Kids Against Pollution (KAP) is an organization which educates the public about environmental issues by identifying local problems, applying creative solutions and ultimately effecting worldwide change.
In 1987, teacher Nick Byrne and his fifth grade class formed KAP after a lesson on freedom of speech. Students were assigned to research environmental issues. They then contacted government officials and the media in order to raise awareness. Response to the children’s concerns and efforts was enthusiastic and encouraging. Press coverage followed and resulted in a worldwide network of over one thousand chapters.
KAP’s first achievement was to ban the use of polystyrene foam food packaging in all local schools and persuaded the town council to enact similar restrictions. In May of 1989, over 1200 people attended the first annual Environmental Rights Day, where KAP introduced the Environmental Bill of Rights, a proposed amendment to the national and state Constitutions that would protect the right to a clean environment.
KAP members continue spreading the message, appearing before legislators in New Jersey and New York, giving presentations at the United Nations, and testifying at Environmental Protection Agency hearings in Washington, D.C. The President of the United States honored KAP with the “Take Pride in America” award. They were also recipients of an award given by IBM in conjunction with U.S. News and World Report as part of the “To Give and Learn” program.