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| April 2008 Volume 2, No. 8 |
Celebrating Earth Day: Messages in Honor of Our Planet
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by Governor Steve Beshear
On April 22, 1970, America celebrated its first Earth Day. Many of the events across our country were planned by students who were aware of environmental problems facing our country.
Many of those problems have been resolved. We no longer have rivers on fire, for example. But other challenges have taken their place, ranging from sewer overflows to climate change.
Kentucky State Government will observe Earth Day with a week-long series of events, from April 17-22. Our theme this year is Environmental Leadership: Go for the Green. We encourage Kentuckians to demonstrate leadership by developing environmentally friendly habits and influencing others to do the same. Our Environmental and Public Protection Cabinet is asking state agencies, local governments, businesses and organizations across the state to become Earth Day partners. We ask our partners to plan an Earth Day activity and display Kentucky’s Earth Day logo on their Web site. Go to our Web site, www.earthday.ky.gov and click on the logo for more information.
Our administration is focusing efforts on preserving our environment while investing in your future, especially in the area of alternative and renewable energy sources, like wind, water, geothermal and solar power. Speaking of energy, if every Kentuckian changed just one 60 watt incandescent bulb to a 15 watt compact fluorescent bulb, we would save 122 million kilowatts, or $8 million in home energy costs. This is roughly equivalent to the harmful carbon emissions of 149,000 cars on the road.
We need our young leaders of today to be just as involved in Earth Day 2008 as your counterparts were in 1970. It can be as simple as changing a light bulb. Please become an environmental leader and influence your family and friends to do the same.
Gov. Steve Beshear is the 61st and current governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.
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by Mayor Jerry Abramson
One of the great things about Louisville is that even in the face of amazing progress, some things in our city look the same as they did decades ago. You can stand on the banks of the river and imagine flatboats pulling off to the side as they approach the Falls of the Ohio. You can walk through Chickasaw and Cherokee Parks and imagine Frederick Law Olmstead with his pencil and sketchbook making plans for a signature system of public spaces. And even from a busy interstate highway south of downtown, you can’t help but notice a portion of the nearly 6,000 acres of the Jefferson Memorial Forest.
To me, that’s the real theme of Earth Day: embracing the progress in our future while preserving the wonderful features of our past. It’s in that spirit that I recently unveiled my “Go Green Louisville” initiative.
The environmental plan has five major goals:
-- Reduce energy usage in government buildings by 10 percent by 2010
-- Decrease city government fuel consumption by 5 percent by 2010
-- Increase recycling rates throughout the city by 10 percent by 2010
-- Expand green spaces, including planting 1,500 trees and adding 25 miles of biking and walking paths by 2010
-- Encourage citizens and businesses to be more environmentally responsible, using www.louisvilleky.gov/gogreen as a portal for education
Going green is more than just a buzzword in our city. We’re taking measurable steps to effect change – not only by making improvements in city operations, but also by reaching out to the people of this community. We’re also going green to save green, because many environmentally-friendly practices also save money in the long run.
Louisville Metro Government has made progress in the past several years in environmental stewardship, including reducing the city’s vehicle fleet, consolidating government facilities, and purchasing more “green-friendly” products and vehicles.
My City of Parks initiative, the largest municipal parks expansion in the country, is also part of the Go Green Louisville effort.
I’m also urging residents to “Take 5”, which means choosing five actions from a list of changes we’ve listed on our website to improve energy efficiency, reduce fuel consumption, and increase recycling.
From turning off the tap while brushing your teeth, to changing light bulbs in your home to compact fluorescents, to walking or biking for short trips around your neighborhood -- the actions are simple but their collective impact is powerful.
Mayor Jerry Abramson is the mayor of Louisville Metro.
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by Dr. James Ramsey
Earth Day is a globally recognized holiday that had its genesis in the United States in a time of turbulence and protest. As a college senior on the inaugural Earth Day in 1970, I experienced the rise of the environmental movement from the instability of the time. A television commercial of the same year featured a Native American with a tear streaming down one cheek, after experiencing pollution at every angle. This effective ad brought the nation together with the phrase “people start pollution, people can stop it." Americans realized it was time to clean up their act.
Earth Day promotes collaborative efforts that bring people of all ages together as good stewards of the environment. At UofL, we are committed to partnering with other organizations in sustainability efforts. We partner with Louisville Metro government and the Jefferson County Public Schools in the Partnership for a Green City in addition to our own internal sustainability initiatives. UofL also participates in the American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment with higher education institutions around the country.
As we approach Earth Day 2008, we can all seek ways to make our own personal contribution to improving the environment. We should look for more opportunities to collaborate both locally and regionally. We can all take the lead from students who create less waste, who are more energy
efficient and who want to protect the earth. We can still make a difference.
Dr. James Ramsey is the president of the University of Louisville.
