Learn About Earth Day
Earth Day was created promote awareness and appreciation for the Earth's natural environment. It was founded by former US Senator Gaylord Nelson, of Wisconsin, in April 1970, and modeled on the 60s-era teach-ins, which were meant to be practical, participatory and oriented toward action. In its first two decades, Earth Day was observed only in the US, but beginning in 1990, it went international, with events held in more than 140 different countries around the world. Observed annually on April 22, approximately 175 countries currently celebrate the environmental event, planning a myriad of cleanups, educational seminars, and eco-friendly community events. Check out 10 easy ways to celebrate Earth Day, courtesy of Keep America Beautiful.
KTB affiliates all across the state are rallying their community members to observe Earth Day. Below is just a sampling of events that took place in 2012:
Keep Allen Beautiful
On April 7, Allen held Earthfest 2012, a festival filled with outdoor activities for the entire family. Earthfest is a celebration of nature, health, and community, while offering adults and children alike a chance to learn more about the wonders of nature while spending a day enjoying the great outdoors. Prior to the start of the festivities, Keep Allen Beautiful sponsored a community cleanup of Rowlett Creek. The family friendly event, which begins at 10 am and runs through 2 pm, and included hands-on environmental activities for the entire family, nature walks and bird watching, kayaking and canoe demonstrations, wildlife presentations, and much more!
Keep Brazos Beautiful
The Brazos Valley Earth Day event is a fun, free, family event that took place on April 21. The event featured live music, environmental education displays/demonstration, kids’ zone, free snacks, and more! There was a free concert by Vocal Trash that featured the Creekview Elementary School Choir, 90’s Alternative Band (Critical Misfire), and more. Various exhibitors held continual demonstrations on a variety of environmental topics, including rainwater harvesting, backyard composting, recycle stations, green lawn care techniques, and litter free events. There was also an alternative transportation area, with hybrid vehicles, ethanol vehicles, electric vehicles, a “smart” car, and road and mountain bikes.
Keep Burleson County Beautiful
The cities of Caldwell, Somerville and Burleson County collaborated for their Big Spring Clean event during the week of Earth Day! Events included: free tire disposal, free electronic recycling, and an open citizen collection station. On April 28, Burleson County held a "trash bash.” Activities included a recycled sculpture contest, trashin’ fashion show, bicycle rodeo, live music, street dance, kids activities, crawfish boil, food, and craft vendors! The band “Shakedown,” the premiere dance and party band from Austin, headlined the event with live music!
Keep Carrollton Beautiful
Keep Carrollton Beautiful hosted its second annual Home Decor Swap Meeting on April 21. Residents brought items that they didn’t want and received points for each item, then were able to ‘shop’ for items to bring home to spruce up their homes for the spring! This event served to keep these items of the landfill and help find good homes. All left over items were given to charity.
Keep Coppell Beautiful
Coppell held their Earthfest event on April 28. The event featured earthenware vendors, environmental education booths, kids crafts and entertainment, live music in the amphitheater, a plant sale, and a hybrid car show! The band Vocal Trash also performed. During Earthfest, there was a drop-off location for those doing their own spring cleaning. The Coppell Police Department also hosted a Prescription Take Back at the same site, in which citizens could give back unused prescription drugs.
Corpus Christi
Corpus Christi celebrated Earth Day-Bay Day 2012 on April 21 at Heritage Park. This free, family event serves as an important education and outreach festival free for all Coastal Bend residents. Since 1999, the Coastal Bend Bays Foundation (CBBF) has hosted this local event to promote and encourage citizens to learn about the bays and estuaries, wetlands, native plants and animals, recycling, sustainability, conservation and other environmental issues. An estimated 10,000 visitors attend each year.
Dallas
Earth Day Dallas was held on April 21-22 in Fair Park. It is an annual, outdoor festival seeking to elevate environmental awareness and influence the way North Texans think, live, and work. The heart of the festival is the Eco Expo, and exhibitors use their presence to promote their achievements as green leaders and teach attendees how to take environmentally responsible action. In addition, there will be a green talk speaker series with topics including water and global warming, an artfully green film series, a family zone featuring Radio Disney with hands-on environmental activities, University Row with over 20 universities and colleges, live music featuring Amos Lee, community yoga, live BMX shows, dance performances, picnic for the planet, student debates, and a truck farm 5k run.
Keep Mercedes Beautiful
Mercedes held its second annual Earth Day Festival on Saturday, April 21 from 9 am - 12 pm at the Mercedes Civic Center. Attendees learned how to go green and have a great time with family and friends at this free community event.
