Recycling!

Each day is Earth Day and reminds us of the need to recycle and reuse

Pile of Old Computer Parts
Globe

About Environmental Stewardship and Earth Day: We must remember that electronic waste can have a hazardous effect on the environment and human health. Although it can be difficult to find current statistics on the scope of electronic waste, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated that in 2009, U.S. consumers and businesses discarded over 2.37 million tons of televisions, computers, cell phones, printers, scanners, and faxes. Only 25 percent of these electronics were collected for recycling, with the rest disposed of in landfills.

The first Earth Day began with an idea in September 1969, at a conference in Seattle, Washington. U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson announced that in the spring of 1970 there would be a nationwide grassroots demonstration on the environment. Senator Nelson first proposed the nationwide environmental protest to thrust the environment onto the national agenda.” "It was a gamble," he recalls, "but it worked." Five months before the first April 22 Earth Day, on Sunday, November 30, 1969, The New York Times carried a lengthy article by Gladwin Hill reporting on the rising tide of environmental events:

"Rising concern about the environmental crisis is sweeping the nation's campuses with an intensity that may be on its way to eclipsing student discontent over the war in Vietnam...a national day of observance of environmental problems...is being planned for next spring...when a nationwide environmental 'teach-in'...coordinated from the office of Senator Gaylord Nelson is planned...." Senator Nelson hired Denis Hayes as the coordinator. Each year since the first celebration of Earth Day in 1970, the April 22 Earth Day has marked the anniversary of the birth of the modern environmental movement. Learn more.

Photo of Globe by Chris Carlson (Library of Congress)

About Us: The Rhode Island Computer Museum is dedicated to environmental stewardship and historical preservation. We are a nonprofit 501(c) organization established in 1999 in Rhode Island to preserve our rich computer history, offer a glimpse of the past, and provide engaging learning experiences. We welcome and appreciate any donations, whether of hardware, software, books, manuals, or cash, and we invite RI residents to be friends of the museum by volunteering time and making donations.

Earth Day Poster

Eager to learn more about Earth Day? The Library of Congress has developed an extensive Earth Day Research Guide with lots of related articles and images to view!