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by Dr. Sheldon Berman
Conservation. Resource management. Living “green.” In the 38 years since Earth Day was established, these words and the importance of the natural environment have gradually seeped into our collective national consciousness. So perhaps this is a good time to reflect on the impact Earth Day has had on our students.
Compared with children of the fifties and sixties, I believe students today are, indeed, more aware of the steps they should take to protect the environment for future generations. Thanks in part to evolving curricular emphases, students are making an effort both at home and in their classrooms to switch off lights, report dripping faucets, say “yes” to recycling and “no” to littering. They are also learning about bigger issues, such as the scarification that results from forest fires in California and from mountain top removal in eastern Kentucky . . . and the implications of melting polar ice caps and of holes in the ozone layer.
These are not easy concepts for young minds to grasp; yet as I ponder the future of Earth Day, I wonder if classroom conversations aren’t poised to assume an even deeper level of meaning. As American citizens, we are beginning to acknowledge our interconnectedness—that the factories we operate in Louisville affect the air that people breathe in nearby communities; that the allocation of water by Georgia affects residents in Alabama; and that the consumption of material goods in developed nations affects the progress of struggling people in third-world countries. The burgeoning middle class populations in China and India alone—with their understandable desire to acquire homes and automobiles—have the potential to alter lifestyles around the world. How do we strike a balance between what is best for the earth and what is best for the creatures that inhabit it?
None of these issues have easy answers; and in most cases, there is no totally right or wrong way to respond. If we use our most creative thinking, it does not have to be a zero sum game. However, it behooves us to recognize that many natural resources have finite limits and that, as the world shrinks and countries become increasingly interdependent, our “neighbors” may be people on the other side of the globe. So, on Earth Day, I hope our younger students engage in discussions about how to be good neighbors in a world of precious natural resources. And I hope our more mature students are daring to dialogue about a world in which conservation and resource management are overlaid with concern for social justice and social equity.
Dr. Sheldon Berman is the current superintendent of Jefferson County Public Schools in Louisville, Kentucky.
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by Tony Arnold
To me, Earth Day is about reflecting on what environmental responsibility means. In some sense every day is an Earth day because we are part of the Earth’s communities of life – and we are always having impacts on the natural environment. This special day is a time of reflection on our stewardship of our planet and its richness of life. In the educational and public spheres, where there are diverse ethical viewpoints, my work focuses on understanding and finding practical solutions to problems involving land, nature, and human communities. But the deep foundation of my interest in the environment is my faith and our call to be good and faithful stewards of creation. Our individual experiences with nature, our choices, and our actions force us to wrestle with large questions about selfishness and living outside of our egos, mortality and life, right and wrong, grace and service, and meaning and mystery.
It’s hard to avoid the reality that our actions bespeak of a basic human flaw of putting the self at the center of all creation. Some of our most problematic actions are in our land use decisions. Our sprawling land development patterns are significant contributors to global warming by increasing vehicular miles traveled, thus using more fossil fuels and emitting more greenhouse gases, while impairing natural landscape features that moderate climates and sequester carbon, such as trees and soils. We build with substantial amounts of impervious cover (e.g., buildings, streets, sidewalks, parking lots, etc.) that increase the quantity and velocity of runoff carrying large amounts of pollutants from development, thus degrading our rivers, streams, creeks, lakes, and oceans. Land development patterns in the U.S. are among the leading causes of deforestation, loss of endangered species’ habitat and biodiversity, introduction of invasive non-native species, and even beach closures due to polluted waters. We convert farmland to development, constraining our ability to grow and eat locally grown foods, many of which can be healthier for both consumers and the environment. We fail to provide or preserve healthy natural environments for children and youth, with alarming harm to their physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and ethical development. Our land use policies place harmful land uses in or near low-income and minority neighborhoods, which are also often under-served by public infrastructure. We limit the vitality of our democracy with barriers to meaningful civic engagement, participation, and thoughtful deliberation over land use decisions and their environmental impacts. Most of all, we typically take a consumer-oriented perspective on land and its uses, when responsible-trustee, good-neighbor, or ethical-citizen perspectives would be more appropriate.
There is much hope, though. Throughout the U.S. and all over the world, people – children and adults alike – are reflecting on what environmentally responsible behavior means and acting in more environmentally responsible ways. They are juniors at Central High School, who are studying land use and environmental justice. They are representatives of JCPS, the University of Louisville, and Louisville Metro government who are serving on the Mayor’s Climate Change Task Force. They are local officials and community members in Central Kentucky who are part of a Commonwealth Water Education Project aimed at evaluating and changing land use practices having impact on water quality. They are riders of buses, planters of rain gardens, donors of conservation easements, users of organic methods and products, and kids who turn out lights and turn off faucets. In society, we have good practical information about how to limit our harm to the environment, but we often need to start with a few concrete actions, instead of overwhelming ourselves with the startling scope of our selfish and harmful ways. But we know that as we make specific and concrete choices to engage in environmentally responsible behaviors, our values continue to change and we become better stewards of creation. And then we start to live every day as if it’s Earth Day.
