April 2000
Earth Day Events Target Pollution, Sprawl, Consumerism
by Amy Farrar
There are a number of events going on in the Chicago area before, during, and after April 22, and one thing is clear: environmentalists in the Chicago area care deeply about the health and well-being of our planet. I spoke with two local environmentalists who provided me with the inside scoop on the ways in which their organizations are using the millennial Earth Day as a rallying point for some critical environmental issues.
Local Organizations Participate in Targeted Campaign
Mike Truppa is director of communications for the Environmental Law and Policy Center, a nonprofit organization based in Chicago but serving six Midwestern states. Truppa said a variety of organizations will commemorate Earth Day 2000 by generating public scrutiny on different forms of environmental degradation. The groups, which include the American Lung Association, the Chicago Recycling Coalition, the Environmental Law and Policy Center, the Illinois chapter of the Sierra Club, and the Lake Michigan Federation, will issue a series of initiatives to companies or governmental agencies that are threatening the environment — or to a governmental agency that polices against that threat.
"As we all know, Earth Day affords corporations and public officials an opportunity to drape themselves in the mantle of environmental preservation," said Truppa. "We can turn their appetite for publicity to our advantage. No one wants to be branded an environmental outcast, particularly during the one time of year when the public exalts the cause of conservationism. This "challenge" concept is designed to capitalize on the inherent desire for favorable public relations — and the corresponding fear of public ostracization — to prompt action that would strengthen environmental protections."
In each instance, the groups will challenge their targets to take an action, whether that be passing a law, adopting a regulation, or adhering to a practice, that in Truppa’s words, "can make a dramatic improvement in the condition of the environment." He said the groups have agreed to identify challenges that correspond to their preexisting program goals, are politically viable, and can conceivably be achieved within one year.
The campaign will immediately address air quality, recycling, land use, public access, and water quality issues in the greater Chicago area; the Environmental Law and Policy Center will target Governor George Ryan to kill the proposed Route 53 and I-355 tollway extensions; the Sierra Club will target the Illinois Pollution Control Board to adopt antidegradation standards; the Lake Michigan Federation will target the City of Chicago to inspect and clean sewers to prevent beach closings; the Chicago Recycling Coalition will target the City of Chicago to institute a ban on small incinerators; and the American Lung Association will target Midwest Generation to convert old coal plants to comply with modern clean air standards.
Environmental Consciousness
The Chicago Students Environmental Alliance will be hosting an Earth Day festival featuring local bands, including the Roots Rock Society. The alliance is a non-profit group formed for the purpose of organizing the event. Lauren Whitley, a member of the alliance and a student at the University of Chicago, said the concert will be powered by renewable energy and supported by socially conscious businesses.
"We are unique because we are a completely student created, organized, and produced event," said Whitley. "Our purpose in putting on the concert is a little different from most normal Earth Day events. We recognize, especially as students, that organizers tend to work really hard to put on cool, fun Earth Day events that people enjoy and then promptly forget about the other 364 days of the year. With this concert we are trying to set a precedent for others to follow, and not just on Earth Day. We are saying, look...we can be sustainable in all aspects of our lives,...not just one day a year, but all the time."
Whitley said the alliance plans on selling organic food in completely recyclable containers at the concert. Tickets and programs will be printed on recycled, nonchlorine, paper with soy ink to promote sustainable and environmentally responsible businesses and to set the precedent for a completely environmentally conscious concert. "We did not want a pseudo-Earth Day concert...one partially solar powered but selling hot dogs and nachos..." said Whitley. "We want to show that environmentalism can be integrated into all aspects of our lives. It is not about money, it is about ideals, and saving the incredible place that we live in and share."
For more information on the concert’s time and location, please contact the Environmental Center at the University of Chicago. The center can be reached at 773-702-0405, Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 3:00 pm. The center can also be reached via e-mail, at ucec@uchicago.edu.
Additional Earth Day 2000 Events in Chicago
Chicago’s environmental community has declared April 2000 to be Chicago Earth Month. A coalition of more than one hundred organizations will be hosting events throughout March and April, some of which are listed below.
The following information comes from the Earth Day Network. For more details, please visit their web site or the web sites indicated in each listing. Additional information was provided by the Chicago Earth Month Coalition.
James Thompson Center Event
What: Environmental groups with an activist approach to participation and a natural food fair; includes lunch-time concert and environmental art fair.
Where: James R. Thompson Center, at Clark and Randolph Streets, Chicago.
When: April 17, 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.
Fair/Festival/Expo
Where: Nature Center Zoo, Lincoln Park, Garfield Park
When: April 1-22, 2000, all day
Contact: Chicago Earth Month 2000, 312-635-3113; fax 312-635-3113; E-mail Betsy@ElizabethAltmanAssoc.com
Friends of the Park Clean-Up
What: Morning clean-up in the park and afternoon activities at the Nature Museum
When: Saturday, April 22
Where: 2430 N. Cannon Drive, Chicago
Spring Planting Festival
What: Spring planting and agricultural activities
Where: Lincoln Park Farm-in-the-Zoo
When: April 22, 2000, 10:00 am-12:00 pm.
Contact: 312-742-2044; fax 312-742-2040; E-mail stmlpzoo@excite.com
Clean and Green/Arbor Day
What: city lot clean-up events coordinated with Arbor Day tree plantings throughout the city.
Contact: DOE and Mayor’s Office
Zoos for Environmental Conservation
What: Zookeeper members of Zoos for Environmental Conservation will be demonstrating conservation projects at the Kovler Lion House.
Where: Lincoln Park Zoo
When: April 22, 2000, 10:00 am-12:00 pm.
Contact: 312-742-2044; fax 312-742-2040; E-mail stmlpzoo@excite.com
It’s Wild in Chicago 2000
What: Interactive educational exhibits illustrating the biodiversity of the Chicago region (teach-in)
Where: Field Museum of Natural History
When: April 1-4, 2000, 11:00 am-4:00 pm.
Contact: Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation, 847-635-8613; fax 847-635-9787; E-mail kindredspirits@wildliferescue.org
Spiritual Journeys for Earth Month
What: A series of journeys by the faith community of the Chicago region, followed by a collective celebration of all the faiths together. Each participating group will design its own journey or pilgrimage.
Where: Center for Neighborhood Technology, 2125 W. North Avenue
When: April 9, 2000
Contact: the Interreligious Sustainability Project; 773-278-4800 ext. 125; fax 773-278-3840; E-mail clare@cnt.org
Air Pollution
What: City of Chicago lawn mower trade-in program. Vehicle emissions, including boat and lawn mower emissions, total more than half of the city’s air pollution. Lawn mowers can be traded in for a discount or rebate on an electric or push mower. The city will then recycle the old mowers.
Where: North and South Side locations in the city
When: April 29 at the South Side location; May 6 at the North Side location.
Contact: Chicago Department of the Environment; 312-744-5716
Earth Week Evanston
Earth Week Evanston kicks off its Y2K Earth Day celebrations with a presentation by renowned environmentalist, Lee Botts, as part of an all-day Earth Day event on Saturday, April 15, 10:00 am-5:00 pm, at the Evanston Public Library, 1703 Orrington, in downtown Evanston (near the Davis "L" and Metra stops).
Ms. Botts will speak at 1:00 pm on, "Environmentalism: Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow," as she recaps forty years of environmental activism. Also featured are exhibits, videos, and informational tabling by local environmental groups.
Admission is free. For additional information, or calendar of other Earth Week events, contact: Earth Week Evanston/ Nuclear Energy Information Service, 847-869-7650. E-mail neis@forward.net
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