands of people gathered at the National Mall in Washington DC.

In 2010, the Earth Day Network launched A Billion Acts of Green®, and introduced a global tree planting initiative that has since grown into The Canopy Project, engaging 22,000 partners in 192 countries in observing Earth Day.

Fairfax Earth Day Activities

There are several ways you can join Sustainable Fairfax t0 celebrate Earth Day this weekend. Saturday promises to be a beautiful day to be outside after a day of spring showers forecasted for Friday.

1) Saturday, April 23- 8:15am – 1:00pm: Fairfax on Foot: Walk to MMWD Broom Pull- Walk with Sustainable Fairfax to an MMWD French Broom Pull volunteer work party to remove this harmful species from our open space. Learn more here.

2) Saturday, April 23- 10:00am – 2:00pm: Green Infrastructure Workshop & Workday- Learn about green infrastructure from an expert in the field, and work with your community to improve the area surrounding the Fairfax Pavilion parking lot. Come for all or part of this workday! Learn more here.

3) Saturday, April 23- 10:00am – 4:00pm: Earth Day Celebration at The Away Station-The Away station is Marin’s only “reclaim and Reuse” marketplace. The Away Station, located at Fairfax Lumber at 109 Broadway Come, is Marin’s only “Reclaim and Reuse” marketplace.  Celebrate Earth Day with local artists and craftspeople who will demonstrate and provide ideas and inspiration for creative repurposing. At 1:00pm, Fairfax Mayor (and Sustainable Fairfax VP) will give a brief talk about zero waste and Fairfax’s goal of reaching Zero Waste by 2020!

4) Adopt a Redwood!- Help SPAWN plant 10,000 redwoods in the San Francisco Bay Area over a 3-year period. The trees will help the salmon habitat along the creek and will create a local “carbon sink” to fight climate change. You can adopt a tree here!

We hope to see you at these events this Saturday! If you have any questions please email SustainFX@gmail.com