Greenversations

“Can I get my picture taken with him? Can we please go on a tour to see the solar panels? What was your college major? Do you know much about nanotechnology?” were just a few of the questions posed by high school students who visited EPA’s Research Triangle Park campus on Earth Day 2010 to hear environmental advocate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. speak.

Outdoors, under clear blue skies, the 40 students from Hillside, Jordan, Northern, and Southern High Schools in Durham focused their full attention on Mr. Kennedy as he passionately shared multiple stories and statistics to demonstrate that protecting our nation’s environmental resources makes economic sense. The hidden costs of getting our energy from non-renewable resources and accounting for the true costs of fossil fuels, as well as developing the infrastructure for renewable energy like solar, wind, and geothermal power, were themes that particularly inspired the students.

No texting, no talking. All eyes were glued on Kennedy, a senior attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council, throughout his 1-hour talk as he offered a range of topics to pique their teenage minds as they consider subjects to explore in college and as careers: environmental science, engineering, law, politics, environmental justice, math, and history to name a few. In addition to Kennedy’s environmental anecdotes, he also shared personal stories including his trips to the White House as a child to visit his uncle, John F. Kennedy, in the Oval Office. I was in awe.

As Kennedy’s inspirational talk concluded, we did have many questions answered. YES, you can get your picture taken with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and YES you can take a tour to learn about our newly-installed solar panels. Students from Northern High School went on an impromptu tour of our environmentally-friendly building, learned about EPA’s air pollution research, and talked to several employees about their educations and their jobs. As for the nanotechnology question posed to me by a high school junior, I was “saved” at the last minute in the EPA Café line by running into a co-worker who does research in the area.

You can learn more about Kennedy’s Earth Day talk at EPA at http://www.allbusiness.com/government/government-bodies-offices/14335415-1.html or http://www.dpsnc.net/news/frontpage-news/a-kennedy-kind-of-earth-day/?searchterm=kennedy%20epa. To read about the EPA Administrator’s visit to Southern High School last fall, go to http://www.dpsnc.net/news/community-news/president2019s-cabinet-member-chooses-southern-to-speak/?searchterm=EPA%20administrator.

About the Author: Kelly Leovic manages EPA’s Environmental and Community Outreach Program in Research Triangle Park and has worked for the EPA as an environmental engineer since 1987, though this is the first time she had the opportunity to hear a Kennedy speak in person. She has three children and loves to inspire them, and anyone else who will listen, to protect our environment.

Just last week, I visited Cesar Chavez Elementary School in Hyattsville, Maryland for their Career Day. This time, I was assigned to speak at three separate classes—3rd, 4th, and 5th graders. During my presentations, I discussed the Agency’s mission, the 40th anniversary of Earth Day and different types of jobs at EPA. In order to keep them engaged, I quizzed them on a variety of environmental issues. I was very interested in finding out what they thought about how best to protect the environment.  I was very pleased to see that the kids have definitely mastered the concept of the three R’s “Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle.” Whenever I asked them about what they could do to help, “picking up trash and recycling” were the first issues highlighted in each of the classes. They also mentioned other useful green tips such as saving water, saving energy, and riding a bike instead of driving a car, to name a few.

At the school, they were incorporating many green habits into practice. One of the classes had even planted their own garden. The teacher mentioned that there were a group of students that lived nearby and regularly took care of it. I was able to see how the children talked about the garden with pride.

It was very inspiring to see that these children have internalized many of the values necessary to protect the planet. Children can be great teachers. In fact, we can learn a lot from them only if we truly listen. That reminds me of a song I heard recently on one of my daughter’s CD. It’s entitled “Wake up, America.” would like to share the chorus:

“Wake up, America. We’re all
In this together
It’s our home
So let’s take care of it
You know that you want to
You know that you got
To wake up America

Tomorrow
Becomes a new day
And everything you do
Matters
Yeah
Everything you do
Matters
In some way”

So, let’s listen to these teachers, TODAY!

If you want to see some key examples of young students who have taken environmental stewardship to the next level, I would recommend you see the projects presented by the winners of the President’s Environmental Youth Awards.  For more information on sponsoring a young person or group, visit our website.

About the author: Lina Younes has been working for EPA since 2002 and chairs EPA’s Multilingual Communications Task Force. Prior to joining EPA, she was the Washington bureau chief for two Puerto Rican newspapers and she has worked for several government agencies.

Forty years ago, events like the Santa Barbara oil spill and the Cuyahoga River catching on fire mobilized a massive public reaction, resulting in the first Earth Day and the creation of EPA.

How have modern events inspired you to make personal changes?

Each week we ask a question related to the environment. Please let us know your thoughts as comments. Feel free to respond to earlier comments or post new ideas. Previous questions.

