John McConnell

John McConnell (March 22, 1915 – October 20, 2012) was the founder and creator of Earth Day, and The Earth Society Foundation. He was known for designing the Earth Flag, pursuing causes relating to peace, religion, and science. Early years John McConnell was born on March 22, 1915, in Davis City, Iowa, United States. He was the son of a Pentecostal preacher and traveling doctor. His first interest in the Earth began in 1939 while partnering with Albert Nobell, a chemist, in the Nobell Research Laboratory in Los Angeles that built a factory for the manufacture of plastics. Realizing how much the manufacture of plastic polluted the Earth, his concern for ecology grew. Afterward, he was a lifetime believer in care of the environment, founded on his Christian beliefs. He stated that, leading into World War II, he believed that love and prayer could be more powerful than bombs. On October 31, 1957, soon after the first successful Sputnik launch, McConnell wrote an editorial entitled, "Make Our Satellite A Symbol Of Hope", calling for peaceful cooperation in the exploration of Space with a visible "Star of Hope" satellite. This led him to create a "Star of Hope" organization to foster international cooperation in space.