On April 22, 1970 the first Earth Day was celebrated. In honor of the planet humans have lived on, organizers Senator Gaylord Nelson and student activist Denis Hayes encouraged student participation in a city-wide event, which resulted in marches from thousands of people carrying posters with words of appreciation for the planet.
In 2026, our very own BVH Green Team has organized a week-long event in order for students to show their love for the Earth. Team members as well as students all participated in the four different activities planned throughout the week at lunch.
“Green Team’s Earth Week is meant to advocate for sustainable practices with the community, promoting awareness and appreciation for the connection of humanity and the planet,” Green Team Vice-President and senior Luna said.
On Monday, April 20, Green Team President and senior Giselle Vasquez-Mondragon Luna moved a table in front of room 402, on which their meetings and the rest of the activities took place. Once the table was set, Luna brought out tiny glasses, succulents and sharpies for students to create their own succulent plant and label it. By the end of lunch, many students walked to their classes with their own creative plotted plants.
On Tuesday, April 21, Green Team Secretary and senior Isabel Acevedo brought out tote bags and paint, marking this activity as a creative but sustainable outlet for students to participate in. Many students took inspiration from Earth Week as they drew flowers, plants, bugs and the planet.
On Wednesday, April 22, a large poster was taped to the floor with the title of “Earth Day”, as April 22 marked the holiday. On the poster, blue and green handprints from students were periodically added throughout lunch as Vasquez-Mondragon and Luna painted participants’ hands with blue and green paint. Senior Noah Farmer took it a step further as Vasquez-Mondragon painted his foot. Farmer mentioned its symbolic meaning of “leaving a carbon footprint” on the Earth. Once the handprints and footprints were added, each student wrote their name next to their respective paint in order to showcase their environmental consciousness.
On Thursday, April 23, all Green Team officers led an Earth Day Meeting in room 407, discussing the importance of the planet, its degradation and methods to take care of it. The annual tradition of Earth Week has remained strong at BVH, but like environmental advocate and teacher Jennifer Ekstein says “Earth Day is everyday”.