Hace cuarenta años, eventos como el derrame de petróleo de Santa Bárbara y el hecho de que el río Cuyahoga se encendiera en llamas generaron una reacción pública masiva que resultó en el primer Día del Planeta Tierra y la creación de la EPA.

¿Acaso los eventos modernos le han inspirado a hacer cambios personales y de qué manera?

I joined the late Sen. Gaylord Nelson’s (founder of Earth Day) staff just out of college, shortly after the celebration of the second Earth Day in 1971. He instilled in me a passion for the environment that lives within me to this day.

The project began when Nelson called two of his senior aides into his office in September, 1969. He had just returned from Santa Barbara right after the horrific oil spill off the California coast. He was outraged by the environmental devastation and political inertia in Washington. He had read in the local newspaper about teach-ins on the Berkeley campus against the war in Vietnam and had an idea. He told his staffers, “See what you can do about having environmental teach-ins on college campuses around the country on the same day next spring.”

On April 22, 1970, about 20 million Americans participated in the first Earth Day (a record for any event of any kind at that time). Sen. Nelson was justifiably pleased. He had made protecting the environment his career and it seemed that the United States, then the world’s chief polluter, was ready to lead an ‘environmental’ revolution. Not quite.

The first project the Senator assigned me was to call the “Top 100” Fortune CEOs and encourage them to recycle. It took some time (no internet then) but I completed my task. Two things stand out about that experience. First, I got through to 98 of them (directly or they called me back). Second, all of them either hung up on me or laughed and then hung up (Today, not one of those companies, still in existence, would tell me that they don’t recycle in some capacity).

One of those senior aides, John Heritage, wrote in the Madison (WI) Capital Times recently, “Unfortunately, the ecological health of our nation and much of the world has deteriorated in the last four decades. We now face…a warming world climate, degradation of the oceans, decimation of tropical forests, and the loss of habitats and species.”

To honor Gaylord Nelson and his profound understanding of ecological limitations, it is imperative that we work together to find ways to implement a more environmentally favorable system of human living.

About the author: John Larmett has worked in the Office of Public Affairs since 2008. He worked for Sen. Nelson from 1971-80.

Me uní al equipo de trabajo del fallecido Senador Gaylord Nelson (fundador del Día del Planeta Tierra) justo cuando me gradué de la universidad, poco después de la celebración del segundo Día del Planeta Tierra en 1971. Me inculcó una pasión por el medio ambiente que aún vive en mí al día de hoy.

El proyecto comenzó cuando Nelson llamó a dos de sus ayudantes principales a su oficina en septiembre de 1969. Acababa de regresar de Santa Bárbara después de un horrendo derrame de petróleo cerca de la costa de California. Estaba enfurecido por la devastación ambiental y la inercia política en Washington. Había leído un periódico local donde hablaban de las actividades de concienciación en el campus de Berkley en contra de la guerra de Vietnam y se le ocurrió una idea. Le dijo a sus ayudantes, “Vean lo que pueden hacer para tener actividades de concienciación ambiental en los recintos universitarios alrededor de país coincidiendo el mismo día para la próxima primavera”.

El 22 de abril de 1970, unos 20 millones de estadounidenses participaron en el primer Día del Planeta Tierra (un récord para cualquier evento de cualquier tipo para aquella época). El senador Nelson se sintió satisfecho y con mucha razón. Había hecho de la protección ambiental su carrera y parecía que entonces Estados Unidos, el entonces principal contaminante del mundo, estaba listo para dirigir una revolución medioambiental. Bueno, no exactamente.

El primer proyecto que me asignó el senador fue llamar a los jefes de las principales 100 compañías Fortune (Top Fortune100) y alentarle a que reciclaran. Me tomó algún tiempo realizar la asignación ya que no había Internet en aquella época, pero completé la labor. Dos cosas se destacan de mi experiencia. Primero, pude comunicarme con 98 de ellos (directamente o contestaron mi llamada). Segundo, todos me colgaron el teléfono o se rieron a carcajadas y luego colgaron el teléfono. (En la actualidad, ni una de esas compañías, todavía en existencia, me dirían que no reciclan de alguna manera u otra).

Uno de sus principales ayudantes, John Heritage, escribió para el periódico Capital Times de Madison, Wisconsin recientemente. “Desafortunadamente, la salud ecológica de nuestra nación y de gran parte del mundo se ha deteriorado en las últimas cuatro décadas. Ahora nos enfrentamos…al calentamiento del clima mundial, la degradación de los océanos, la devastación de los bosques tropicales y la pérdida de los hábitats y las especies”.

Para honrar a Gaylord Nelson y su profundo entendimiento de las limitaciones ecológicas, es imperativo que trabajemos juntos por encontrar maneras para implementar un sistema que sea más favorable ambientalmente para la vida en la Tierra.

