Ecology Action of Rhode Island newsletters

Collection — Box: Multi-Collection Box

Identifier: 152-02

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Ecology Action for Rhode Island newsletters collection consists of newsletters sent to its membership, at the time composed of around 500 members, between the years 1970 and 1974. The newsletters relay information from Ecology Action’s working committees, including Education, Land Use, Legislation, Pesticides, Nuclear, and Recycling. These committees respectively promoted and informed Ecology Action members about relevant news, opinion pieces, and organizational initiatives happening in Rhode Island in the first half of the 1970s, including protests against the construction of the Interstate-84, discourses around nuclear power, and the feasibility of solar power. The newsletters also served to expand Ecology Action’s membership base and solicit donations to fund its work.

Dates

1970 - 1974

Creator

Ecology Action of Rhode Island (Organization)

Conditions Governing Access

Materials are open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

PPL does not claim copyright to this collection. Users of this item are responsible for determining copyright restrictions.

Biographical / Historical

Ecology Action for Rhode Island was an environmental organization founded in 1969 in Providence, Rhode Island. Among its co-founders were Paul J. McNeil Jr., and among its presidents were Dora Borenstein, James Verde, and William Greene. It was headquartered on the East Side of Providence at 281 Thayer Street in the 1970s, and then moved Downtown to 189 Mathewson Street by the 1980s. Ecology Action for Rhode Island’s environmental work was volunteer-run, and the organization relied on this base for fundraising, recruitment, and initiatives. The organization was involved in grassroots campaigns and coordinated its own initiatives in response to Rhode Island environmental legislation. The focus of these campaigns include anti waste incineration, raising public awareness on pollutants and pesticide usage, and notably, a mandatory statewide recycling program. Prior to the successful grassroots campaign to legislate mandatory statewide recycling in the 1980s, the group organized a private, volunteer-run recycling program for Rhode Island residents.