In 1966, when American folk singer Pete Seeger looked at the Hudson River, he did not see the majestic waterway celebrated in songs and paintings. He saw a river overwhelmed by sewage, industrial waste and oil pollution. His response was unusual: instead of starting with a campaign, a lawsuit or a political organisation, Seeger proposed building a wooden sailing boat. The idea was to bring people back to the river, let them experience it up close and persuade them that the polluted waterway was worth saving. Three years later, the 106-foot sloop Clearwater entered the Hudson.
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