BR celebrates 20th Earth Day

• By ASHLEY M. BAILEY
• Advocate staff writer
• Published: Apr 20, 2009

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For at least one sunny afternoon, the Red Stick went green.

Thousands of people descended on downtown Baton Rouge on Sunday for the 20th annual Louisiana Earth Day. The morning’s cloudy skies cleared just in time for the celebration to begin. 

Pat Hives said she and her daughters, Courtney Hives  and Lauren Hives, went to the celebration to enjoy the beautiful weather. The family has attended previous Earth Day events.

“It’s a big crowd,” Pat Hives said. “People really seem to be enjoying themselves.”

This year’s theme was “Think Globally, Act Locally.”

“The spirit of (the event) is education,” said Brenda Nixon, president of Louisiana Earth Day.

The Education Pavilion gave children and their parents opportunities to get their hands dirty and their feet wet in all things  green.

“We try to make it very personal by making it hands-on,” Nixon said.

Barry Guillot and his group, Wetland Watchers of Destrehan, travel  each year to attend the celebration.

Guillot and his crew of 24 volunteers bring live animals like baby alligators and corn snakes.

“It’s worthwhile,” Guillot said. “There’s such a huge amount of people.”

Other exhibits allowed children to race solar-powered toy cars, explore pond habitats and build bird houses from reclaimed wood.

Each year, the event’s organizers add a new attraction. This year the new addition was the ‘Going Green in Red Stick’ pavilion. More than 70 organizations set up shop at the foot of the Old Governor’s Mansion to showcase energy-efficient ideas for the home.