Gaylord Nelson

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Champion for our Earth

Sheila Terman Cohen

Learn the story of the senator, governor, and conservationist who created Earth Day and pushed for laws and practices to help protect our planet.

120 pages, 7 x 9, 67 b&w photos
Paperback: $12.95 | ISBN: 978-0-87020-443-2
Ebook: $9.99 | ISBN: 978-0-87020-533-0
Publication Date: 2/24/2010

Reading Level: Ages 10–14, Grades 5–8

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Description

Born in Clear Lake, Wisconsin, in 1916, Gaylord Nelson grew up as immersed in his parents’ political work and community service as he was in playing practical jokes and exploring the natural world around his home town. Along the way he experienced events that shaped him in fundamental ways: as a man who stood up for what he believed in and who understood how to treat with respect those he disagreed with. Both traits would serve him well as he rose from law student to state senator to Wisconsin governor and finally to United States Senator. His commitment to fighting for the greater good also drove his most significant contributions: the fight to save the natural world and Earth itself.

In Gaylord Nelson: Champion for Our Earth, author Sheila Terman Cohn shares with young readers the story of this intelligent, passionate, and compassionate civic leader. Nelson fought for the equal treatment of all races, and he condemned the paranoia and divisiveness of 1950s McCarthyism. But his greatest contribution was to sound the alarm about the increasing environmental threats to our planet. It was Nelson's idea to use teach-ins to let people know that the environment needed their help. Thanks to him, more natural resources were conserved and new laws demanded clean air and water. Now, every year on April 22, people all over the world plant trees and pick up litter to celebrate Earth Day. The Earth and its inhabitants aren’t safe yet, but Gaylord Nelson demonstrated that even one person can do their part fo help to save the world.

Accessibly written and richly illustrated with historic images, Gaylord Nelson: Champion for Our Earth includes a glossary of terms, sidebars on World War II, DDT, and several facets of the environmental movement, plus activities and discussion questions.

Author Bio

Sheila Terman Cohen

Sheila Terman Cohen has written three biographies for young readers for the Wisconsin Historical Society Press: Gaylord Nelson: Champion for Our Earth, which received a Next Generation Indie Book Award; Mai Ya’s Long Journey, which was awarded first place in juvenile nonfiction by the Council of Wisconsin Writers and the Midwest Independent Publishers Association; and Sterling North and the Story of Rascal. She is also the author of Jews in Wisconsin. Cohen studied journalism at the University of Wisconsin and has written articles for newspapers in Madison, Wisconsin, where she and her husband live and raised their family.