1 Degree of BP

In the 1990's there was a run-away conversation game called "6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon"...where you tried to make a connection between any person (celebrity or not) and Kevin Bacon in as few connections as possible. The basic premise was that you could most certainly do it in 6 steps or less. 

Seems the sad sorry game these days could be the B.P. Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill from the Deepwater Horizon's drilling rig explosion on April 20th, 2010.  Worldwide headlines seem to be playing the "BP Abbreviation Game"--what's the most appropriate B.P. abbreviation to encapsulate the BP debacle.

Lately "BP" could stand for an assundry of things: Bad Press; Botched Politics; B'oiling-mad People; Beastly Pollution; Big Problem, Bothersome & Pathetic, Back Peddle, Beyond Patience, Brilliant Propaganda, Bottomless Pit, Biodiversity Perdition, Bureaucratic Pursuit, Beyond Petroleum, Bye-bye Planet.

Here we are, approaching 2 months later, and we still have this horrific situation down in the Gulf of Mexico.  BP is dabbling in corrective attempts with limited to nil results.  People are getting antsy and wanting to do "something" about the oil spill..but what??  

Well, there are places out there, from donations to petitions to "go out and take action" spots where you can get involved.  

• Donate to the National Resources Defense Council, http://www.nrdc.org/ . While on their website, take the time to see the 5 minute video from Robert Redford entitled "The Fix" about the significant impact this spill.  However, given that the NRDC is multi-faceted, donation money is not solely focused on the oil spill.

From their website:  "NRDC is the nation's most effective environmental action organization. We use law, science and the support of 1.3 million members and online activists to protect the planet's wildlife and wild places and to ensure a safe and healthy environment for all living things.....Worth Magazine has named NRDC one of America's 100 best charities, and the Wise Giving Alliance of the Better Business Bureau reports that NRDC meets its highest standards for accountability and use of donor funds.....The New York Times calls us "One of the nation's most powerful environmental groups." The National Journal says we're "A credible and forceful advocate for stringent environmental protection."

• Visit The Sierra Club....especially their "Take Action" page about the spill where a lot of action items are listed:  http://action.sierraclub.org/site/PageServer?pagename=TakeAction. Here too you'll get a 1 minute video about the importance of stopping off-shore drilling.

• Visit The National Wildlife Federation...again, they have a multitude of things you can do (from donating to taking action wherever you are): http://www.nwf.org/Wildlife/Wildlife-Conservation/Threats-to-Wildlife/Oil-Spill.aspx  

From the NWF website:  "Where Does Your Money Go?  The money donated to the National Wildlife Federation through response to the oil spill will support the following efforts:  1.  Development and deployment of the National Wildlife Federation's Gulf Coast Surveillance Teams, a volunteer network that is being organized to monitor the coast for wildlife impacted by the oil spill. Beyond the initial surveillance needed, this effort will then shift to long term volunteer restoration programs.  2.  Restoration of vulnerable nesting and breeding grounds, as well as other delicate ecosystems found throughout the Gulf Coast for water birds, sea turtles and other animals.  3.  Public education about the oil spill and its impacts on wildlife, including our online efforts at www.nwf.org/oilspill and informing the press and others about the impacts the oil spill is having on coastal communities and wildlife.  4.  Policy work at the national and state level to support restoration of habitat in the Gulf Coast and better protection of our waters and coastlines."

• The Audubon Society is also doing a lot given the impact of the spill on our watery, feathered friends.  They too are taking donations: http://www.audubon.org/

From the Audubon site: "The Gulf oil spill is an unprecedented catastrophe for people and nature of the region. Audubon mobilized quickly to help birds like this pelican and for the environment it shares with us as soon as the toxic slick began spreading toward vulnerable wildlife and habitats. Now, as the crisis continues to deepen, we need your help. Our Volunteer Response Center is already in touch with more than 20,000 people eager to help with efforts from Florida to Texas. Your support will help fund Audubon’s work to aid birds already suffering the oil’s deadly effects; to protect now-unharmed wildlife in the path of spill, and to meet the long-term challenge of restoring a devastated Gulf of Mexico ecosystem."

• But wait...there's more.  Another great site is Oceana  http://na.oceana.org/en/our-work/climate-energy/offshore-drilling/gulf-oil-spill-response-center/what-you-can-do?utm_source=homepage&utm_medium=oceana&utm_campaign=offshore%2Bdrilling
  

From their website:  "Oceana, founded in 2001, is the largest international organization focused solely on ocean conservation. Our offices in North America, Central America, South America and Europe work together on a limited number of strategic, directed campaigns to achieve measurable outcomes that will help return our oceans to former levels of abundance. We believe in the importance of science in identifying problems and solutions. Our scientists work closely with our teams of economists, lawyers and advocates to achieve tangible results for the oceans."

So we're at a crossroads...that place between being disgusted by the news, and the age-old question:  "So what are you going to do about it?"  Idly sitting there and either putting your head in the sand or just griping about it are 2 pretty useless activities.  

So...what are YOU going to do about it?

For more information from BP to keep track on what they are doing to attempt to solve their major malfunction, go to www.BP.com/GulfOfMexicoResponse or
http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/site/2931/
 

Thanks to Heather & Global Snark for doing the lion-share of legwork on this and for sharing!!!

