Founder of Earth Day Dies

Gaylord Nelson, former governor and U.S. senator from Wisconsin and founder of Earth Day, died in July 2005 at age 89. “I wanted a demonstration by so many people that politicians would say, ‘Holy cow, people care about this,’” Nelson said. “That’s just what Earth Day did.” President Clinton awarded Nelson the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1995. “As the father of Earth Day, he is the grandfather of all that grew out of that event: the Environmental Protection Act, the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Safe Drinking Water Act,” said the proclamation. Most recently, Nelson worked on land-preservation issues as a counselor of the nonprofit Wilderness Society.