“How kids are saving the planet - KIVI-TV” plus 1 more |
| How kids are saving the planet - KIVI-TV Posted: 13 May 2010 07:20 PM PDT
Mary McLeod Bethune once said, "We have a powerful potential in our youth, and we must have the courage to change old ideas and practices so that we may direct their power toward good ends." These children, teens and young adults have done more than their fair share for their communities and the environment, proving that age doesn't coincide with the amount of potential impact. If this group is any indication of what to expect in the future, rest assured we're in good hands. Alex Lin, Teen Activist To call the work of Rhode Island teen Alex Lin impressive would be an understatement. This 16-year-old first learned about the environmental problems associated with e-waste after stumbling upon a 2004 Wall Street Journal article on the subject. Since then, he and his student-led community service team, Team WIN, have overseen the recycling of 300,000 pounds of e-waste, successfully lobbied the Rhode Island state legislature to pass a statewide bill banning the dumping of e-waste, created media centers in developing countries using refurbished computers, secured grants to fund the projects and created a national PSA on the subject of e-waste. The 2006 bill banning the dumping of e-waste set the stage for a more stringent extended producer responsibility (EPR) bill passed in 2008. "Now Rhode Island requires manufacturers to take back their computers and televisions and to pay for the collection and recycling of them," Sheila Dormody of Clean Water Action told TakePart.com. Connections that Lin made in international conferences and competitions made it possible for the WIN Network to go global, with satellite WIN Teams in Cameroon, the Philippines, Mexico, Kenya and Sri Lanka. When asked what he would like the Earth911 readers to know, Alex responded, "I would like to tell your readers reuse whatever you can, and upgrade instead of buying something new. Every little bit counts towards helping the environment!" Greg Woodburn, Nonprofit Founder and President Greg Woodburn had been a competitive track and cross country runner since elementary school, competing in multiple national championships, when an injury suddenly derailed him his freshman year of high school. Unable to race, he realized in its absence just how much he loved the sport. In his words, "while running is hard, not running is harder." While injured, he began to think of underprivileged kids who couldn't enjoy the great sport of running- not because of injury, but because they couldn't afford running shoes. At just 15-years-old, he started Give Running in 2006, a nonprofit organization that collects and donates used running shoes, in good condition, to underprivileged youth and orphans. By the end of the first year, he was able to collect and clean-up more than 500 pairs of running shoes, which were sent to kids in inner-city Los Angeles, as well as oversees to Sudan, Uganda and Kenya. "The feedback from youth in Africa has been especially moving for me. Not only were these the first running shoes any of them had owned, but they were the also first [pair of] shoes many of them had ever had," writes Greg. The organization has donated shoes to additional countries including Liberia, Mali, Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Haiti. More than 6,000 pairs of shoes have been donated as of March 2010, exercising the reach of reuse at its finest. Adeline Tiffanie Suwana, Environmental Educator Twelve-year-old Indonesian student Adeline Tiffanie Suwana had great care and concern for the environment after seeing the effects of natural disasters and flooding on her country. She learned about the importance of mangroves in preventing damage during natural disasters and decided to do something to improve mangrove conditions. She began by forming a community of young people called Sahabat Alam, which means "Friends of Nature." The community is now comprised of 1,700 members throughout Indonesia. Adeline organizes students to plant coral reefs, help with fish breeding and turtle protection, plant mangrove trees and engage in environmental cleanups and education activities. Adeline and Sahabat Alam also operate the Electric Generator Water Reel project where they connect remote villages to an electric grid, providing potential economic growth to villagers and improving health and education facilities. They utilize clean renewable energy (hydro) to power these villages. Her ideas have been presented in schools, with cooperation of governmental agencies and have led to the production of a television program on the subject. She was invited as a delegate by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to the 2009 Tunza International Children's Conference and awarded the 2009 Action for Nature International Young Eco-Hero award for her efforts. Merit Leighton and Marlowe Peyton, The Plastic Patrol Seven-year-old Merit Leighton and five-year-old Marlowe Peyton of California were watching Oprah's Earth Day show when they learned about the impacts of plastic pollution on the planet's oceans. After hearing about the mass of trash that's twice the size of Texas floating in the Pacific Ocean, they created The Plastic Patrol, beginning their global effort to make a difference, one kid at a time. "I couldn't believe the look on their faces," their mother, Suzette, told Earth911 in reference to their reaction to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The kids asked her, "That