Pictures from (6 degrees logo) www.sixdegrees.org  and http://climateprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2007/12/bp.jpg

Lazy River

An invitation to hang in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley is a hard one to pass up.  Especially when it comes with five acres of wooded wonderland, an elevated cabin, running water & everyday amenities, and a fire ring to rival that of the Tribal Council.   Add in a vista view that's a wall of trees and a branch of the Shenandoah River that's virtually a hop, skip, and a jump away!   A wade-able, shady, water spot just perfect for skipping the smooth stones we found under our toes....all under our noses! 

Blue birds...cardinals...yellow finches...baby bunnies....frogs....lightning bugs galore...and even the occasional pesky hornet and leech.  But those latter two were small prices to pay for the pocket of peace, the quiet, and the serenity in the surrounding nature.

Water parks all over the country have their versions of the "Lazy River Ride," where you hop in the inner tube and meander through the waterway following the moving current.  Well, being in the 8-seater "Green Monster" inner tube we deposited up-river, took a mere-theme-park-ride to new levels.  We were lazily floating an hour or so down a branch of the Shenandoah to our cabin's river bank.  There's nothing like being at total liberty of the wind and the water speed, floating along--relaxation at it's finest.  No Disney or Kings Island "Lazy River" can compare.  Not only did we have the best lunch spot in the area, but add in the laughter and frolicking of 3 munchkins---especially when going over the mini river-set waterfalls... priceless!!
 

Moreso too when you add in bonfire s'mores and our triumvirate of lightning bug catchers.  After such an active day in the mountain air, sleep enveloped us all.  Something magical definitely happens in the mountains. 

But I also know that in places, the river still runs deep, and though I've floated it in these places, it hasn't revealed itself in such obvious ways. I know that it might be months—years, even—before I understand what it has to teach me. I still need to give myself over to the flow and pattern and rhythm of it to learn its lessons and hear its messages. The river is inside me now, I know, and I need only wait and see where the current takes me, and what lies beneath it. — (Jeff Wallach, What the River Says)

To learn more about the Shenandoah Valley and it's surroundings, click the title above or visit http://www.visitshenandoah.org/ 

Photo:  our river-bank view during a glorious sunset!

Special thanks to Renee & Bernadette for sharing your li'l spot in the woods with us this weekend!

#17 Green Team Gazette Summer 2010

The 92 Days of Summer!!   Welcome to summer and to the Summer 2010's Green Team Gazette!  Click the title above, or go to http://www.gics.org/Green%20Team%20Gazettes/Green%20Team%20Gazette%20Summer%202010.pdf

"Seas The Day" ~ World Ocean Day

Mark another one on the calendar....another annual eco-holiday, that is.  Or rather, eco-awareness day. 

Today = June 8th = World Ocean Day

A relatively new date on the United Nations' Environmental holidays, World Ocean Day is truly only celebrating it's second birthday.  Brainchild of the 1992 Earth Summit at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, World Ocean Day came to the calendar just last year on June 8th, 2009. 

Perhaps just in time, too.   With the Plastiki in the Pacific Ocean (our favorite catamaran made of 12,500 plastic water bottles...the same one traveling past the Eastern Garbage Patch that's twice the size of Texas)..... and the BP/Bad Press Oil Spill debacle that's still growing and unresolved in the Gulf of Mexico....it begs the questions:  Could there be a better time to pay tribute to the water that encircles our planet?

For more details on World Ocean Day, click the title above, or check out http://www.theoceanproject.org/wod/ .   A definite stopping spot is at the "Take Action for the Gulf Coast Oil Spill" link.  Likewise, be sure to check out the "Celebrate with Dr. Seuss" link, take the "Seven Seas" pledge, or just simply get ideas galore!!  

Just because June 8th comes once a year doesn't mean that you only have to celebrate World Ocean Day this one day.  Spread it out, make a commitment, and go have fun enjoying and celebrating our 4 (or 5, depending on how you count it!) favorite oceans!! 

Picture from http://www.oceanconservancy.org/images/content/pagebuilder/26725.jpg

Re-Purposing the "Li'l Black Dress"

From the 1920's "It Girl" actress Clara Bow...to Audrey Hepburn's Holly Golightly in the 1961 movie "Breakfast at Tiffany's"....to perhaps every 20-something to 80-something year old in America today, the "little black dress" is a staple in many-a-closet.  Dress it up, dress it down, it'll take you anywhere.  If it's classic enough, it'll be with you for a lifetime!

That's precisely the premise of Sheena Matheiken's "The Uniform Project."  But with a twist.  1 year.  365 days.  1 little black dress (well...okay, for laundry's sake, 7 identical black dresses.)  A tunic-style dress that can be worn with the buttons in the front or back, open or closed.  Then add in lots and lots...and lots...of accessories.  Mostly vintage, hand-me-downs, or creative inspirations & inventions of her own.  From May 2009 to May 2010 she daily reinvented her uniform...and took photographic proof of it while it happened.  One outfit, 365  different looks!  Must see TV at it's finest--you most definitely MUST watch the video book of snapshots:   http://www.theuniformproject.com/

Her goal:  Creating a uniform for herself to showcase sustainable fashion, but at a price--to raise money for the Akanksha Foundation, and educational movement in India that helps kids in need get the finances for their own school uniforms & other educational expenses.  A mere $360 finances a child in India's schooling for a year.  From The Uniform Project's donation page,  here's the rest of the facts:

"Today, there are 7.5 million Indian children that never get to attend school.  The Indian government spends an average of $360 on each child's schooling, 80% of whom drop out before reaching the 10th grade.  Akanksha has vowed to spend the same amount on every child in the slums--not a penny more, not a penny less--to afford them a better, more holistic education.  The money raised from this project will go toward funding Akanksha's new schools in Mumbai and Pune.  To learn more, visit www.akanksha.org."  ~ Quoted from http://www.theuniformproject.com/home/donate.html

 To date, Sheena & The Uniform Project crew have raised $95,206, putting 264 kids in school.  Amazing.  And dressed to the 9's as she did it, showing us all how easy, affordable, and eco-friendly outfitting ourselves can be!!