Craig Anthony (Tony) Arnold is the Boehl Chair in Property and Land Use, Professor of Law, Affiliated Professor of Urban Planning, and Chair of the Center for Land Use and Environmental Responsibility at the University of Louisville. A Bucks-for-Brains chair-holder, he is highly involved in local and statewide community efforts to address land use and environmental issues, as well as conducting research that has earned national recognition.
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by Jacqueline Austin
Earth Day provides an opportunity to look at the big picture. Earth Day provides an opportunity to reflect upon what we do every day and how it impacts our students' understanding of their world.
The Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) writes that environmental education curriculum is:
Teaching about the natural and built environment provides a real-world context for learning by linking the classroom to the students' community. Students are engaged in hands-on, active learning that increases their knowledge and awareness about the environment. Because environmental education encourages inquiry and investigation, students develop critical thinking, problem-solving, and effective decision-making skills. Environmentally literate students become citizens who are able to weigh various sides of an environmental issue and make responsible decisions as individuals and as members of their community. Quality, standards-based environmental education improves everyday life by protecting human health and encouraging stewardship of natural resources.
On this 38th celebration of Earth Day, I would ask that we look at the programs in all of our schools. I encourage you to talk to a variety of students from different backgrounds or from different parts of our communities and see what their environmental perceptions are. What are their ideas? What are their solutions to problems that they see?
If you are a teacher think about your intended curriculum. Is it different from the enacted curriculum? Is your curriculum engaging, hands on, and active? Does your curriculum encourage inquiry and investigation? Are you helping your students become more environmentally aware? Most importantly, are you familiar with your students’ environments?
I am concerned that not all children have the same opportunities to explore their communities, their local environments, to experience different and varied environments. On this celebration of the 38th anniversary I challenge the reader to do just that. Help a child see the world around them, listen to a child about their ideas and thoughts, or just experience their world as they see it.
Happy Earth Day.
Jacqueline Austin is the director of Curriculum and Assessment in Jefferson County Public Schools in Louisville, Kentucky.
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by Russell Barnett
Earth Day originated as a protest to what was happening to our environment. The evidence was visual and quite compelling. In the previous year the Cuyahoga River (Cleveland) caught fire; a massive oil spill washed up on the beach at Santa Barbara; garbage was disposed in open burning dumps, sinkholes and old quarries; industries dumped waste into streams and belched soot and pollutants into the air without fear of bad publicity or legal action; Detroit was selling muscle cars that would suck a gallon of gasoline every 6-8 miles; and suburbs were changing the rural landscape. The models used for the original Earth Day were Vietnam War protests that shut down universities and cities, and Woodstock where individuals came together and partied. This strange mix led to an Earth Day event at my university which shut down the university for a week, with students camping outside discussing and celebrating our Earth. It was quite easy to put the blame on corporations as the cause for pollution and the destruction of natural systems. Nationwide, 20 million people (10% of the US population) took to the streets, parks, and auditoriums to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment. It was a remarkable example of democracy at its best. It was the event that led to my changing my major and focusing my efforts toward environmental conservation, despite my father’s observation that there are no environmental jobs except park rangers. The protests changed the political environment and quickly the Clean Water, Clean Air, and other national and state environmental laws were passed. Three months after the original Earth Day, President Nixon established the US Environmental Protection Agency. Earth Day was viewed as a key stone to these accomplishments.
Over the years Earth Day slowly declined in importance. Earth Day celebrations in Louisville which once numbered over 10,000 participants dropped off to a few hundred celebrants. Many of the environmental issues that enraged citizens in 1970 to protest were being addressed through the proliferation of new environmental laws covering waste, toxics, and pesticides. Society focused more on individual self-fulfillment rather than the collective societal good. Consumerism raged out-of-control, with the purchase of material possessions being the road to happiness. Consumerism led us to the point where 20% of the world population now consumes 86% of its goods. Resources are stripped to feed this ever growing need to purchase material goods, and political leaders urge people to consume more in order to protect the economy. Earth Day was immaterial.
In the last few years, there has been a resurgence of concern about the environment, public health and a rebirth of Earth Day. Concerns now are not with the highly visible issues that led to the protests in 1970. The issues now are on climate change, air toxics, trace pollutants in our water, energy, world-wide resource use rates, and population levels. The focus is more global. Climate change which was rejected two years ago as “junk science” is now largely embraced as a global issue of concern. Katrina, “An Inconvenient Truth," and world-wide acceptance of the severity of this issue have combined in a perfect storm to change the domestic political environment. There is wider recognition that the problem is not centered on a few corporations or even cities, but that everyone contributes to environmental problems. The democratic process is putting environmental issues back into the mainstream of public debate. The solutions to 2008 environmental issues will be much more difficult to address. Earth Day provides a forum for citizens to come together to increase their awareness and to help formulate new approaches to protecting our earth. We can celebrate 38 years of accomplishments, and focus on the challenges facing us in the future.
