The famous photo of Earth as a “blue pizza” floating in space made it possible to visualize the whole planet, enabling people to realize how small and fragile our planet really is.

Since the first Earth Day 30 years ago, there have been many extraordinary social changes–and humans have accelerated their profound impact on this watery planet. A multitude of environmental and health catastrophes sent shock waves around the world, causing major re-thinking and, in some cases, important new initiatives.

Progress to curtail tobacco use, phase-out CFCs, remove lead from gasoline and widespread implementation of curbside recycling programs are among the inspiring examples of successful public education and behavior changes which resulted from new awareness of environmental degradation.

Locally, when a cancer and birth defects cluster was found in a South San Jose neighborhood in the early ‘80’s, we discovered that our high-tech Silicon Valley businesses were not the “clean” industry originally believed. In response, SVTC was born and began our successful campaigns for cleaning up and prohibiting leaking underground tanks, creating new laws at the local, state and national level.

This was followed by more joint efforts with the fire chiefs association and local legislators to pass laws protecting residents and workers from the release of toxic gases used in Silicon Valley. With growing knowledge about how CFC’s were destroying the ozone layer, SVTC led a 1989 Earth Day protest which was part of the international campaign to phase-out the industrial use of CFC’s.

Unfortunately, CFC molecules already released will continue to eat their way through the upper atmosphere for decades, and the ozone hole situation is a good demonstration of the problem we face: how bad do things have to get before changes are made ?

A creative protest by students at San Jose State on Earth Day 1970 is another good illustration of our society’s on-going failure to tackle the inter-related social and environmental problems created by our economic system. In a humorous and visionary act, students at SJ State buried an old Volkswagen to make the statement that fossil fuel based transportation is a dinosaur. Yet 30 years later, we are witnessing a glut of gas-hogging SUV’s. Alternative fuels and widespread use of mass transit are still distant dreams, and we continue to struggle with smog, gridlock — and global climate change from the CO2 spewed into the atmosphere by our cars. Looking at the underlying themes of Earth Day over the decades may give us some deeper understanding of how our movement has changed — and where we need to act now. The typical Earth Day message in 1970 focused on stopping pollution coming from a single factory smokestack or pipe spewing chemicals into a river. These issues seemed relatively simple to work on via Federal legislation, and by the early ‘70’s, the nation adopted the Clean Air Act, the Occupational Safety and Health Act, the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act.

By the late ‘80’s, as record global temperatures were being recorded, rainforests were destroyed to raise beef cattle, and garbage was found floating in the Mid-Atlantic, a new Earth Day message was heard. The words of cartoon character Pogo — “We have met the enemy and he is us” — summed up the theme of Earth Day 1990, which stressed how consumer behavior in the Industrialized world is destroying the environment.

But just as recycling is important – and yet it’s not enough to protect the livability of the planet – the message of consumer responsibility has validity, but it’s not the full picture.

Sure, people in the US and other industrialized countries are huge consumers of natural resources, but the businesses which sell us the wasteful products are also responsible. It’s almost like product manufacturers are “pushers,” and thanks to the “need” generating ability of advertising, we’ve become hooked on addictive patterns of over-consumption and waste.

This vicious cycle of manufactured wants, planned obsolescence and waste has expanded beyond the US and operates on a global level, promoted by huge transnational corporations which threaten local democratic control. As evidence of the disturbing rise and consolidation of corporate power, more than 50% of the 100 largest economic powers in the world are now private corporations, while less than 50% are countries.

As antidotes to the growing impact of multi-national corporations upon the planet’s ecosystem, two positive trends have developed since 1970. Around the globe, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are arising, creating a growing voice of active citizens to give a counter-weight to the power of governments and multi-national corporations.

While this “third sector” has limited resources, it has become increasingly effective at utilizing electronic communication media to gather and disseminate information. SVTC, through our International Campaign for Responsible Technology, is proud to be a part of this emerging international network of global citizens.

One of the key concepts emerging among NGOs is the concept of “extended producer responsibility” (EPR). SVTC’s Clean Computer Campaign is currently working with policy makers to develop EPR initiatives, modeled after laws in Europe, which require producers of computers, cars and other goods, to take cradle-to-grave responsibility for the items they manufacture.

Another positive trend since 1970 has been the growth of the environmental justice movement. (See article by SVTC’s Corina Vera on page 3.) There’s a new awareness that “the environment” entails much more than wilderness areas, and that humans – especially those in low-income polluted communities – are also an “endangered species.”

SVTC’s website maps showing that Santa Clara County’s toxic hot spots are found in the poorest neighborhoods is one example of how environmental justice issues are being raised. In developing our new Environmental Health and Justice project, SVTC will continue our work to show the relationship between environmental pollution and health impacts upon poor people and communities of color.

On this 30th anniversary of Earth Day, a new theme is therefore developing in the environmental movement. We at SVTC feel ourselves to be part of this growing awareness, exemplified by the “Teamster-Turtle Alliance” that emerged at the WTO demonstrations in Seattle, where labor union members marched together with hundreds of people dressed in beautiful hand-made sea turtle costumes. When the Teamster-Turtle alliance unites with the Environmental Justice movement, we will be really able to counter the TNCs, re-establish democratic de-centralized control, and turn this planet in a better direction!

For Earth Day 2000, we feel the message is clear: We must change the paradigm in which economic activity is based solely on the opportunity to make a profit. Instead, we must make decisions about business activity and use of resources based upon human, social and ecological needs.

SVTC Staff contributed to this article.