Find the Uniform Project also on Facebook:   http://www.facebook.com/uniformproject?ref=search&v=wall

Picture from http://www.theuniformproject.com/home/about.html
Special thanks to Constantinople for sharing the link & sending forth the inspiration!!

Hello World Environment Day!

June 5th is a day of pretty big happenings all over.  The long-awaited United Nations World Environment Day 2010 has arrived...and happenings in Rwanda are huge.  

Gisele Bundchen, international supermodel & spokesperson for UNEP's WED2010, has several public service videos out, like the "Attitude Manual" pictured above.  A visit to  http://www.unep.org/wed/2010/english/celebratewed.asp or a YouTube search will help you find the handful of them.  Do be sure to go to the link above, and check out the "Attitude Manual."  Also at that site, there are some great ideas on how you can take action and be a part of something big, regardless how small your actions might feel.  As was stated by Laura Kang, our Eagle Cove School head of school, in her graduation address just yesterday to the 5th grade class:  "Always remember, small actions do indeed make a difference!"  Also, don't forget to catch WED2010's Blog Contest Winner Tuesday Phillip's twitter commentary at http://twitter.com/tuesdayleigh. 

Along the lines of WED2010, there are 2 other big eco-events occurring.  In Maryland, June 5th is the first of 3 free fishing day (where no license is needed, regardless you age).  The point of this is to encourage families to get outside, to help kids to embrace the great outdoors, and to see new vistas that might be right in their own backyards.  Anglers make great environmentalists as they'll be active to work for healthy waters to give longevity to their hobby of choice--fishing--and to keep the fish in those waters nice and healthy!!   Go to http://dnr.maryland.gov/dnrnews/pressrelease2010/060410a.asp to get the rundown on Maryland's 3 free fishing days:  June 5, June 12 and July 4, 2010.

But wait!  That's not all!! There's more!  June 5th is also National Trails Day.  President Ronald Reagan helped orchestrate this annual event through his President's Commission on American Outdoors.  This 1987 report promoted getting outside and getting on the move.  What evolved was National Trails Day, which first started in 1993.  With 200,000 miles of trails winding through parks and cities galore, Americans have mucho opportunity to get out in the great outdoors and explore, relax, unwind, be inspired, exercise and be educated.  June 5th becomes a good kick off day, here at the start of summer, to get yourself outdoors and get moving. To learn more, check out http://www.americanhiking.org/NTD.aspx.

So....It's June 5th....how are you going to spend your day celebrating your planet?

Pictures from http://www.unep.org/wed/2010/english/celebratewed.asp

World Environment Day is On the Way

This upcoming Saturday, June 5th...World Environment Day.  

Rwanda, the host country, is set to sync with the United Nations Environment Programme to celebrate the 38th annual World Environment Day as a day of global action.  With this year's theme being the UN International Year of Biodiversity, it's perfect in that Rwanda is the one of the Africa's most biologically diverse places on the planet.  Tuesday Phillips, winner of the UNEP blogging contest, will be posting commentary this week about her experiences in Rwanda!

The whole gist of World Environment Day is that by all of us taking actions in little ways, it can lead to huge change.  Encouraging "political attention and action," the book "Heroes of the Environment: True Stories of People Who are Helping to Protect our Planet" by Harriet Rohmer follows the same premise as WED's mission.

The stories in this book are interesting--for adults and youth alike.  You start to see that simple, yet focused visions, of individuals coalesce and take fire, becoming something bigger than oneself.  

In this book, you will meet these dozen environ-heroes:

1. Will Allen, Founder of Growing Power Community Food Center--bringing gardening into the urban center)
2. Kelydra Welcker, Student Chemist, Environmental Scientist, Inventor--cleaning polluted water)
3. Omar Freilla, Founder, ReBuilders Source--turning one man's waste into another's riches!
4. Derby Tewa, Solar Electrician--bringing solar light to her reservation
5. Margie Richard, Activist & Former Middle School Teacher--fighting the oil company to make a difference
6. John Todd, Inventor, Engineer, Designer--cleaning water for the community
7. Alex Lin, Teen who Helped write Rhode Island's E-Waste Law--keeping today's technology from becoming the trash of tomorrow
8. Julia "Judy" Bonds, Community Activist, Coal River Mountain Watch--moving from coal energy to wind energy
9. El Hijo Del Santo, Champion Masked Wrestler--being the celebrity voice of environment
10. Barry Guillot, Middle School Science Teacher--protecting the Louisiana wetlands with the help of his students
11. Sarah James, Spokesperson, Gwich'in Indian People of Alaska & Canada--speaking for her people by saving the porcupine river caribou
12. Erica Fernandez, Student and Environmental Activist--speaking out against environmental hazards in her community

At the end of the book, there's a call to action asking, "What is your own environmental vision for the future?  And how could you get started now?   A percentage of the sale of this book goes to the Natural Resources Defense Council.  It's the heart of WED2010: Activism in Action. 

