Climate Activist Tia Nelson Talks 50 Years Of Earth Day

WAMU 88.5 | By Haili Blassingame

Published April 21, 2020 at 7:09 AM CDT

'Earth Day' in New York, part of the largest organized event in American history to date. Over 20 million people participated in events concerning the environment. On this New York street they are promoting the recycling glass and cans.

It’s been 50 years since the first Earth Day on April 22, 1970. A lot has changed, including the severity of global climate change. The past decade has been the warmest on record.

If we’ve learned anything from the coronavirus pandemic, it’s that collective action and implementing policy early makes a huge difference. Some are hoping the outbreak will be a wake-up call for how we respond to the massive threat of climate change.

Wisconsin Senator and Governor Gaylord Nelson was the founder of Earth Day. He knew that climate change wouldn’t get solved overnight.

“The greatest accomplishment I think of since Earth Day has been the developing awareness, the recognition that there is a major environmental problem. Until that happened, it wasn’t possible really to pass legislation. There are lots of things of course that need to be done, and it will be a continuing problem, man’s relationship to his environment for as long as mankind exists.”

We spoke to Nelson’s daughter, Tia Nelson, about her father’s legacy, her own climate activism and her vision for the planet for the next 50 years.