actually exists on my planet? What can we do? Someone has to do something. We have to tell kids all around the world so they can help." And so began the work of the Plastic Patrol. In the words of Marlowe, "We want to help kids clean up the planet by themselves." The girls are raising awareness that the smallest of actions make a big difference – picking up a plastic wrapper off the ground, making sure your parents bring reusable bags to the market or even bringing reusable utensils and cups to eateries that use plasticware. The Plastic Patrol is currently filming a series of Webisodes to provide kids with simple ways to help reduce plastic marine pollution. They are learning fun ways to make crafts out of recycled plastic and hope to raise money to combat ocean pollution with the sales of the crafts. Severn Cullis-Suzuki, Environmental Activist It's hard to cover the amazing things kids and teens are doing to help the environment without mentioning Severn Cullis-Suzuki. Severn made a giant splash on the international scene when she presented at the first international Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1992 at the age of 12. She is known as "the girl who silenced the world for five minutes." After single-handedly raising the money to travel to Brazil, Severn represented the Environmental Children's Organization (ECO), the environmental nonprofit she founded with some friends at the age of 10, and spoke on behalf of concerned youth to an international audience. She brought delegates to a standing ovation, and some to tears, after calling out world leaders for failing to protect younger generations from environmental issues. Severn continues to speak, write and campaign on behalf on the environment today. Five Filters featured article: The Art of Looking Prime Ministerial - The 2010 UK General Election. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction. |
| Used shoes transform lives in poor countries - Canada.com Posted: 13 May 2010 06:15 PM PDT ALSIP, Illinois (Reuters Life!) - Mona Purdy, a Chicago hairdresser, has seen what a pair of used shoes can do to change the lives of poor children. At a Jamaican orphanage, girls suffering from deformities and burns couldn't believe the shoes Purdy had given them were theirs to keep. "They had not had Christmas, ever. Christmas was giving them these used shoes in March," said Purdy, the founder of the charity, Share Your Soles, her voice cracking with emotion. "I'm thinking, 'I shouldn't be here. I should be home with my kids.' After I saw these kids I realized I am so supposed to be here." The impetus for the charity began 10 years ago when Purdy participated in a race in Guatemala, where local children put hot tar on the bottom of their feet and ran along the side of rocky course. It was fortified when she learned that in many countries having shoes is a prerequisite for attending schools, and how walking in bare feet can cause injuries and infections that can lead to amputation. "It blew my mind. I didn't know kids didn't have shoes anywhere," said Purdy, a divorced mother of three, recalling what led her to start the charity in her suburban Chicago home. With more and more shoes being donated, it later moved to bigger warehouses and expanded to more countries with the help of donated space and shipping. Now volunteers from all walks of life help sort the footwear that arrives in bags, boxes and barrels at the 400,000-square-foot (122-meter) warehouse in Alsip, Illinois, from shoe drives and drop-off centers across the U.S. Elegant sandals, sturdy hiking boots, gym shoes and tiny baby shoes are cleaned or polished and sent to countries such as Uganda, Peru and Lithuania. "If you see anything that you have to think twice about throw it out," Purdy told high school volunteers recently, emphazing the importance of respecting the dignity of the shoe recipients. The students are taught to sort the footwear -- snow boots go to American Indian reservations in South Dakota, rubber boots are destined for people scavenging garbage dumps in Haiti and slip-on water shoes are headed for the Amazon. Soccer cleats go everywhere. "I'm trying to teach these kids that if you do something small you won't save someone's life, but you can change someone's life," Purdy said. Collecting and distributing 900,000 pairs of used shoes over the past decade has changed Purdy's life. She is now the executive director of a charity which has no religious or government affiliation and has helped the needy in at least 29 countries and several U.S. states. She has resorted to bribes in some countries to ensure the shoes aren't sold, been infected with parasites and suffered from fevers. But whatever adversity she encountered, it has been diminished by the joy she witnessed. At an all-boys orphanage in Ecuador, even a mismarked box of girls shoes was welcomed. "The boys were so happy that they got some shoes even though they were little girls' leather school shoes. Some had straps and little bows on them," she explained. With the 10-year anniversary of Share Your Soles behind her, Purdy would like to become a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador. She also wants to apply for federal grants to bolster the charity's $975,000 annual budget. "It might begin with shoes," she said. "But it doesn't end there." Five Filters featured article: The Art of Looking Prime Ministerial - The 2010 UK General Election. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction. |
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