Plus, I've got to say...to be reading a bulk of this book while camping....priceless! 

"We must work with nature instead of fighting it."  ~ John Todd, Inventor

Places to get busy visiting: 

• It's not too late to go to the "Wide World of WED Map" and register what big or little thing you can do to take part in making a difference for the environment on this one day.  Go to http://www.unep.org/wed/2010/english/activitymap/   

• To check into the US site for the UN's World Environment Day and their Pittsburgh adventures, go to http://www.pittsburghwed.com/%20

• To visit the United Nation's page on WED2010, go to:  http://www.unep.org/wed/2010/english/about.asp%20 

• To see the 54 blogs submitted for the WED2010 Contest (including  winner Tuesday Phillips and yours truly), go to Greg Smith's blog:  http://my.opera.com/gregsmithsays/blog/unep-blog-contest-list

• To Download an 8 page "Must See" Teacher's Guide for "Heroes of the Environment" for 4th--8th graders, go to http://www.chroniclebooks.com/pdfs/HeroesEnvironment_TeachersGuide.pdf

WED Picture from http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.unep.org/wed/2010/english/images/infomaterials/iconslarge/WED_icon1.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.unep.org/wed/2010/english/infomaterials/icons/index.asp&usg=__piYZD0wl7pXINcBKp6NBztcU3Og=&h=2822&w=1984&sz=936&hl=en&start=56&sig2=gei5LLuOFU8Xv_eXOmRExA&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=0T55wNwZYFgVvM:&tbnh=150&tbnw=105&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dworld%2Benvironment%2Bday%2B2010,%2Brwanda%26start%3D40%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26sa%3DN%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26ndsp%3D20%26tbs%3Disch:1&ei=q2gETMP3OIGB8gaEuYjVDw

A-Questing We Will Go--#1 & #2

A questing we will go....

A questing we will go....

High & lo through Maryland we go,

A questing we will go!!

Running from May 29th to September 6th, 2010, Maryland Department of Natural Resources are running their Park Quest.  Through this, 24 Maryland State Parks are anxiously awaiting you if you are one of the 750 families who signed up mid-May for this third season of Maryland's outdoor adventures. 

Team Dabrowka has signed up.  We made the deadline & are one of 750 family teams!   We have our Park Quest Passport in hand!  Our family is ready & raring to go, approaching the hiking, biking, fishing, GPS-ing, letterboxing quests ahead of us this summer.  With free entrance into the parks for "questers," MD Parks & Rec have got a good thing going.  Themed as "Making a Family a Team," they're promoting family adventures, the "No Child Left Inside" act, an opportunity to connect with the outside world, a chance to see new sights, and good times!!  

This Memorial Day weekend, Team Dabrowka and our "rival buddies" family team trekked out into the woods....even with both families afflicted with war-torn, camping-injured ankles in tow.  We hit up Cunningham Falls State Park & South Mountain's Washington Monument (not "the" DC Washington Monument). We found our clues, learned some history, waded through ice-cold rushing water in the proverbial "babbling brook," and had a fun family day together.  Who could ask for more????

To learn more about MD's Park Quest (which is also on Facebook)....go to http://www.dnr.state.md.us/parkquest/ or click the title above!

Picture from http://www.dnr.state.md.us/parkquest/

Ah...Wilderness!

"I went to the woods because I wanted to live deliberately.  I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to put to rout all that was not life, and not when I had come to die, discover that I had not lived"  ~  Henry David Thoreau

I read a little bit of Thoreau one summer in college when I was trying to pursue my own inner simplicity & transcendentalism.  I wanted to go out and live at Walden Pond.  It's been a recurring theme throughout the years.  So it's no surprise that we're back here.

There's a slowing down that happens when you go camping, which is exactly what my family did over this 3-day Memorial Day weekend in Central Maryland. Under the tent, on the blow-up mattress, in the sleeping bag, by the fire, we camped with our 7 other compatriots (who were fascinating, seasoned outdoors men & women--with camping resumes "to die for!" & with fireside tales that can't be beat--perhaps both fact AND fiction!!).  In this, there comes a slowness. No need to tidy, to laundry, to tend the lawn nor the dishes.  Add in the cooking (given we were trekking with two rather talented fireside chefs!--Oh my, no pork, beans, nor dogs for us!!), we needn't worry!!  Not to mention the absence of TV or phone distractions......Yes, a slowing down, a decompressing,  a "being one with life."

On top of the camping, let's add in multiple days of hiking and such, where my pedometer topped 10K every day....Yes, a slowing down and yet a simultaneous "move forwards" activity.  A 2.5 mile hike in Cunningham Falls, Maryland one day.... a 1 mile hike through the Appalachian Trail another day....more "walk-a-bouts" than perhaps the aborigine do in a day down in Australia!  Being a girl who spends way too much time grading papers, and even far more time stationary at the computer...the movement felt GOOD.  My body ate it up!  I needed those jaunts, and it felt oh-so good to sweat--even when there was a sharp uphill grade involved!  I relished the activity, and the inactivity (of slowing down) simultaneously!!  

Did the report cards I brought to work on get addressed (given it's my last week of school, here ahead)?  No way, José!!  But you know, here in the aftermath of rest and relaxation, that just might be okay!  One could argue I'd be restored and refreshed....and those report cards will go twice as fast here later on!!

Picture of our camp base and borrowed tent, à la my very laid back and relaxed weekend camera.

Bird Watching

Last week of school.  Yet the education still continues.

