Earth Day Ceremonies
In 1970 John McConnell, a Sag Harbor resident, and the anthropologist Margaret Mead suggested that a day be set aside each year to advocate for the earth and all of its inhabitants.
They wanted the day to be in March to coincide with the spring equinox. Others, including Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin, pushed for an "Earth Day" in April.
April won out. This weekend marks the 27th annual celebration of Earth Day, and a number of events and celebrations will be held around town to observe it.
Naturefest
Southampton College, the Group for the South Fork, and the college's student environmental group, PEACE (Protecting Every Aspect Concerning the Environment) have invited "parents, children, earthlings, granola lovers, tree huggers" to participate in a free event called Naturefest, from noon to 8 p.m. on Sunday.
There will be tellers of children's stories, a jazz quartet, and a professional drum troupe. A raffle will feature prizes donated by the Agri-Balance Organics Consulting Company of Sag Harbor. Wildlife rehabilitators will describe their activities, and there will be presentations on organic farming, alternative energy, and recycling as well.
Off-campus activities will include walks on Tuckahoe Hill and a boat ride on Shinnecock Bay aboard the Paumanok.
In Montauk
The Concerned Citizens of Montauk will celebrate Earth Day on Saturday, from noon to 2:30 p.m. at Third House.
This year's theme, "Celebrating Our Montauk Woodlands," will be dramatized by Montauk School students in a presentation called "Today's Tree, Tomorrow's World." The students will also present a "living diorama" depicting Native Americans in costume and traditional settings.
The Montauk-based group Trilogy, whose members are Bill Akin, Mathew Katz, and Teri Cox, will perform as well.
Student art and poetry will be displayed in the Teddy Roosevelt room at Third House - the perfect setting, said Lisa Grenci, president of C.C.O.M., "since he was the country's first statesman to address the need to preserve our forests." Concerned Citizens has worked to preserve Hither Woods, Camp Hero, Shadmoor, and Montauk County Park itself.
Caldicott Speaks
Dr. Helen Caldicott of East Hampton, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, an author, and the founder of Physicians for Social Responsibility, will celebrate the day Sunday at Southhaven County Park in Brookhaven.
The Earth Day observance there, which is free, will begin at 11 a.m. and continue to 5 p.m., rain or shine. Dr. Caldicott will speak during the ceremonies on "reclaiming health," both for the planet and its population.
The park can be reached from the north service road of the Sunrise Highway (Route 27), between Exits 57 and 58.
Lovers of the earth and all its inhabitants also should know that the Nature Conservancy needs a few good coastal stewards and invites volunteers to join the effort to protect the local population of endangered piping plovers beginning on Sunday.
The conservancy says that the work can be arduous but is always rewarding. Volunteers have been asked to call the conservancy at its East Hampton offices today to learn about where to meet on Sunday. Another such work day is scheduled for April 26.