Russell Barnett is associated with the Kentucky Institute for the Environment and Sustainable Development at the University of Louisville
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by Brandon Bell
If you look or if you care
Pick up trash and clean the air
Do your best to keep it clean
If you cut some down, plant new trees
Nothing's wrong with giving back
And mother earth will love you back
Clean the world and have a heart
We're all a team so do your part
What will happen when everything goes?
The life you save may be your own
Brandon Bell is a member of YouthBuild's E-Corps Program in Louisville, Kentucky.
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by Councilman Stuart Benson
One of the most important steps we as Americans can take to improve our environment is to reduce our overall dependence on oil. The more sources of energy we can take advantage of, the less influence any one of them, such as oil, will have over the United States' security and prosperity. Renewable energies are some of the most promising new sources of energy because they are clean and their supply can be regenerated.
In the coming years, every vehicle manufacturer that serves the U.S. market will need to produce flex-fuel vehicles - cars and trucks that can be powered with either gasoline or biofuels. It is also important that the government provide tax incentives for people to purchase fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles that run on both gasoline and electricity, some of which can cover up to 40 miles on electricity alone. We must also continue to invest in the research and development of emerging technologies which show even greater promise for the future.
While these steps alone will not serve to fully preserve our environment, investing in renewable energy technologies is one of the best ways to address the long-term challenge of global climate change. We can all do our part by simply making informed and wise decisions that will help to protect our environment for generations to come.
Councilman Stuart Benson represents District 20 on the Louisville Metro Council
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by Jameson O. Bowden
No one likes to face consequences for misbehavior--students or adults. Still, at least our students know what misbehavior is. Our rules and procedures are explicit and sensible--sometimes we even come up with them together. Further, students, on some level, know that their actions, good or bad, can affect everyone else in the room. Unfortunately, when we are dealing with the population over the surface of the Earth, it is difficult to reach a consensus, and more important, it is very hard to see the consequences of our individual actions. If a student throws a pencil across the room, another student gets hit. Both students see the cause and effect. However, when those students' parents put 20 gallons of gasoline into their oversized vehicle, no one sees the equivalent to 60 gallons of pollution that come out the tailpipe over the next few days. Even if they do realize that the gasoline has to go "somewhere" (while the gasoline's combustion takes oxygen from the air to make carbon dioxide), the "somewhere" that the noxious exhaust still goes to is "away." Though it doesn't take much mental energy to realize that one person's "away" is another person's lungs, or in the case of other pollutants, another person's backyard, or a community's river, we can't count on this awareness to remedy the situation.
I don't think that an appeal to altruism will be very helpful in this situation. Unfortunately, studies in social psychology demonstrate that an individual will, as a rule, sacrifice a collective gain for the group if that same individual believes that they can make a small gain for themselves by ignoring an obvious choice that would favor the common good. An example of this could be: after noticing that others are buying smaller cars, an individual makes a choice to buy a larger car, being under the impression that it would make that person all-the-more safe, as the size and weight differential will usually favor the larger vehicle in a crash. Of course, this is selfish as it would cause more damage to other cars and their occupants in the event of a crash.
My point is that not enough people will do the right thing unless there is an incentive for doing so. Now is the time for courage on the part of our political leadership. The steps I suggest will not be popular, but for the good of all of us, we need to change many things about our patterns of consumption. These two proposals are positied on the fact that, though there are several factors people consider when making purchasing decisions, usually the primary one is the price of the good or service. The gasoline tax needs to rise for 3 reasons: 1) It hasn't changed in well over a decade, and due to inflation, is actually less than it started out to be in 1993. When gas prices are as high as they are, the tax could be phased in slowly, as gas prices start to recede, as most agree they will. 2) Gasoline is just too cheap. Those who drive extravagant and wasteful vehicles are numb to an extra twenty or so dollars a week. It's time to start using these people to fund the solution to the problem, instead of just "hoping" that they will do the right thing. They aren't. They won't. 3) Some people will drive less and drive smarter as they respond to the higher prices. Also, for those people who object to the tax, gas pumps should post explanations for the uses of the tax money--which should go, not just to build more roads to bring about sprawl, but to research into alternative fuels and to fund more sustainable transportation options such as bike paths and passenger rail. This is the way it is in Europe, where Americans are surprised that they can travel everywhere, locally and internationally by rail.
Because automotive exhaust is a primary cause of air pollution in our cities, the above is the most important first step. Still, we live in global environment, so it is important to do what we can to effect policies in other countries. I suggest an environmental import tax, levied on goods produced by countries which have poor environmental records (such as China), a tax that will also dwindle to nothing for goods sourced from countries with good environmental policies. Assessing environmental records for all the countries of the world would be complicated, however, considering how much purchasing power the U.S. has, the tax could be a useful tool in changing the way the world produces and consumes.
Again, the citizens of our country, the governments of the world, and the students in our classrooms don't usually like consequences of poor behavior, but with the right incentives, all of the above may choose to do the right thing--with positive consequences for every citizen and creature on the Earth.