Picture the scene:  birdhouse, with occupants, outside our class window.

Impromptu education comes during read-aloud time when we noticed a bird making frequent jaunts to our window.  Bird Watching 101 takes place, window-side.  

What'd we see?  A mama wren, perhaps, teaching 3 newbies how to fly.  She'd make a several yard pass from her house, to table, to window...and her 3 darlings would hop/be inch-airborn for a good foot or so.  They all congregated right by our door too, where papa bear bird must have seen us and was quite vocal for us to not even THINK about messing with his young'uns!  Later we showed a couple pre-K'ers our little feathered finds, and they crouched down to look at the birds, as I think only pre-k children can!  Such fascination!!
It's good when time can stand still for that....plus, it was kind of like "dinner and a show."  We had a great spectator sport while I was able to finish the current chapter of our latest class favorite, Dan Gutman's "Million Dollar Kick" where the main character, Whisper Nelson is a pretty opinionated environmentalist.  (Come to think of it, so is Dan Gutman--as is evident from his compilation book "Recycle this Book" where he has gathered 100 children's book authors to give their eco-thoughts in 3-4 page essays.  Definitely a read you should read!) 

Ahh, serendipity....which pairs quite nicely with bird watching! 

--To learn more about Eagle Cove School, click on the title above, or go to www.gics.org.

--To learn more about Dan Gutman, go to http://www.dangutman.com/...be sure to click on the top link "Nothing to Do with Dan" to learn more about his thoughts on the environment!

--Picture from http://ibc.lynxeds.com/files/pictures/Cistothorus%20platensis%20falklandicus%20Grass%20Wren%20-%2010.jpg

International Day of Biodiversity ~ May 22nd, 2010

Yesterday (May 22nd) was the International Day of Biodiversity.  Given it's drawing near to the end of my school year (and all the hectic-ness that's associated with this), this environmental day came and went without being highly on my radar.  So, I decided to check into it this morning, after the fact.

I was struck by the map above, which was prominent on the http://www.biodiversity-day.info/ website.  Looking at the participating "red pinpoint" countries on the map, no wonder I had little knowledge of it.  "We the People" of the United States look pretty darned absent here.  That's a tad bothersome. 

Of course, we've had a lot of "Days" lately:  World Water Day, Earth Hour, Earth Day, International Migratory Bird Day, Nat'l Composting Week, National Bike Week, World Environment Day coming up June 5th...one could argue perhaps there's too many "days." One could argue that it leans toward "environmental daze." But perhaps, it's just like the concept of biodiversity:  everything relies on everything else.  A rich, healthy environment or habitat (whether a field, a river, or a planet) has a wealth of plants and animals, creating that complex web of life that's so much more interconnected than a mere food chain. 

Perhaps to become a richer, healthier planet, we need this web of days and environmental awareness to start waking up and taking care of this planet!  One links to another. A maze of days.  Given that, and a year's worth string-of-days ahead, perhaps we'll be on the map next year.  That, most certainly, would be a noteworthy step in the right direction. 

To learn more about International Biodiversity Day, click the link above, or go to http://www.biodiversity-day.info/ or go to their resource link http://www.biodiversity-day.info/uploads/media/Biodiversity_Action_Day_Guideline_w_Checklists.pdf to download a great 32 page conceptual guideline detailing both their mission and things you can do to take part.

Picture from http://www.biodiversity-day.info/

Nat'l Bike Month * Bike to Work Week * Bike to Work Day

May is National Bike Safety Month...so it makes sense that it'd be Nat'l Bike Month.  Closer to the here and now, this week is Bike to Work Week, with Friday being the big official Bike to Work Day.  Now, given that I take a laptop, 3 children, and multiple bags of "stuff" (whether it's papers to grade, a bin of a hundred or so Capri Suns I've washed, or my compost and the occasional lacrosse stick), I'm not a real stellar example of practicing what I preach.  But, on days of glorious weather, our science teacher and our art teacher have been seen en route to school on their bikes!  It's a great way to not only soak in the beauty that surrounds you, but also get good exercise and lower your carbon footprint.  See what you can do this Bike Month!

To learn more about Bike Month and Bike to Work, click the link above or go to http://www.bikeleague.org/ (where you'll also find the logo'ed-image above).  Be sure to scroll down to the bottom right hand orange "Education" corner to the link labeled "Watch our Education Videos."

For a listing on bike safety for kids, go to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) site:    http://www.nhtsa.gov/people/injury/pedbimot/bike/kidsandbikesafetyweb/index.htm.

You can also appreciate the whole "bike" theme in a stationary position by checking out the list of " bike" books at The BOOKS Program ("Books Open Opportunities for Kids to Succeed), a partnership program with Senator Libous and the Morrisville State College in New York  at http://www.booksprogram.com/themes/index.htm.

Looking To Be Inspired?

Looking to be inspired as to ways to get involved in the upcoming June 5th World Environment Day?  Go to the United Nations Environment Programme's site to find a list of activities around the world by clicking the title above or going to http://www.unep.org/wed/2010/english/activities/ .  While you are there, you can also register your activity--whether it be a community-wide one or something you plan to commit to do to take action in your own home! 

