Earth Day 2000: Campus Action For The Next Millennium
As the American economy thunders on, the security of future generations is
threatened by the continuing destruction of the environment.
In 1970, the original Earth Day served as a rallying cry for citizens to
call for a halt to the wholesale destruction of public health and natural
resources. 30 years later, our future faces as significant a threat as ever
as species extinction accelerates, the threats of global warming become a
reality, and the public health impacts of toxic pollution have reached the
heart, lungs and tissue of every American.
We Are The People, Now Is The Time
Over the last 30 years, activists have used almost every tool available to
correct the dangerous acts of corporations, through persuasion, litigation,
and legislation. Now, as we enter the next Millennium with a thriving
economy, students have an opportunity to use a powerful new tool to curtail
corporate abuse of the environment. As corporations charge ahead into new
ventures, with greater production and new technology, they are increasingly
more dependent on a workforce that is techno-savvy, energetic, and well
educated.
Corporate recruiters are now a common and aggressive force on college
campuses seeking out the best and brightest to join their company. Corporate
recruiters compete with each other in attempting to lure students with
signing bonuses, generous salary packages, opportunities for advancement,
and the offer of a fulfilling and rewarding career with their company. We
call on them to include a demonstrated commitment to our environmental
future in their benefit package.
The Campaign: A Job Boycott For The Future
ECOnference2000 attendees will launch a job boycott campaign that will
galvanize students all across the country with a commitment not to work for
the worst environmental abusers. The campaign will identify a number of
employment sectors (banking, engineering, computers, manufacturing,
retailing etc.) where the worst of the worst will be targeted for an
employment boycott by students entering the workforce. Companies with the
worst environmental record will be asked to meet the demands of
environmental activists or do their business without the assistance of
America's recent college graduates.
Students care about the state of the environment. It is their future at
stake. Without being asked to abandon reasonable career goals, every student
can take their environmental convictions from the campus quad through the
job search process, and into the labor market.
The Message: Students Will Work For The Environment
This campaign will be officially launched at ECOnference2000, where the
targets will be officially announced, student leaders will be trained, and
the campaign will begin. By Earth Day 2000 and the Spring commencements,
corporations with the worst environmental records will hear loud and clear:
if they want to be successful recruiters, they have to be good corporate
citizens.