VOA慢速英语2010-EXPLORATIONS - Events Set Around the Worl

FAITH LAPIDUS: I’m Faith Lapidus.

BOB DOUGHTY¹: And I’m Bob Doughty with EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English. April twenty-second marks the fortieth anniversary of Earth Day. Former United States Senator Gaylord Nelson started the observance in nineteen seventy. The aim of this day is to urge local action and increase awareness² about the state of the world’s environment. The creation of Earth Day is widely considered the beginning of the modern environmental movement.

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FAITH LAPIDUS: Gaylord Nelson was a Democrat³ from the state of Wisconsin. He had always been interested in environmental issues and worked hard to improve the environment in his state. The American public was also increasingly becoming aware of the huge environmental problems the country faced.

In nineteen sixty-nine two environmental problems caught the nation’s attention. The first was a huge oil spill off the coast of Santa Barbara, California. More than eighty thousand barrels of crude oil from the spill severely⁴ damaged over sixty kilometers of coastline. The second was increased news reporting about a river so polluted that it caught on fire. This was the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, Ohio.

Schoolchildren in Katmandu, Nepal, celebrating Earth Day in 2002

BOB DOUGHTY: Senator Nelson knew there was growing public concern about the country’s polluted air, rivers and land. He had been searching for a way to make the environment a subject of national interest to the country’s politicians and leaders. He had observed that students at colleges across the country had been organizing “teach-in” demonstrations⁵ to protest the war in Vietnam. He realized that this “teach-in” method would be a useful way for the public to express concern about the environment to federal and state officials.

FAITH LAPIDUS: In September of nineteen sixty-nine Senator Nelson announced his aim to create a national version of an environmental teach-in. The idea immediately received wide popular support from students, teachers, religious centers and other community groups. It was so popular that his Senate office alone could not deal with the many responses.

So, Senator Nelson created an independent nonprofit group called Environmental Teach-In, Inc to help organize what would become an environmental revolution.

Gaylor Nelson talking to reporters in 2001

BOB DOUGHTY: Gaylord Nelson hired a student and activist⁷ named Denis Hayes to lead this special campaign. The aim was to get people young and old across the United States to act locally in solving environmental problems in their areas. Senator Nelson did not want the campaign to be about the changes and actions he wanted for the environment.

The movement was to be driven by the American public on a “grassroots” or local level. It was to be an event not just supported by students. Women, labor⁸ unions, religious groups, political groups, scientists and environmental organizations would also support the event.

FAITH LAPIDUS: The planning for a national protest on the environment soon began to receive national media attention. The Environmental Teach-In group began to educate people about how to take action locally and spread the news of the event. The group stated that the national day for the environment would be “more than a day of fruitless talking.” And, they created a new name for their national teach-in event: Earth Day.

BOB DOUGHTY: The hard work of this grassroots effort resulted in the first Earth Day on April twenty-second, nineteen seventy. An estimated twenty million people took part in this event. In New York City, Fifth Avenue was closed to traffic as people marched through the streets. At demonstrations in Atlanta, Georgia, and Miami, Florida people protested to demand a cleaner environment.

Gaylord Nelson later said that “Earth Day worked because of the immediate⁶ response at the grassroots level.” He said that the event organized itself.

FAITH LAPIDUS: Lawmakers in Washington seemed to have understood the public demand for a cleaner environment. In December of nineteen seventy, a new federal agency began its work.

The Environmental Protection Agency aimed to bring together federal research, supervision⁹, and enforcement of environmental matters. By nineteen seventy-four several other environmental laws had been signed. These include the Clean Water Act, the Pesticide¹⁰ Control Act, and the Endangered Species Act.

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BOB DOUGHTY: Earth Day is now a worldwide event. One of its official organizers in the United States is a Washington based nonprofit group called Earth Day Network. Susan Bass¹¹ is the vice¹² president of programs and operations at Earth Day Network. She says that Earth Day is still very much about activism and fighting for the environment on a local level.

SUSAN BASS: “That’s the wonderful thing about Earth Day is that it really provides a platform, an opportunity for grassroots organizations and community organizations to really focus on what’s happening in their neighborhoods and their homes in their communities, in their businesses and to focus on the priority problems and to engage people maybe for the first time in taking environmental action.”

FAITH LAPIDUS: Earth Day Network works on environmental programs around the world.

SUSAN BASS: “We are active now in one hundred ninety countries and it’s estimated that one billion people participate in Earth Day events around the globe now.”