While you're on the UNEP site, be sure to click around and check out the wealth on there, in particular the WED Heroes, individuals UNEP is celebrating for their personal determination in taking on high-profile expeditions.  It's no surprise to me that David de Rothschild and the Plastiki Expedition made the list with their trek across the Pacific Ocean (and subsequently the Great Pacific Garbage Patch) in their boat made of 12,500 plastic bottles!  Other WED Heroes include: 

• Charles and Sho Scott, a father-son duo who rode 4,700 km across Japan on connected bikes in order to bring attention to climate change and the importance of taking action.
• Project Kaisei, who is studying how to capture the plastic waste from the ocean to create a way to turn it back into usable, diesel fuel ;
• Luo Hong, an environmental photographer who who has raised money through many photography exhibitions for environmental causes, including UNEP's Painting Competition by Children in China.
• Roz Savage who rowed across the Pacific Ocean solo in 2009, then walked 600 miles from London to Copenhagen for the December 2009 UN Climate Conference.  She has a foundation called Pull Together to inspire to walk more/drive less.

“Although individual decisions may seem small in the face of global threats and trends, when billions of people join forces in common purpose, we can make a tremendous difference.” ~UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon

Picture from http://www.unep.org/wed/2010/english/images/logos/web/WED2010_Logo_Web_English1.jpg

UN Secretary's quote from http://www.unep.org/wed/2010/english/aroundtheworld.asp

Small Actions DO Make a Monumental Difference

We are so blessed in so many ways at Eagle Cove School.  One such way is that we can have our school-wide morning meetings outside on nice days at the picnic tables.  Likewise, we can eat lunch out there as a school community during pleasant weather.  

At this morning's meeting, I brought out a thin little translucent plastic strip that was instantly recognized by our students--it was the plastic straw wrapper that's attached to the Capri Sun Juice Pouches.  Our students know them well because (for the last 2 years) our school has recycled and turned the pouches into Terracycle (a New Jersey company that upcycles the pouches, turning them into other products like backpacks and more).  

Along with my "show and tell,"I also brought up the fact that our librarian, Mrs. Frank, picked up 40+ of those nearly-invisible flying films after lunch last Friday when we ate outside.   After a round of applause to Mrs. Frank, I posed the question: "What's wrong with these floating pieces of plastic blowing across our yard and into our neighbor, the Magothy River?"

Being outside, of course all the kids looked to the nearby river, and hands went up to answer the question.  A first grade friend said instantly, "It's pollution."  A PreK-er commented on the "double trouble" of it:  "The Magothy River has creatures in it, and that pollution would hurt."  Dead on...and out of the mouth of a 4 1/2 year old!!

I went on to show them the 4 straws I'd already picked up this morning in that same area where we stood/sat.  Just as the Lorax who speaks for the truffula trees, I became "Eco-Girl" who speaks for the recycling:  "We need to be sure to pay just as much attention to recycling the straws and the plastic covers as we do when we recycle the Capri Suns."  Lucky for us, Anne Arundel County Maryland has what I think is the best recycling out there....they recycle just about everything!!  (Seriously, everything!!  Straws, plastic straw film, and more, more more.  Plus, add in the fact that we compost at school, our trash level is nil!)  Given the recycling bin was right there--near the tables where we were--I could make a point of ceremoniously dropping this little insidious piece of plastic right into the recycling and in its proper place.

At the end of the meeting as the kids all lined up to go to their separate classes to start their day, a handful of kindergartners and fifth graders (and every grade in between), made a point of coming up to me.  I was still standing near the recycling bin, and the message from each child was the same.  They each were coming to report they had found some trash nearby, and they were doing their part to pick it up & put it in the proper place.  Might I add, they were pleased as punch with themselves!  

Watching our Eagle Cove students and their enthusiasm, it made me think of the concept of "Pay it Forward" or "Random Acts of Kindness."  In all cases, it's a matter of doing good deeds.  Not for any reason in particular other than to feel good for doing what is right.  To the kids at my school this morning, picking up that plastic piece of trash saved an animal today.  They made a difference in their world!  That's what it's all about.  That's what World Education Day, June 5th,  is all about.  It might not solve all the problems in the world, but it helped one creature.  Small actions DO make a monumental difference.

To learn more about upcycling Capri Sun (or other foiled  juice pouches), go to www.terracycle.net.  

To see the multitude of  what Anne Arundel County Maryland recycles, go to http://www.recyclemoreoften.com/ .  There you will find a wealth of information from not to mention to print out cool stickers, recyclable games to play, recycling reminders, & more.

Picture from Eagle Cove's Bay Week, April 2010, courtesy of my camera.

Regroup & Multiply

Multiplication.  A classic 3rd grade concept.  First, the kids master the basic facts, relating it to repeated addition and division's flip-side.  Once the kids have that under their belts, you merge in the concept of place value.  It's here that the idea of "regrouping" enters (which some of us old-schoolers may remember as "carrying").

So you start digging your feet in.  Acquisition of skills.  With problems like "543 x 6", you start with the ones. The babies.  You regroup. Then you move on to the tens...the hundreds...and you keep regrouping, getting bigger as you go.  Before you know it, multiplying massive numbers becomes nearly second-nature.

Habits are like that too.  You analyze yours...regroup...master them...& they multiply.

Environmentally, that's what we all need to do:  regroup.  The calendar helps us do that.  Earth Day: April 22nd.  World Environment Day: June 5th.  In 1972, the United Nations General Assembly was very clever, creating this global regrouping opportunity just 2 years after the 1970 inaugural, American Earth Day.  Both days are dedicated to positive environmental action.  The beauty?  You can follow-up your Earth Day "take action" invitation. Seven weeks later, World Environment Day reminds us to regroup, take responsibility, & remember that little things add up and DO make a difference. 

