Scope and arrangement
The Environmental Action Coalition is a non-profit citizens' association in New York City dedicated to expanding public awareness of environmental problems. It works to achieve this goal through consumer re-education, the development of an environmental education curriculum for schools, and the coordination of environmental protection and improvement projects with community groups, businesses, government, and the scientific community. Organized in 1970 as the New York Committee for Earth Day, the EAC presently has a staff of five and a membership of 1500. It focuses on the issues of recycling and solid waste disposal (including hazardous and toxic waste), urban forestry, water conservation, and environmental education. Among its activities the EAC produces educational materials for schools, provides speakers on environmental topics, holds teacher training workshops, and publishes Eco-News, the first environmental newsletter for children. It also publishes newsletters and leaflets for adults, maintains an environmental library of printed and audio-visual materials, organizes recycling centers and collections, sponsors the Youth Conservation Corps in city parks, monitors the city's waste disposal processes, and advises state and local government on environmental policy. The EAC has also sponsored several conferences, including "Defusing the Garbage Time-Bomb" (1978-1979) and "Getting a Handle on the Bottle Bill" (1983).
The collection contains the records of the EAC from 1970 to 1979 with scattered materials from 1980 to the present. The records are divided into background information and publications, general records, and environmental education records. Box 1 contains background information on the EAC, statements of its goals and objectives, publicity fliers, and copies of EAC publications, including the newsletters Cycle and Eco-News. The general records consist of topical files arranged alphabetically. Included are Board of Directors meeting minutes, correspondence, and memoranda (1971-1979), proposals with related correspondence and reports (1972-1979), and annual and status reports on EAC programs (1972-1973). Among the grant proposals are extensive materials, including photographs, on the EAC and National Science Foundation sponsored conference series, "Defusing the Garbage Time-Bomb". The file "Personnel" contains staff correspondence and activity reports, including the correspondence of the executive director for 1977. The solid waste program records (1971-1983) contain correspondence of the solid waste director, reference files on solid waste problems, reports on specific recycling and waste programs, and EAC testimony on these issues. The environmental education records contain correspondence (1971-1980) of the public information and environmental education staff, records of speaking engagements at schools, questionnaires on use of the EAC library, printed educational materials on various topics (particularly street trees and urban forestry), and correspondence, clippings, promotional materials, and general business files (mailing lists, subscriptions, financial records) regarding the production of Eco-News. Finally, the collection contains notes and drafts of a 1978 study on Prospect Park, Brooklyn, printed material regarding the celebration of Sun Day, 1978, and EAC posters.