Question

1. assessment: how does the author organize the information in the text?

a. the author introduces the specific people who created earth day and describes how they continue to make an impact on the environment today.
b. the author describes the circumstances that led to the creation of earth day and explains the factors that have altered its purpose over time.
c. the author asks questions about the development of earth day over the years and compares it to other activist movements like the women’s march.
d. the author demonstrates that earth day’s creators were mostly concerned with superficial improvements and argues that they weren’t committed to lasting change.

it was a portly-smelling sweat that awakened a new generation of activists. but now even environmentalists have misgivings about it. sure, they can get behind planting trees and clearing trash out of rivers, but they have issues with earth day itself.
what issues, you ask? i asked environmentalists to weigh in. their qualms were numerous.
earth day is too short. (c’mon, one day a year?)
they point out that companies use earth day as an excuse to sell or give away products, even though consumption is part of the problem.
they say it encourages a surface-level “change your lightbulbs! free tote bags!” mentality that focuses on personal responsibility at the expense of ignoring big polluters or mobilizing for political change. some have boycotted earth day events over the participation of anti-immigrant groups.
other than that, earth day is great!
it’s easy to forget that the original earth day in 1970 was an eye-popping success. an estimated 20 million americans joined the events, making it the largest demonstration in u.s. history. (the women’s march in 2017, for perspective, brought out roughly 4 million.) they demanded that political leaders clean up our environment.

untitled by li-an lim has no known restrictions on copyright.

Explanation:

To solve this, we analyze each option:

• Option A: The text doesn't focus on specific people who created Earth Day and their continuous impact. Eliminate A.
• Option B: The text describes the circumstances leading to Earth Day (mentions the original 1970 event, growth, etc.) and explains how its purpose changed (companies using it as a marketing tool, some boycotting, etc.). This matches.
• Option C: The author doesn't ask questions about development or compare to Women's March. Eliminate C.
• Option D: The text highlights Earth Day's success and impact, not that creators were superficial. Eliminate D.

Answer:

B. The author describes the circumstances that led to the creation of Earth Day and explains the factors that have altered its purpose over time.