Jameson O. Bowden is an 8th grade science teacher and sponsor of the environmental club at Myers Middle School in Jefferson County Public Schools in Louisville, Kentucky.
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by Marsha Buerger
We were so excited in 1970 when the first Earth Day was celebrated. Our school and our teachers prepared us for this day by discussing the rather new concept of conservation, recycling and caring for the Earth. The message I received became a part of my identity and is one that I have conveyed to my children and currently to my own students. As a 7th grade science teacher, I attempt to include discussion of current environmental issues in all my classes and the children seem as excited now as we were then.
The students light up, sit up, pay attention and have much to say when we discuss anything that concerns the environment. They have opinions, both pro and con, about where we are heading and where we should go. They get fired up about environmental justice and they enjoy both reading and writing about the subject. I believe students today are more aware and concerned about the Earth. They are living the results of Global Warming, they know the importance of recycling and conserving energy, and with the current gas prices, they feel the impact of not funding research for alternatives to non-renewable energy. This is a rich subject for getting students involved in their education and the world around them.
Earth Day is as relevant or more relevant today as it was in 1970 and it is exciting to be a part of this significant celebration. Happy Earth Day!!
Marsha Buerger is a 7th grade science teacher at Farnsley Middle School in Jefferson County Public Schools in Louisville, Kentucky.
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by Aukram Burton
Earth Day for over three decades has been a global observance in the modern world to inspire awareness of and appreciation for Mother Earth. It is not enough for us living in this modern world to designate just one day to inspire awareness and appreciation for Mother Earth. We need to be aware and appreciate the sacredness of Mother Earth everyday. The appreciation of Mother Earth has always been at the center of indigenous cultures around the globe for thousands of years. These ancient cultures view Mother Earth as a sacred entity for which they are the guardians and caretakers.
To succeed in creating environmentally literate schools and communities, we must begin to learn from other cultures to address the social and environmental disparities in the modern world, so we can all learn to take better care of the earth, as well as each other. I would like to encourage educators, students, and community members to use Earth Day as a platform to promote an awareness of indigenous cultures and their environmental experiences and traditions.
The public perception of the environmental movement is seen mainly as a white middle to upper class phenomena. However, we are bombarded with media images depicting people of color and/or people in lower-income communities susceptible to environmental threats and degradation. Many of these people come from a lineage of ancient cultures around the world. These indigenous cultures gave birth to the first environmentalists.
For thousands of years, the Yorùbá people of Nigeria addressed the relationship between man and Mother Earth in Ifá oral poetry, an ancient repository of Yorùbá beliefs and moral values. A chapter of the ancient text entitled Òsá Mèjí illustrates this relationship in a verse entitled, We Are Pleading That The Earth May Not Be Destroyed. In summary, the poem says:
….. we are certainly alive, and we are pleading that as long as we remain on earth, the earth may never be destroyed by its enemy.
We must understand that there is a major disconnection between Mother Earth’s natural laws and man-made laws within the modern world. On Earth Day 2008, consider the notion that bringing balance between Mother Earth and modern world rests in the awakening of indigenous knowledge and wisdom. I encourage you to make a daily commitment toward understanding and applying that knowledge to strengthen our connection with Mother Earth to insure the long-term survival of humanity.
Aukram Burton is the Diversity/Multicultural Education Specialist in the Department of Diversity, Equity and Poverty Programs at Jefferson County Public Schools in Louisville, Kentucky.
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by Louise Turner Chawla
Earth Day has come to mean to me not just a day for remembering our connections and responsibilities to the earth but equally our connections to people. For millennia, human beings were born into the lap of the earth. The natural world was all around them. It was their home, their direct source of food, their workplace, their playground, their chapel. Today, when most people in our country are born in hospitals and then whisked away in cars to houses, we are dependent on other people to introduce us to nature. If we are fortunate, we have parents, grandparents or other special people in our lives who love the natural world and who take us there: whether “there” is a garden in the back yard, a park down the block, or a distant beach or wilderness. They don’t mind if we get wet and muddy or fill our pockets with one-of-a-kind sticks or stones. They may even encourage it. They allow us to lose ourselves in a puddle or pile of leaves, and if we fail to notice the caterpillar climbing the stalk of grass or the hawk coasting on an up-draft, they cry “Look!” to make sure we see. They not only open the door for us to the natural world but communicate its value. Earth Day should be about gratitude for these people as much as gratitude for the planet.
It follows that one of the most fitting ways that we can celebrate Earth Day is to open the door to the natural world for children today. Who can tell how many generations this cycle of giving may continue or how far it may extend? One of my favorite phrases is “faith in the ripples we cannot see.” It is how a peace activist whom I met tried to explain why she continues in her path, quixotic as it may often seem. We take a child outdoors to find puddles, one-of-a-kind stones, caterpillars, tall grass stalks, and birds, as our parents or grandparents once did for us . . . as their parents or grandparents likely did for them . . . as this child may someday do for its children and grandchildren . . . and as they may do for theirs. In this way the door continues to open and the gift passes on.