Sobre la autor:  John Larmett ha trabajado en la Oficina de Asuntos Públicos desde el 2008. Trabajó para el Senador Nelson del 1971 al 1980.

April is Earth Month, and Earth Day, April 22nd, is rapidly approaching. Check out our Earth Day web page for things you can do to celebrate, participate and then share what you are doing. Activities range from “Pick 5″– choosing five environmental actions you will commit to, to submitting a video clip to join our “It’s My Environment” video project and loads of things in between. Check it out and tell us about your plans.

What are you going to do to celebrate the Earth this April?

Each week we ask a question related to the environment. Please let us know your thoughts as comments. Feel free to respond to earlier comments or post new ideas. Previous questions.

Abril es el Mes del Planeta Tierra y el Día del Planeta Tierra, el 22 de abril, se aproxima rápidamente. Visiten nuestra página Web del Día del Planeta Tierra para celebrar, y participar y entonces compartir lo que está haciendo. Las actividades varían desde “Pick5″–donde puede escoger 5 acciones ambientales a las cuales se quiere comprometer, someter un video para unirse a nuestro proyecto de video “Es mi medio ambiente” y cantidad de otras cosas también. Consulte la página y cuéntenos acerca de sus planes.

¿Qué está haciendo para celebrar al Planeta Tierra este abril?

After the winter storms, it’s truly a wonder to see how Mother Nature comes to life during springtime. As the hours of sunlight get longer and temperatures get warmer, you see the first signs of spring in sprouting bulbs such as daffodils and early bloomers like forsythia bushes. Hints of color interrupt the gray outdoors practically overnight. Chirping birds and singing frogs also contribute to the awakening of the new season.

I confess that my backyard is a sorry sight nowadays. The trees survived the wintry onslaught, but the bushes and perennials did not fare as well. The garden will need some major care that will span several weeks maybe even months. Even though I do not have a green thumb, the time invested in gardening definitely will be rewarding on the personal and environmental level.

Since April is gardening month, it’s a nice time to roll up your sleeves and have fun planting in your back yard. Here are some green tips to take care of your garden with minimal use of chemicals. Selecting native plants is also a way to reduce the need for chemicals to control pests and use water efficiently. You might have to go to the Web to identify nurseries in your area that sell native plants or visit USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service for state/territory specific information. Simple actions can go a long way to protect the environment.

Another “tradition” that I have tried to adopt at home has been to plant a tree on Earth Day. Our Earth Day trees have survived in spite of the winter storms this year. If you don’t have a back yard to plant a tree, maybe you can buy a good house plant for your apartment. Every environment counts—whether indoors or the great outdoors.

Are you planning anything special to revamp your garden this month?

About the author: Lina Younes has been working for EPA since 2002 and chairs EPA’s Multilingual Communications Task Force. Prior to joining EPA, she was the Washington bureau chief for two Puerto Rican newspapers and she has worked for several government agencies.

Recently, I was listening to a radio show in which commentators were talking about the 40th anniversary of the lunar landing. I remember that evening very well. I watched the images of that historic milestone with my great grandmother in Puerto Rico. She was 84 then and we discussed how the world had changed during her lifetime. She described seeing the arrival of the first cars to the Island. She contrasted those developments with the news-breaking story of that evening on July 20, 1969, when the first man landed on the moon. Looking back to these 40 years, we’ve witnessed great technological advances and innovations we now take for granted. Travel in space, communications, and nanotechnology are just some of the things that have changed in the past forty years. And that brings me to the subject today.

I’ve always been attracted to the concept of the future. In the sixties, I remember going to the World Fair in New York and watching several exhibits which forecasted how life was going to be in the 21st century. In fact, one of my favorite cartoons, The Jetsons, was an animated science fiction sitcom which portrayed life in the 25th century as conceived by the producers back in 1963. There were robots, electronic contraptions, and flying cars. If you come to think about it, other than the flying cars, some of their futuristic ideas have become a reality. However, in remembering this series, I noticed something recently which made me pause and think. There was hardly any vegetation in that “future.” There were hardly any trees. No greenery. Is that how life will become in the 25th century?

When you come to think about it, a future without trees or vegetation would not only be scary, but deadly for all mankind. Many animals, including human beings, would not survive without any vegetation on Earth. Plants are necessary for multiple reasons—they provide us with oxygen and they are at the foundation of all food chains. Furthermore, they play a fundamental role in ecology—they cleanse the atmosphere of excessively large quantities of carbon dioxide emissions. So, when we think of sustainable development and environmental protection, these are not the fads of the moment. They are essential to our survival. We can all start working to protect our planet by pledging to take action in favor of our planet on Earth Day and every day.

About the author: Lina Younes has been working for EPA since 2002 and chairs EPA’s Multilingual Communications Task Force. Prior to joining EPA, she was the Washington bureau chief for two Puerto Rican newspapers and she has worked for several government agencies.