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Philadelphia committee led by Benjamin Franklin attempts to regulate waste disposal and water pollution.
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Sojourner Truth delivers her "Ain't I a Woman" Speech
Born a slave, and after she gained her freedom 1827, Sojourner Truth became a well known anti-slavery speaker. Women’s rights became Truth’s life’s work. During the historic Ohio Women’s Rights Convention in 1851, Truth delivered her most famous “Ain’t I a Woman” speech. -
Henry David Thoreau published Walden
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The term ecology is coined in German as Oekologie by Ernst Heinrich Philipp August Haeckel
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Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton found the National Woman Suffrage Association
As women all over the country struggled to win the right to vote in the U.S., two women came together to fight even harder. Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony formed the National Woman Suffrage Association and gained priority to securing women the right to vote. By the beginning of the 20th century, a number of states started following suit in giving women suffrage. -
The term acid rain is coined by Robert Angus Smith in the book Air and Rain
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Nannie Helen Burroughs and children at farm stand conneced with her training school for women and girls. Afro American Newspaper
Nannie Helen Burroughs and others found the Women's Convention of the National Baptist Convention. It becomes, at one point, the largest Black women’s organization in the United States. Burroughs, a teacher, activist, and strong advocate for racial pride, also founds a school for girls and women with the organization’s sponsorship. -
Regina Anderson. Public Domain
Regina Anderson is born. A playwright and librarian, of African, Native American, Jewish, and European descent, she will help organize a 1924 dinner that creates the Harlem Renaissance, and she becomes a key figure in the movement. -
The term smog is coined by Henry Antoine Des Voeux in a London meeting to express concern over air pollution
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US Congress created the National Park Service
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Women win the right to vote
After a 72-year-long fight, the 19th Amendment finally passed. On August 18, 1920, women’s suffrage was ratified, granting women the right to vote in the U.S. -
Rachel Carson publishes Silent Spring
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The Equal Pay Act passes
Their were issues with the president that were still being concerned about the status of women such as discrimination and the fact that employers were legally able to pay women less than men for doing the same job. The equal pay act aimed to abolish the wage discrimination against women. -
The Apollo 8 picture of Earthrise
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First Earth Day – April 22. Millions of people gather in the United States for the first Earth Day. US Environmental Protection Agency established
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Gloria Steinem, Bella Abzug, and Betty Friedan form the National Women’s Political Caucus
the organization mission is to improve the status of women by giving them voice in government. the very first gathering brought 320 women to Washington D.C. in support of the NWPC founding. -
Sandra Day O’Connor becomes the first woman appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court
Sandra Day O’Connor is nominated by President Ronald Reagan to the Supreme Court. At the time, only six percent of all federal judges were women. On September 25, 1981, O’ Connor was sworn in as the 102nd justice, making her the first woman justice in Supreme Court history. -
Sally Ride becomes the first American woman in space
Women not only were making history on Earth but also in space. Mission Specialist Sally Ride launched into space on the shuttle Challenger along with the rest of the NASA crew from Kennedy Space Center. Ride was the first American woman to be launched into space. -
Montreal Protocol on substances that deplete the ozone layer entered into force
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The Kyoto Protocol was negotiated in Kyoto, Japan in December. Countries commit to reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide
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U.S. rejects the Kyoto Protocol
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Halle Berry becomes the first African American woman to win the Oscar for Best Actress
The famed actress received the award for her performance in the film Monster’s Ball. In her acceptance speech, Berry continued to address how the award and honor went beyond her. Even now, she remains the only black woman to receive that same award. -
U.S. announces it will cease participation in the Paris Agreement on climate change mitigation
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U.S. announces it will rejoin the Paris Agreement on climate change mitigation