Environment

Eco-weak to Eco-chic

This week: Make every day a celebrated Earth Day

Eco-weak to Eco-chic

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Sylvia Wright
Richmond.com
Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Do you celebrate the "living green" of our community, the Greater Richmond Area (GRA)?

In a prior column, after discovering neglected backyards that border my property, I challenged you to move from eco-weak to eco-chic by greening and then opening your backyard garden gate to friends and family, celebrate a season renewed -- the greening of our community. So, to honor a world-wide celebration of Earth Day, let's take this challenge a step further.

But first, let me ask: Are you aware that our present-day "green revolution" is a relatively new phenomenon? In 1942 Jerome Rodale published his "Organic Farming and Gardening," later renamed "Organic Gardening." In 1949, Aldo Leopold's "A Sand County Almanac" espoused ethical land usage. In 1962, Rachel Carson published "Silent Sbpring," emphasizing the effect of pesticides on wildlife.

As a result, gardeners shifted their focus toward organic gardening: mass-produced organic grown farm produce, nontoxic methods for pest control, recycling in the form of composting and regional natural garden designs. Recognizing their effect on the overall environment, gardeners not only respect an existing vista, but also began to preserve and enhance its environmental health. In other words, North American gardeners adopted the concept of being a caretaker of space, an ecological gardener.

Nevertheless, the average American was still slurping leaded gas through massive V8 sedans. Industry belched out smoke and sludge with little fear of legal consequences or bad press. Air pollution was commonly accepted as the smell of prosperity. More often, the environment was a word that appeared in spelling bees rather than on the evening news.

Then, on April 22, 1970, an event occurred that ignited our present-day 21st century green revolution. Earth Day founder Gaylord Nelson, then a U.S. senator from Wisconsin, proposed the first nationwide environmental protest "to shake up the political establishment" and force this issue onto the national agenda.

More than 20 million Americans took to the streets, parks and auditoriums to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment. Denis Hayes, the national coordinator, and his staff organized massive coast-to-coast rallies. Groups that had been fighting against oil spills, polluting factories and power plants, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides, freeways, the loss of wilderness, and the extinction of wildlife suddenly became well-known.

Today, April 22, what are you doing to mark Earth Day? Specific to GRA Earth Day celebrations, there is the option of joining an event held by the Innsbrook Foundation, www.innsbrook.com, at 4501 Highwoods Parkway, Salons A & B from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Admission and parking are free. I'll be there at 1:30 p.m. to provide a speech on the topic of "From eco-weak to eco-chic: greening the GRA." Come out and join in an educational but fun event.

While the counties of Chesterfield, Henrico and Hanover as well as the city of Richmond held celebrations on the 19th. a number of activities are scheduled for Earth Day. Check out the Web sites of Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden at www.lewisginter.org, the Maymont Nature Center at www.maymont.org and the Science Museum of Virginia at www.smv.org for details. All provide ongoing "greening" educational activities.

In a prior column, I also encouraged you to participate in GRA's Virginia Garden Week activities. For example, on Sunday, April 27, West Avenue is hosting its 68th annual garden celebration and tour. From noon to 5 p.m., you are invited to stop by and join in a celebration of this community's green. For details of event activities, see web site www.westave.org.

On a larger scale, from April 19-27, Virginia celebrates the season with its weeklong historic garden tours. Visitors and residents are invited to step through the gates of more than 200 of Virginia's most beautiful gardens, homes and historic landmarks. See www.GCVirginia.org or call 804-644-7776 to identify an open-house tour near you.

While you could choose to participate in publicly organized events, there is another option, create your own. The Maymont Foundation has published a resource guide complete with sample letters, activities and photographs designed to help individuals bplan, produce and publicize an Earth Day celebration. Contact the foundation to get your copy of "Earth Day Guide: How to Plan, Publicize and Produce an Earth Day" celebration.

Won't you join me in an effort to inspire the opening of backyard garden gates - the greening of our community? To share advice or the results of your choices related to this subject, contact me at syhwright@comcast.net or post comments below.



About the author: Sylvia Hoehns Wright, a landscape-garden designer located in Glen Allen, specializes in eco-chic strategies. For details of Wright's activities, contact 804-672-6007, syhwright@comcast.net or visit www.TheWrightScoop.com. This column appears the second and fourth Tuesday of the month.

Recent Eco-weak to Eco-chic columns
April 8: Committing to green.
March 25 : Mother Nature.
March 11 : Planting at the right time.
Feb. 26 : Education yourself.

 

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1 comments.
Brian Regrut - Email this User
4/22/2008 at 11:14:36 AM
Richmond.com Article Feedback - Leave your comment today!

I wonder how much pollution will be created by all the people driving their cars, trucks and SUVs to Earth Week celebrations?



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