FAITH LAPIDUS: One event in Rabat, Morocco. will celebrate the country’s new Charter for Environment and Sustainable Development. Its aim is to guide the country’s environmental policies and future laws to protect natural resources and ensure safe economic development.

Susan Bass says that this year’s Earth Day will be a busy one in the United States.

SUSAN BASS: “We’re going to be active all over the United States; we have events across the country from Santa Monica to New York, to the heartland of the country.”

BOB DOUGHTY: Susan Bass tells about an important event in Washington.

SUSAN BASS: “And then our flagship event will be on April twenty-fifth. It will be the Climate Rally where we’ll be inviting¹³ people from all walks of life to join us on the National Mall to call on ou.”

BOB DOUGHTY: The goal of this event is to demand that lawmakers pass new legislation on climate change and clean energy in two thousand ten. The event is expected to include performances by musicians including Sting, John Legend, and the Roots.

FAITH LAPIDUS: Some cities and communities will hold Earth Day activities and celebrations for an entire week, not just on April twenty-second. Events in Novato, California will include an art exhibit called “Where You Are.” The exhibit at the Marin Community Foundation will show artwork influenced by the environment and by Earth Day.

In Irving, Texas people can attend an event called “Earth Day… Naturally.” People can gather to listen to music, eat healthful foods and learn about new green technologies. They can also bring their electronic devices to be recycled instead of thrown away.

And, the Oregon nonprofit SOLV has organized a clean-up day called SOLV IT. People across the state will work together on one hundred twenty-five local projects to clean trash, remove invasive plants and improve water areas.

BOB DOUGHTY: On Earth Day, the artist and building designer Maya Lin will launch a Web site about the Earth’s endangered plants and animals. The project is called “What is Missing?” The Web site, a book and a series of art projects around the world will bring attention to the disappearing biodiversity on our planet. The project will help people understand the many threats to the natural environments where endangered plants and animals live. The goal of the project is to raise awareness about the species that are disappearing and to tell people what can be done to help the situation.

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FAITH LAPIDUS: Denis Hayes was the activist who helped organize Earth Day forty years ago. He has spent his career working to support environmental issues. He recently wrote an article about the meaning of Earth Day in two thousand ten.

Denis Hayes said lawmakers in Washington have repeatedly failed to make the environment a central issue. But he says the American public can force Congress to pay more attention to this subject. He says Congress can only act intelligently and boldly on the issue of climate change if the American public gives it no other choice. So, he says Americans must use their votes to elect officials for whom the environment is important.

Denis Hayes also discusses two climate bills currently being proposed by American lawmakers. He says each new version of one bill is weaker and less effective than the one before it. He suggests that lawmakers who ignore climate change should start losing their jobs in the next election.

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BOB DOUGHTY: This program was written and produced by Dana Demange. I’m Bob Doughty.

FAITH LAPIDUS: And I’m Faith Lapidus. What is your country doing to celebrate Earth Day? You can comment at our Web site, voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English.

 

1 doughty   

adj.勇猛的，坚强的

参考例句：

• Most of successful men have the characteristics of contumacy and doughty.绝大多数成功人士都有共同的特质：脾气倔强，性格刚强。
• The doughty old man battled his illness with fierce determination.坚强的老人用巨大毅力与疾病作斗争。

2 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

3 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

4 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

5 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

6 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

7 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

8 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

9 supervision   

n.监督，管理

参考例句：

• The work was done under my supervision.这项工作是在我的监督之下完成的。
• The old man's will was executed under the personal supervision of the lawyer.老人的遗嘱是在律师的亲自监督下执行的。

10 pesticide   

n.杀虫剂，农药

参考例句：

• The pesticide was spread over the vegetable plot.菜田里撒上了农药。
• This pesticide is diluted with water and applied directly to the fields.这种杀虫剂用水稀释后直接施用在田里。

11 bass   

n.男低音(歌手)；低音乐器；低音大提琴

参考例句：

• He answered my question in a surprisingly deep bass.他用一种低得出奇的声音回答我的问题。
• The bass was to give a concert in the park.那位男低音歌唱家将在公园中举行音乐会。

12 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

13 inviting   

adj.诱人的，引人注目的

参考例句：

• An inviting smell of coffee wafted into the room.一股诱人的咖啡香味飘进了房间。
• The kitchen smelled warm and inviting and blessedly familiar.这间厨房的味道温暖诱人，使人感到亲切温馨。