Louise Turner Chawla is a professor in the College of Architecture and Planning at the University of Colorado.
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by Maria Clemons
“The astronomer looks high, the geologist low. Who looks between on the surface of the earth? The farmer, I suppose, but too often he sees only grain…” – John Muir
Recently, a group of teachers at Kerrick Elementary enrolled in the Harvard Graduate School of Education’s WideWorld on-line course entitled “Teaching for Understanding” (TfU). One of our initial conversations that explored the concept of understanding, and how we come to understand, centered on perspectives. We agreed that as we learn about our world, our place in the world, and our purpose within it, we are shaped by the lenses through which we perceive.
When students begin exploring the properties of the rocks and minerals in the science modules they make classifications and predictions, test for hardness, examine compositions, record observations, and chart reactions based on interactions with various chemicals; they are exploring the rocks as scientists. When they read Byrd Baylor’s Everybody Needs a Rock and The Other Way to Listen they hear the beauty and poetry of her descriptions and are invited to see rocks through the eyes of a poet.
Whether our views are shaped by a grounding in science, are tied to a historical perspective, follow logical or mathematical bearings or are more esoteric, we are charged with the responsibility to ensure that our children, the babes of the “Information Age," can determine the perspectives of the information they receive and evaluate its accuracy, purpose and bias. Helping our students be more conscious and reflective consumers of the messages they receive is increasingly more imperative.
As our students learn to look high, to look low, to look at the surface and in between, to look up close and from a distance, to look in the past and toward the future, we must remember to teach them to look within, and to see not only the grain, but the whole earth. That is our essence of earth day.
Maria Clemons is the principal of Kerrick Elementary School in Jefferson County Public Schools in Louisville, Kentucky.
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by Rachel Connolly
Imagine living in your home for most of your life and never stepping out of it-never knowing what it looked like from the outside. Is it covered in brick? Does it have a tin roof? This is how humans existed until the 1960s, when the first picture of the entire planet Earth was taken from the vantage point of space. Finally, humanity was able to see their home in its entirety, to observe just how thin our atmosphere is and how much of our world is covered in water. Set against the blackness of space, this photo set our home planet into the larger context of its surrounding neighborhood - the Solar System. Surrounded by the extremes of other lifeless worlds, it is easy to see how our cosmic outpost is the only safe haven around for miles - billions and billions of them.
In December of 1968, during their quarter million mile, 3-day journey to the moon, the Apollo 8 astronauts watched as the Earth got smaller and smaller through their 13 inch square space capsule window. When they finally arrived at the Moon, astronaut William Anders took an unplanned photo that has been called, “The most influential environmental photograph ever taken.” Now known as “Earthrise,” it was taken when the Earth was just becoming visible over the lunar surface as the Apollo Command Module orbited the Moon. In it, the contrast of the gray, lifeless and bone-dry surface of our nearest celestial neighbor with the blue, cloudy planet in the distance offers a striking juxtaposition between our warm and protected planet and the harshness of our neighbors.
As human-made satellites and robots travel farther and farther from the Earth, and we grow from a space crawling to a space walking species, our appreciation for the Earth as our one known safe haven in this vast harsh universe is further reinforced.
We build super-powered eyes, called telescopes, to look farther out into space. The better our eyesight becomes, the greater our understanding is of the size of the observable Universe – currently measuring in at over 156 billion light-years wide. But in all this vastness, we are still looking for other "Earths," hoping to find one distant analog planet, like a tiny diamond in an endless stretch of sandy beach.
In 1995, new technologies enabled the discovery of the first exoplanet – a planet that orbits a star outside of our own Solar System. It orbits 51 Pegasi, a star similar to our sun. Far from being another Earth, this new planet circles its sun from a location much too close for comfort (imagine temperatures over 2000°F). But with even newer techniques and technologies, exoplanet discoveries began to quickly accumulate. Soon, exoplanet sightings were averaging one a month. As of the day I write this, NASA’s Planet Quest website - http://planetquest.jpl.nasa.gov/ - shows the current planet count at 277 planets beyond our Solar System. And what about Earth-like planets? Current count = 0.
Does this mean that we will never find an Earth-like planet beyond our Solar System? Hardly. It only means that the technologies that will enable us to find these smaller, rocky worlds continue to be developed. In February 2008, astronomers used NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope to determine whether planetary systems like ours are common or rare in our Milky Way galaxy. They found that at least 20 percent, and possibly as many as 60 percent, of stars similar to our sun are candidates for forming rocky planets. Stay tuned…it is an exciting time for planetary exploration.
