the Informer

Senior Copy Chief

Seeing as Wednesday was the 39th Earth Day, why not talk about the growing popularity of "going green"? People are becoming more aware than ever of the effects their actions have on the environment, and they are working harder than ever to try to reverse these problems.,Seeing as Wednesday was the 39th Earth Day, why not talk about the growing popularity of "going green"? People are becoming more aware than ever of the effects their actions have on the environment, and they are working harder than ever to try to reverse these problems. But it's growing into a sort of fad, and that causes concerns. Will it one day go out of style to be environmentally conscious, forcing more pollution onto the earth?

The movement of working towards creating a better environment has been happening since 1970, thanks to the work of former Senator Gaylord Nelson. The New York Times wrote about the event before it actually occurred, saying, "Rising concern about the environmental crisis is sweeping the nation's campuses with an intensity that may be on its way to eclipsing student discontent over the war in Vietnam…a national day of observance of environmental problems…is being planned for next spring…when a nationwide environmental 'teach-in'…coordinated from the office of Senator Gaylord Nelson is planned…."

It's the type of movement that has been floating kind of under the radar for decades. People were concerned about it, but no one was really working consistently to try and make things better. But in the past few years, everything has been about "going green," and information is readily available on ways to become more environmentally friendly.

Celebrities are endorsing "going green," and hybrid cars are selling like hotcakes. Suddenly, everyone has reusable bags to grocery shop with, and everyone is separating their trash into plastic, glass and paper. Clothing stores across the country are selling organic cotton t-shirts which are more environmentally friendly. According to treehugger.com, "Organic cotton is the version of its conventional counterpart grown without pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, chemical fertilizers or any other chemicals."

The idea of using celebrities and general publicity to raise awareness is nothing new. The most notable PR move was by (RED) to raise awareness and money to help women and children with HIV/AIDS in Africa. Created by Bono and Bobby Shriver, Chairman of DATA, this idea works to team The Global Fund with some of the most well-known products like Apple and Converse. A percentage of each product sold is donated to The Global Fund. According to the joinred.com website, "(RED) partners have generated more than $120 million for the Global Fund."

I'm beyond pumped that people are working to create a better world and trying to create a positive impact. This is our home, the place we live in, and it's important to keep it clean and to take care of it. People work hard to make it as environmentally friendly as possible. But with such a huge influx of "going green" put in consumers' faces, it's hard not to go along with the trend.

For so long, SUVs were being sold as the new "it" car to have. Celebrities were buying them and showing them off for the world to see. What will happen if that becomes the trendy thing to do again? Will the public abandon their hybrid cars for the luxury, but gas guzzling, SUVs yet again?

It's a scary thought. Seeing how quickly being a friend of the environment came into the spotlight, it's completely possible for it to disappear from the publics' minds just as quickly. Who knows what will be in style next year?

Hopefully, this will not be the case. Hopefully caring about the environment isn't a huge fad like acid washed jeans or.well, nothing came in and out of style faster than acid washed jeans.

But people should continue to find ways to be more environmentally friendly, and these ideas on being aware of ways to keep the earth beautiful will stay around for centuries to come.