Keep Odessa Beautiful
Keep Odessa Beautiful celebrates Earth Day on the Saturday before or after (whichever is closest) at the Odessa Recycle Time Machine. This is the big day to accept items such as electronics, white appliances, etc. Keep Odessa Beautiful gives residents a chance to clean out their garages and attics and have a way to dispose of the items properly.
Keep Temple Beautiful
On April 21st in honor of Earth Day, Keep Temple Beautiful and Electronic Waste Disposal (EWD) hosted an electronic recycling event from 9 am to 2 pm. Businesses, citizens and surrounding communities had the opportunity to protect the environment by properly recycling computer equipment, cell phones, monitors, lawn equipment, gaming equipment and much, much more. This event was free to the public, businesses and open to neighboring cities; Fort Hood, Killeen, Copperas Cove, Harker Heights, Belton, Salado, Waco and all others.
This event, which allows the public to safely and securely recycle used and/or inoperable electronics in an environmentally-responsible manner, gives citizens and businesses the opportunity to properly recycle outdated electronic equipment without having to worry about data security breaches or penalties for improper disposal. After the equipment is collected, it is processed through one of KTB’s E-Steward certified recycling partners. Joan Meeks, President & Co-Owner of Electronic Waste Disposal, stated that electronics that store data, such as hard drives, are destroyed or wiped to guarantee that no customer information is ever compromised. This E-Waste Day event makes it easy for anyone to save space and energy by getting rid of old equipment, as well as support the environment by reducing the amount of E-Waste in landfills.
Keep Tyler Beautiful
Keep Tyler Beautiful and Ozarka Water teamed up, along with Caldwell Zoo, to offer activities for young and old alike to show what they can do to create a sustainable environment.
Keep Vinton Beautiful
Volunteers planted flowers and trees at Mariposa Park, as well as installed pavers around the bench and signs. Mariposa Park is a small neighborhood playground, constructed by volunteers with donations from local businesses.
Keep Waco Beautiful
Waco held their Beast N' Blooms - Earth Day at the Zoo event on April 21 at the Cameron Park Zoo. Keep Waco Beautiful, Master Naturalists, Audubon Society, Pond Society, Master Gardeners, US Army Corps of Engineers, Waco Wetlands, Master Composters, Cobbs Recycle Center, City of Waco Solid Waste Services, Succulent Plant Society and other environmental organizations celebrated Earth Day with the Cameron Park Zoo, offering children's activities, information, gardening and plants, and more.
Earth Day was created promote awareness and appreciation for the Earth's natural environment. It was founded by former US Senator Gaylord Nelson, of Wisconsin, in April 1970, and modeled on the 60s-era teach-ins, which were meant to be practical, participatory and oriented toward action. In its first two decades, Earth Day was observed only in the US, but beginning in 1990, it went international, with events held in more than 140 different countries around the world. Observed annually on April 22, approximately 175 countries currently celebrate the environmental event, planning a myriad of cleanups, educational seminars, and eco-friendly community events. Check out 10 easy ways to celebrate Earth Day, courtesy of Keep America Beautiful.KTB affiliates all across the state are rallying their community members to observe Earth Day. Below is just a sampling of events that took place in 2012:
Keep Allen Beautiful
On April 7, Allen held Earthfest 2012, a festival filled with outdoor activities for the entire family. Earthfest is a celebration of nature, health, and community, while offering adults and children alike a chance to learn more about the wonders of nature while spending a day enjoying the great outdoors. Prior to the start of the festivities, Keep Allen Beautiful sponsored a community cleanup of Rowlett Creek. The family friendly event, which begins at 10 am and runs through 2 pm, and included hands-on environmental activities for the entire family, nature walks and bird watching, kayaking and canoe demonstrations, wildlife presentations, and much more!
Keep Brazos Beautiful
The Brazos Valley Earth Day event is a fun, free, family event that took place on April 21. The event featured live music, environmental education displays/demonstration, kids’ zone, free snacks, and more! There was a free concert by Vocal Trash that featured the Creekview Elementary School Choir, 90’s Alternative Band (Critical Misfire), and more. Various exhibitors held continual demonstrations on a variety of environmental topics, including rainwater harvesting, backyard composting, recycle stations, green lawn care techniques, and litter free events. There was also an alternative transportation area, with hybrid vehicles, ethanol vehicles, electric vehicles, a “smart” car, and road and mountain bikes.
Keep Burleson County Beautiful
The cities of Caldwell, Somerville and Burleson County collaborated for their Big Spring Clean event during the week of Earth Day! Events included: free tire disposal, free electronic recycling, and an open citizen collection station. On April 28, Burleson County held a "trash bash.” Activities included a recycled sculpture contest, trashin’ fashion show, bicycle rodeo, live music, street dance, kids activities, crawfish boil, food, and craft vendors! The band “Shakedown,” the premiere dance and party band from Austin, headlined the event with live music!
