Environmental Hero: Gaylord Nelson
A Voice for the Earth
Posted: 24-Apr-2003; Updated: 27-May-2003
"The ultimate test of man's conscience may be his willingness to sacrifice something today for future generations whose words of thanks will not be heard."
- Gaylord Nelson, former governor of Wisconsin, founder of Earth Day
Former U.S. Senator and Wisconsin governor Gaylord Nelson (b. 1916) has dedicated much of his professional and personal life to conservation and protecting the Earth. But he is best known for putting environmental issues in the world spotlight as the founder of Earth Day in 1970.
Gaylord Nelson. (Photo courtesy Gaylord Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison)
For years, Nelson had tried focusing national attention on the environment without much success. Inspired by the teach-ins against the Vietnam War, Nelson galvanized widespread support for the first Earth Day, which proved a resounding success. Across the country some 20 million people, from schoolchildren to college students and beyond, took part in activities and events to raise environmental awareness.
Over the years, as State Senator, Governor and then U.S. Senator, Nelson helped shape major pieces of environmental legislation, including the Clean Air Act. He introduced the first legislation to ban DDT and tirelessly spoke out for "a world that does not make us sick." He was instrumental in creating the 2,000-mile Appalachian Trail in the eastern United States. Today, Nelson remains passionate about maintaining the environmental protections that were so hard-won over the last 30 years, decrying the current assault on our nation's environmental laws.
"As the father of Earth Day," said President Clinton in 1995, when Nelson was awarded the Medal of Freedom, "he is the grandfather of all that grew of that event - the Environmental Protection Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act. He also set a standard for people in public service to care about the environment and to try and do something about it."
To learn more about Nelson visit these sites:
- Earth Day Network
- Gaylord Institute for Environmental Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison
- University of Missouri
Read about other Environmental Heroes:
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