Two weeks ago, I was at the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage for the U.S. Green Building Council and Green Speaks Youth Award ceremony.   I saw eleven amazing 13-24 year-olds speak on sustainability.  The five USGBC recipients all mirrored the message of World Environment Day:  individual actions (whether great or small) can multiply to make a global difference & a huge impact.  Melissa Senard, Riley Hoffer, Matthew Evans, Jordan Howard, and Gordon Schweitzer each saw a unique need.  They each did something--whether it was starting a football stadium recycling program (Melissa), creating an educational website/outreach program for kids (Riley), designing an organization to invite teens to come together to improve their community (Matthew), becoming a public speaker who spreads the "green" message (Jordan), or participating in college environmental issues and becoming a green building engineer who consults on 20 projects (Gordon).  By starting with a personal, meaningful cause--then uniting with others--each created something substantial.  The world is different now because of five individual acts.  This IS the message of World Environment Day.

As Jordan Howard said that night:  "I invite you to rewrite your story, whatever it will be.  When you are walking down the street and see the trash on the floor--throw it in the trash.  Refuse that plastic bottle, that plastic straw in restaurants. Refuse plastic bags at grocery stores--refuse it.  Do anything.  Anything."

Do something. Then, mark your calendar for June 5th.  Make a plan to take action.  Click the title above or go to http://www.unep.org/wed/2010/english to learn more about World Environment Day.  Here, you'll find a wealth of ideas (from videos to downloads) on how your 1 action can multiply to make a difference for our planet.  The resources are there....it's time for you to research, regroup, & make your actions part of the multiplication solution!

The above photo was taken May 7th, 2010.  WED2010 = World Environment Day 2010.  The 6.05 = June 5th. The 6,819,456,722 = World Population on May 7th according to http://www.census.gov/main/www/popclock.html.  The difference to make = All of ours!  The picture below is the United Nations Environment Programme World Education Day 2010's logo, as found at http://www.unep.org/wed/2010/english/images/logos/web/WED2010_Logo_Web_English1.jpg.

The Haunting Tones of "Plastic Tomb"

Emmy-award-winning artist Peter Buffett is the voice of the wasteland of plastic trash that is dumped world wide in his song "Plastic Tomb."  An activist on many social issues, Peter's song will most certainly speak to you. To see Peter Buffet's eye opening, riveting, amazing, disturbing, must-see video, click the title above or go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fD2VcYkSRbE&feature=player_embedded

If you just can't get enough of Peter Buffett's music, go to  http://www.peterbuffett.com/music/index.html

And if it's still not enough because you want more, more, more....go to the following site to read more about Peter Buffett...go to http://planetgreen.discovery.com/feature/instrumental/plastictomb-peterbuffet-plasticfree-message.html

Picture from Peter Buffett's website of his CD "Plastic Tomb" from his website.

#16 May Green Team Gazette

Just in time for Saturday's International Migratory Bird...Check out this month's Green Team Gazette by clicking the title above, or go to http://www.gics.org/Green%20Team%20Gazettes/Green%20Team%20Gazette%2005_10.pdf

Oil & Water Don't Mix

Irony.  

Plastiki, our favorite boat constructed of 12,500 water bottles is outside the Line Islands in the Pacific Ocean. We're looking at 46 days of travel from San Francisco to Sydney, Australia, trekking past the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.  Twice the size of Texas, this patch is a swirling mix of plastic trash, in various stages of pollution and disintegration, harming the wild life that lives there.  Wild life--marine creatures--that may one day be on your dinner plate.

Yet, here were are, May 4th, 2010, with a different garbage patch of another making, in another body of water.  The Gulf of Mexico is reaping the damage of a different man-made situation just 2 weeks old.  Of course the April 20th off-shore drilling rig explosion was unintended on BP's part...most environmental tragedies are quite certainly unintended.  Yet, here we are...an unfortunate occurrence just 2 days before Earth Day...but still, 2 weeks later,  thousands of gallons of oils continue to leak out. 

The irony?

Just how do you make this polluting plastic that's floating around en masse in the Pacific Ocean that Plastiki is sailing (not to mention every other ocean)?  Our throw-away society makes more and more plastic out of their desire to make more and more disposable items.  Bottles, baggies, and everything in between.  And from where dp we get this pleothora of plastic??  Oil.  Petroleum.  Petrochemicals. Our desire for our own oil, close to our own soil (to make us less reliant on middle eastern oil), has brought a danger to our own home.  

Are our Ziplocs and one-use bottles worth where we are now?  I'll guarantee the Gulf shrimpers are not thinking so.  

As Alyssa Langworthy said last week at the USGBC & Green Speaks Award Ceremony at the Kennedy Center:  "Katrina deserves to be an only child."

Alyssa's comment wasn't in relation to this situation, yet, here we are, back in the Gulf of Mexico just as we were with Hurricane Katrina in August 2005, a mess upon messes, leaving people along the coastline and people who rely on the coast for their livelihood in a hard environmental predicament. 

It's looking like the unfortunate truth is that Katrina might not be an only child after all.

To get up to the date information (and to see alarming, heart-wrenching pictures) on the BP Gulf of Mexico oil spill, click the link above, or go to http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/gulf-oil-spill

For another great article, visit Treehugger's website to see "Will The BP Oil Spill Be Our Collective Zen Slap Into Eco-Realization? Let's Hope So" go to

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/05/will-bp-oil-spill-be-collective-zen-slap-into-eco-realization.php

Photos from (in order) http://www.theplastiki.com/; http://blueplanetalmanac.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/garbage-patch-1-smaller1.jpg;%20 and http://www.cbc.ca/gfx/images/news/photos/2010/04/27/oil_slick-cp-8554516.jpg

Making the Most of Compost!!

