Clubs host Earth Day Pickup event, create more positive environment
May 3, 2022
Earth Day was originally started on April 22, 1970. To celebrate, Student Council, Kind Committee, Wordsmiths of Berlin, Key Club and other students that wanted to help the environment. They went outside to help clean up around the school.
“Removing the waste from the school creates a more positive environment. By picking up trash, we help our school project a more positive image, while also making the school a better place for students to come to,” Key Club President Anna Schumacher said.
Students went off in groups of their choosing to help clean up. Each group had a trash bag and everyone wore gloves for their safety.
“Common things that I found were wrappers from candy, paper, and school supplies like pencils and erasers,” Student Council member Jori Lundt said.
Earth Day has not always existed. It was not until 1969 that people even thought of creating a holiday to raise awareness about the impact that pollution is having on the Earth.
“The Santa Barbara, CA oil spill in 1969 prompted organizers to create what would become Earth Day. Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson was one of the organizers that helped to create Earth Day,” history teacher Matthew Marquis said.
Earth Day has become an increasingly important holiday in recent years as people are beginning to see the harmful effects of climate change from the use of fossil fuels.
“It is important because it reminds us of the damage we have caused to the Earth and are still causing it. It reminds us to not take the Earth for granted and policies continue to need to happen to protect the Earth for future generations,” Marquis said.
This is the second year that an event like this has been hosted at Berlin High School. Schumacher says that she plans to host an event like this again next year, too.
“It was good to see upper and underclassmen integrated and helping for a common cause,” Lundt said.
