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Earth Day Originated At Penn, No Joke

Hillary Reinsberg Thursday, April 22, 2010Thu, Apr 22, 2010

Given the trash we usually see littered on College Green, we'd be hard-pressed to believe many students observe Earth Day (well, aside from a couple). Since today, 4/22 is that day we celebrate the planet, here's a bit of history that may shock you (it shocked me).

Did you know that Earth Week, and then eventually the international movement known as Earth Day, was started by a group of a Penn students? It's true.

A committee of students and local folks organized Earth Week on Penn's campus from April 16-22 in 1970. Eventually, the Penn group expanded to other nearby colleges as well as community organizations. The idea caught on, started to spread nationally, and here we are today.

So throw away your trash, kidz.