On a personal note, I am often asked if these discoveries make me feel that the Earth is no longer unique, that it is probably just one of many other rocky planets out there in our galaxy. I don’t feel that the Earth is any less special in the Universe; it only makes me appreciate it more - for the vast distances to these other worlds make them terrible candidates for a vacation. Ultimately, my desire to look out into space stems from a love of our home planet - this tiny rock going around an average star in a spiral galaxy that is nowhere special in the Universe that I call home.
Rachel Connolly is the director of the Rauch Planetarium at the University of Louisville.
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by Sarah Lynn Cunningham
The Louisville Climate Action Network often receives requests for guidance on whether and—if so, how—school teachers, religious instructors and parents should teach children about the biggest threat to the environment, public health, international economies and geopolitics: global climate change. After all, wouldn’t a threat that scares lots of grown-ups be too much for kids? My thoughts:
Like so many topics, it depends on the maturity of the children. I would not hesitate to teach the topic to high school students and more mature middle-school students. But I think it is critical that the “problem” part of the discussion be balanced—if not outweighed—by the “solutions” part. I would take advantage of the many curricular connections between global climate change.
And while social studies teachers may choose to discuss the dwindling number of nay-sayers still denying that a crisis is unfolding, science teachers do not need to teach “the other side” of the issue. The scientists working in the transparent, peer-reviewed realm of science reached consensus years ago that climate change is happening now and is caused by excessive greenhouse-gas pollution.
In the case of younger and/or less mature students, I would just focus on solutions. After all, there are lots of reasons for—and benefits from—taking steps to reduce our carbon footprints. Most such steps not only reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but also other air pollutants that contribute to smog, asthma, etc. They usually save money, too!
I hope that all grown-ups reading this newsletter will use Earth Day 2008 as an impetus for discussing climate change with the children in their lives and what together they can do about it.
Sarah Lynn Cunningham is on the Steering Committee of the Louisville Climate Action Network in Louisville, Kentucky.
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by Allan Dittmer
Earth Day is a moment in time we set aside to remind us how important our little rock planet is to all of us (as if we should need a reminder). The air we breathe, the water we drink, the soil we grow our food in, the other creatures--from the smallest to the largest--who live with us are all part of the complex system called the biota, and Earth Day is the one small blip in time when we are asked to pause and think about it.
I grew up in a large city that treated the earth and its elements like they were expendable. Chemicals were dumped in the water--so many that a river caught on fire and burned for several years. The air was so fouled by poisonous smog that birds fell dead out of the trees. Invasive species of plants and animals slowly crowded out native species and the once vibrant landscape turned into a hostile and foreboding place for both animals and man. But what did we think we saw…progress? So, Earth Day is the one miniscule tick among a distracting array of ticks to remind us of Earth’s importance.
I distinctly remember the first time I visited the Smoky Mountains and how stunned I was to see the miles of carnival-like consumerism I had to pass through before I broke free into the beautiful mountain scenery I went there to see. Most of the vehicles on the road with me stopped in that gaudy strip of shops and trinket stores, and a few others trickled on through to go up into the mountains. What did so many of these people see in that glitzy strip mall that I didn’t? I was puzzled by the different perceptions of what is ugly and what is beautiful. I still am. But, Earth Day is our fleeting reminder of what one planet means to us.
There are so many ways our Earth could end, an asteroid collision, a nuclear war, an unleashed plague, or as Robert Frost so simply said in this poem “Fire and Ice”:
Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I’ve tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice.
But, who would have ever thought the cause could be us? Earth Day is set aside to remind us that we can and should do what we must to protect and preserve our planet…from us.
Alan Dittmer is Professor Emeritus at the University of Louisville.
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by Ma'isah Edwards
As we absorb ourselves in the arguments of whether or not human activity causes damage to the earth, we neglect the main issue. This main concern is that we need to begin taking better care of this place we call home (the earth). Some become discouraged by the thought that it may take many years to undo the damage done, but we should see this as a challenge to fight as if one is running that last stretch of a race.
Since we all share this earth together, we need to work together to repair or reduce the many years of damage that has been done. The thought that there is only so much that one person can do and so many environmental problems that need to be addressed can be overwhelming. Rather than try and do everything at once start with small things in the home such as the 3 R’s often taught in grade school: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Reduce the usage of energy in the home, the amount of wastes coming from the household, and amounts of toxins (i.e. cleaning supplies, pesticides, herbicides). Reuse items such as plastic food containers. Many manufacturers are now packaging food in reusable containers; do your part and use these for other household needs. Donate old toys and clothing to charity rather than to the local landfill. Recycle; create a recycling system in the home to see how much one can reduce the amount of trash produced in the household. Research may not be a part of the 3R’s, but finding other methods to live “green” will benefit the earth. These suggestions may take a while to get used to, but they are not impossible. In the long run, this will benefit the earth and the future of our children.
If we take care of the earth, the earth will take care of us. Live Green!
Ma'isah Edwards is with the School of Public Health and Information Sciences at the University of Louisville. She is also a 2008 Master's of Public Health Candidate and an Asthma Researcher for the Partnership for a Green City.