Keep Carrollton Beautiful
Keep Carrollton Beautiful hosted its second annual Home Decor Swap Meeting on April 21. Residents brought items that they didn’t want and received points for each item, then were able to ‘shop’ for items to bring home to spruce up their homes for the spring! This event served to keep these items of the landfill and help find good homes. All left over items were given to charity.
Keep Coppell Beautiful
Coppell held their Earthfest event on April 28. The event featured earthenware vendors, environmental education booths, kids crafts and entertainment, live music in the amphitheater, a plant sale, and a hybrid car show! The band Vocal Trash also performed. During Earthfest, there was a drop-off location for those doing their own spring cleaning. The Coppell Police Department also hosted a Prescription Take Back at the same site, in which citizens could give back unused prescription drugs.
Corpus Christi
Corpus Christi celebrated Earth Day-Bay Day 2012 on April 21 at Heritage Park. This free, family event serves as an important education and outreach festival free for all Coastal Bend residents. Since 1999, the Coastal Bend Bays Foundation (CBBF) has hosted this local event to promote and encourage citizens to learn about the bays and estuaries, wetlands, native plants and animals, recycling, sustainability, conservation and other environmental issues. An estimated 10,000 visitors attend each year.
Dallas
Earth Day Dallas was held on April 21-22 in Fair Park. It is an annual, outdoor festival seeking to elevate environmental awareness and influence the way North Texans think, live, and work. The heart of the festival is the Eco Expo, and exhibitors use their presence to promote their achievements as green leaders and teach attendees how to take environmentally responsible action. In addition, there will be a green talk speaker series with topics including water and global warming, an artfully green film series, a family zone featuring Radio Disney with hands-on environmental activities, University Row with over 20 universities and colleges, live music featuring Amos Lee, community yoga, live BMX shows, dance performances, picnic for the planet, student debates, and a truck farm 5k run.
Keep Mercedes Beautiful
Mercedes held its second annual Earth Day Festival on Saturday, April 21 from 9 am - 12 pm at the Mercedes Civic Center. Attendees learned how to go green and have a great time with family and friends at this free community event.
Keep Odessa Beautiful
Keep Odessa Beautiful celebrates Earth Day on the Saturday before or after (whichever is closest) at the Odessa Recycle Time Machine. This is the big day to accept items such as electronics, white appliances, etc. Keep Odessa Beautiful gives residents a chance to clean out their garages and attics and have a way to dispose of the items properly.
Keep Temple Beautiful
On April 21st in honor of Earth Day, Keep Temple Beautiful and Electronic Waste Disposal (EWD) hosted an electronic recycling event from 9 am to 2 pm. Businesses, citizens and surrounding communities had the opportunity to protect the environment by properly recycling computer equipment, cell phones, monitors, lawn equipment, gaming equipment and much, much more. This event was free to the public, businesses and open to neighboring cities; Fort Hood, Killeen, Copperas Cove, Harker Heights, Belton, Salado, Waco and all others.
This event, which allows the public to safely and securely recycle used and/or inoperable electronics in an environmentally-responsible manner, gives citizens and businesses the opportunity to properly recycle outdated electronic equipment without having to worry about data security breaches or penalties for improper disposal. After the equipment is collected, it is processed through one of KTB’s E-Steward certified recycling partners. Joan Meeks, President & Co-Owner of Electronic Waste Disposal, stated that electronics that store data, such as hard drives, are destroyed or wiped to guarantee that no customer information is ever compromised. This E-Waste Day event makes it easy for anyone to save space and energy by getting rid of old equipment, as well as support the environment by reducing the amount of E-Waste in landfills.
Keep Tyler Beautiful
Keep Tyler Beautiful and Ozarka Water teamed up, along with Caldwell Zoo, to offer activities for young and old alike to show what they can do to create a sustainable environment.
Keep Vinton Beautiful
Volunteers planted flowers and trees at Mariposa Park, as well as installed pavers around the bench and signs. Mariposa Park is a small neighborhood playground, constructed by volunteers with donations from local businesses.
Keep Waco Beautiful
Waco held their Beast N' Blooms - Earth Day at the Zoo event on April 21 at the Cameron Park Zoo. Keep Waco Beautiful, Master Naturalists, Audubon Society, Pond Society, Master Gardeners, US Army Corps of Engineers, Waco Wetlands, Master Composters, Cobbs Recycle Center, City of Waco Solid Waste Services, Succulent Plant Society and other environmental organizations celebrated Earth Day with the Cameron Park Zoo, offering children's activities, information, gardening and plants, and more.
