To be honest, the start of our New York Earth Day adventures were not looking good. We spent several long nights at the AP office last week, trying complete all our tasks, send out all orders and ended up heading out around 9pm, two hours later than expected. Due to some mis-communication with friends, we were left on the streets of Manhattan at about 1am! We dozed off in the car, worried we would be spending the night in a car jam-packed with sneakers in the middle of New York. Somehow, we finally reached our friend and were able to sleep a mere 4 hours before heading over to Grand Central Station.
And this is where the weekend takes an upswing! We were nestled between Grand Central Station and other office buildings on Vanderbilt Ave. We had a lovely booth, including our hot off the press, new sneaker display. Last year we were inside the station, which was great, however, this year we both enjoyed some much needed kisses from the sun. It was great being outside and able to hear the music as well as see the city all around us. Our booth looked great filled with our classic sneakers, Children’s sneakers, Little Green Radicals Children’s line, and our Organic tees. Both days of the event we were really busy, however, Friday proved to be our busiest day, mainly due to commuters. Even though Saturday was a little less busy, we were able to spend some extra time chatting with visitors to the booth and meet all the little ones who came out with their families.
We met a lot of great people and AP fans! We really enjoyed talking to all the New Yorkers, especially the smallest ones. We even met Miz Metro (her entire dress and earrings were made of discarded subway tickets) and a Solar Powered Guitar & Amp man. The reaction we received about our company was very encouraging and we hope people will spread the word. We also were able to roam the festival a bit and came across a few wonderful organizations such as the Woodstock Farm Sanctuary and the New York Botanical Gardens.
As the sun faded between the buildings, we packed up our AP-mobile and headed out of the festival for some fun with friends in Brooklyn and Manhattan, plus some pit stops at our favorite vegan spots: Red Bamboo and Wild Ginger. We were excited to celebrate Earth Day in New York City and hope the message of environmental responsibility and sustainability rang in everyone’s ears. We also want to encourage everyone to continue to live your life with the environment in mind long after Earth Day passes. We thank all those involved for a wonderful festival and look forward to next year’s event: this time we will be sure we plan out sleeping arrangements BEFORE leaving Boston.
To view all the pictures from NY Earth Day 2010, please click on our Facebook Photo Album.
-Team AP
“The earth is what we all have in common,” once stated the famed writer and farmer, Wendell Berry. And he is completely right. Historically speaking, humans and animals have found reasons to become intolerant and draw lines, but one thing we cannot deny is our commonality of Mother Earth. This message is imperative during these trying times of increasing Climate Change and after years of manmade pollution has plagued our planet. Today marks a particular day of importance for our planet, Earth Day and in particular Earth Day is celebrating its 40th year!
The very first Earth Day was planned by Senator Gaylord Nelson in 1970 as a national teach-in for students and the country to call attention to the environmental movement and as a protest against current policies. The idea sure stuck, as students around the country, some 20 million, gathered together to draw attention to the environment, mainly focusing on the pollution of air and water. Since that fateful day in the year of “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” Jimi Hendrix’s death, and the Kent State Shootings, Earth Day has continued to grow. In fact, many people point to this day as the onset of the modern environmentalist movement. The original Earth Day and the proceeding public outcry led the federal government to create the Environmental Protection Agency that same year and influenced the passage of groundbreaking acts such as the Clean Air, Clean Water, an Endangered Species Act. It would be an understatement to call the first Earth Day a success. In fact, it is often 
Over the years Earth Day has grown into almost a national holiday with celebrations and promotions taking place all over the country. It may have lost its ability to bring commonality to polar opposites, as it is often looked at as a “Hippie Day.” However, Earth Day still meets its original goal of educating the people and drawing awareness to environmental issues. But it doesn’t have to lose the weight it once held with politicos. In this world of human pollution denial, environmental policy drawn on party lines, and growing evidence of climate change, Earth Day and its message are even more urgent.
Today, this week, this month, this year, and the rest of our lives should continue with the world on our minds. We owe it to ourselves, our future generations, the animals, and of course our Mother Earth. Today marks the 40th Anniversary of Earth day and it is time we allow it to get back to its roots; to bring our nation and world together in a common goal: protecting the world around us. Just as Berry stated, the Earth really is the one thing we really have in common, so let us use Earth Day to bridge the gaps between us. As the old adage says “we are all in this together,” so let’s work at it together.