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by Jane Eller
I am often asked, “What’s the big deal with the frogs (or the spotted owls, or the whales, or for that matter the warming of the earth.)?” On this Earth Day, such questions are a reminder that those of us who teach about the environment must do a better job of helping people understand they are members of ecosystems, not just observers of ecosystems.
Environmental education is not the outdoor version of science education. Environmental education involves teaching about the interrelationships of all the systems that occur naturally and of all the human systems that interact with those natural systems. To paraphrase author Jared Diamond, “The wonderful thing about the environment is that everything is connected to everything else and the most difficult thing about the environment is that everything is connected to everything else.”
Thus, the big deal about frogs is that we share an ecosystem with them. If they perish, it definitely has an effect on us: in everything from a potential runaway increase in the mosquito population to the loss of the tree peepers’ evening songs.
So, while I love the frogs (and spotted owls and whales and even the current temperature of the earth) what I really love is my children and grandchildren and all the children one can see standing down that long, bright corridor of the future, waiting to be born. Without the frogs, and all the other intricate pieces of Earth’s wondrous puzzle, will there be a place for them?
Jane Eller is the executive director of the Kentucky Environmental Education Council.
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by Brent Fryrear
We celebrate Earth Day once each year, but really we ought to treat every day like Earth Day. No other day brings people across the globe together for a common good like Earth Day does. It gives us pause to think of the ways we can be better stewards of our planet, our natural resources and the things we can do daily to make a difference.
There are so many low cost/no cost opportunities for us to be green at home, school and work.
-- Set thermostats at reasonable temperatures for each season.
-- Turn the lights off when we leave the room. Don’t leave them on overnight.
-- Purchase Energy Star® rated appliances, electronics and computers.
-- Buy items with post-consumer recycled content.
-- Replace incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent lamps (CFL).
-- Reduce our solid waste in a variety of ways.
-- Use reusable items like coffee mugs and drinking cups rather than using disposable plastic or polystyrene cups. Use reusable grocery bags instead of paper or plastic. Use a reusable furnace filter instead of disposable filters.
-- Compost organic matter.
-- Cut paper use in half by duplexing – printing or copying on both sides.
-- Do not print all the e-mails that come to our computers.
-- Recycle paper, newspaper, cardboard, aluminum cans, tin cans, glass bottles, plastic bottles, toner and ink-jet cartridges, etc.
-- Carpool whenever possible.
These opportunities are second nature to many people, schools and businesses that serve as an example to others. Baba Dious, a Senegalese Ecologist, wrote “In the end, we will conserve only what we love. We love only what we understand. We will understand only what we are taught.” It is up to all of us to lead by example, teach others and secure a clean future for our communities and our planet.
Brent Fryrear is the director of the Partnership for a Green City.
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by Marcelle Gianelloni
Can you remember your first true connections to the natural world? Mine were mud between my toes, hot sand under my feet and brilliant Caribbean sunsets filling my eyes. And I can’t forget the experience of seeing a Cuban Crocodile with his mouth wide open at my local zoo. Somehow it must have had some kind of influence on my passion for crocodile conservation. Rachel Carson wrote in her book The Sense of Wonder: “It is not half so important to know as to feel.” Without those personal experiences can we really expect people to make emotional connections and care about our planet Earth?
As a Zoo educator I am often asked how we can connect children to a complex world that has become plastic and electronic, and how can we connect them to the beauty of the natural world. Earth Day began years ago as a result of growing concern for our world. Its purpose was to create action. But instead of just one day to create action, I advocate Earth Day … Every Day! I am seeing Earth Day as an event that highlights what we do every day. Look what is happening with the Green Revolution today! More and more people are changing their behaviors to become environmental friendly; however, it goes back to my mud experience—it all starts with that emotional connection.
I am most fortunate to work at the Louisville Zoo where our mission is “to better the bond between people and our planet.” Our “living classroom” creates connections between people and ecosystems that foster feelings of caring and excitement. Zoos can provide visitors of all ages the opportunity to smell a Maned wolf, touch a Boa constrictor, hear an African lion roar and stare at an Orangutan face to face. Seeing these animals helps people expand their curiosity and sense of care about our world—and it is that sense of wonderment that makes the difference! Those experiences heal us, stimulate us, make us care, and hopefully, inspire us to conservation action. Without those personal experiences, why should we care? For those of you who were like me and felt the ooze of mud between the toes, was it not awesome? That was a connection you soon won’t forget.
Marcelle Gianelloni is the Curator of Education at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Kentucky.
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Global Connections: Staying in Touch with Culture and Environment is a monthly publication of the JCPS Office of Equity, Diversity and Multicultural Education and the JCPS Center for Environmental Education. All submissions to the newsletter must be sent to Catherine Collesano, Editor, at catherine.collesano@jefferson.kyschools.us or fax (502) 485-3762 the Monday before the publication date. If you are interested in becoming a subscriber or a contributor to Global Connections, please contact the editor at the above email address.
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