Who knew!  There's actually an International Compost Awareness Week (ICAW).  It's celebrated the first full week of May...so be aware--Compost Awareness Week is here and now:  May 2nd to May 8th, 2010.

According to the EPA, approximately 1/4 of our garbage can waste is organic--food trash.  Compostable.  Think of your nearby landfill, then cut that in half by a fourth.  That's food trash, and at that size, it's huge.  

For nearly two years, we've made that composting commitment here in our house.  It stemmed from living a year as a teacher at Eagle Cove School, where lunch, snack, and even bathroom paper towel trash was collected and taken to our school composting heap.  After a year of instructing 8-year-olds what to do with their food waste, you think twice when you are making a salad at your home.  There's a lot of waste involved with celery ends, pepper innards, and the vines of vine-ripened tomatoes.  You start to see the volume.  You get to where you can't throw it away.  You start composting.

And you notice that it turns the 5th graders "compost eco-policemen" at Eagle Cove School into garbageologists who analyze what exactly it is you are throwing away, and exactly how much it weighs.  You smile at the extent of real life math experiences there are each week!

If you're still on the fence about composting, maybe these two articles are just enough to push you to the decomposable side.  You can click on the title above to go to the Composting Council website:   http://www.compostingcouncil.org/uploads/046af7e09c98f6a70fea78d28787f5a6.pdf. Plus there's also lots of good stuff at Earth 911's article "Compost Awareness Week: No More Excuses, Start Your Pile"  http://earth911.com/news/2010/05/03/compost-awareness-week-no-more-excuses-start-your-pile/

Picture from http://www.torfaen.gov.uk/EnvironmentAndPlanning/RubbishWasteAndRecycling/Composting/Images/How%20Compost%20Happens.gif

Eco-Songs: Terrapins, Terrapins

At Eagle Cove School, each class has a wild life project.  There are eels in the 2nd grade room, 3rd graders tend the oyster spat, and 1st graders raise 2 terrapins, to release in the spring on Poplar Island.  With that ats motivation, first graders wrote this song with musical extraordinaire, Linda Richards, who spent 2 days on campus creating songs such as this during our Bay Week.

Terrapins, Terrapins
(sung to the tune of “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star”)

Terrapins, Terrapins

Set them free and they can swim

Watch them swimming in the tide

Diamondbacks far and wide

Terrapins, Terrapins

Set them free and they can swim

Terrapins, Terrapins

Eating minnows and grass shrimp
Populations not so limp
Not so big and not so small
Take a rest on a rockwall
Terrapins, Terrapins

Set the free and they can swim

Song written by the first graders under the guidance and musical talents of Linda Richards.  To learn more about Linda, click the blog-title above or go to http://www.lindarichardsadventures.com/

Eco-Songs: We've Been Workin' on the River

Got Music?

Here is the song that Linda Richards sang & wrote during Eagle Cove's Bay Week finale performance last Friday with the fourth graders (If you've been here before and been paying attention, you know that Linda Richards, of NY & environmental assembly fame, made her way to Pasadena, MD for two days to work some musical, ecological magic with the Eagle Cove students. Our grand finale was a great outdoor concert. Now all that's left to do is to write an Ode to Linda Richards!!

We've Been Workin' on the River 
(sung to the tune of "I've Been Workin' on the River")

We've been workin' on the River
Right next to the seas
We've been workin' on the River,
Planting S-A-V's
The grasses help to hid the creatures
Like crabs, minnows, eels and shrimp
The Bay has lots of ocean features
And Pollution's like an imp!

Sediment won’t you go-
Global warming won’t you go
Chemicals won’t you go away

(Repeat)

Someone’s helping wetlands get healthy
Someone’s helping wetlands I know
Someone’s helping wetlands get healthy
Mr. Decker and his kids will show---
By singing
G R E E N
G R E E N N N N
G R E E N
Working on the river will help!

FYI:   "S-A-Vs" = Submerged Aquatic Vegetation

Mr. Decker = Our Science teacher
Song, creation of Linda Richards & the 2009-2010 Eagle Cove School 4th graders.  To learn more about Linda, go to http://www.lindarichardsadventures.com/ 

Eco-Songs: Oysters Do

5th graders, being at the top of the elementary school food chain, have a savvy-ness and sophistication all of their own. Ours decided to write their Bay Week 2010 Song with Linda Richards around the song they had been singing in Spanish class called "Eres Tu."

Oysters Rule

(sung to the tune of “Eres Tu”)

They have 2 big muscles,
Oysters do, Oysters do
That keep their shells closed for protection.
They start off as spat
Not like you, not like you.
They clamp onto one thing or another.

Chorus

Oysters Rule
And they filter out the bay.
Oysters Rule
They’re at the bottom of the food chain!

Oysters taste good fried
Yes they do, Oysters do.
Three inches or more determines gender.
50 gallons of water’s
What one cleans, What one cleans.
We have to remember oysters rule.

Chorus

Oysters Rule
And they filter out the bay.
Oysters Rule
They’re at the bottom of the food chain! 

Song written by Linda Richards with the Eagle Cove 5th grade graduating class of 2010.