This prominent sculpture pays homage to the visionary activism of Barbara Ashley Sielaff, who prompted Naperville to become a national leader in recycling with the Naperville Area Recycling Center in 1973. She also advocated for recycling in her column for the Naperville Sun titled “You Can Save Our Earth.”

The sculpture captures the symbiotic relationship between people and nature. The Spirit of the Earth extends her arms above a broken globe, a young boy pulls a wagon filled with cans, and a girl supports the fractured world with two hands.