Former Eco-Hero runner-up Abdul Muqeet, also known as the “Paper Bag Boy,”  is no longer an ordinary student; instead, he has become a passionate environmentalist. His project to make paper bags and distribute them in his community, to encourage recycling of paper and discourage use of plastic, is attracting a lot of attention. Honored with various prestigious awards and certificates, Abdul continues to makes bags out of old newspapers and spreads awareness about the harmful effects of plastic on the environment. The bags are known by his schoolmates in the United Arab Emirates as ‘Mukku Bags.’

Since being exposed to the harmful effects of plastic as a child, Abdul has steadily become more committed to “save mother earth and the environment.” Currently, he is fulfilling this mission by campaigning to reduce C02 levels in his home country. For more information on Abdul go to his Facebook page  http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Paper-Bag-Boy/100137236705872 and look for him on the Abu Dhabi Awards at http://abudhabiawards.ae/en/home

Action for Nature is proud to showcase our previous Eco-Hero Award winners with a short video.Check out our Youtube channel! We hope the accomplishments of these outstanding young people inspire others to take action.

Last semester, I took an awesome class called Herpetology 2.  My final assignment was to do a presentation about a wildlife conservation organization.   I chose The Orianne Society.

If you’re going to be learning about The Orianne Society, you should know how it got started. The Orianne Society began when a young girl had the amazing chance to hold an Eastern Indigo Snake.  She fell in love with the snake, and knew that it was in trouble.  So, she asked her father to help her save the snake’s species…and thus The Orianne Society was born!  This non-profit organization not only helps the threatened Eastern Indigo Snake, but it also helps other species like the desert tortoise and monkeys.

So how does The Orianne Society help the Eastern Indigo Snake?  They do research.  Sometimes that research involves a really cool survey tool.  Can you guess what that might be?  It’s dogs!  Well, one special dog named CJ.  They trained him in 2009 to locate Eastern Indigo Snakes and their sheds.  Why would they need to know this?  Eastern Indigo Snakes love being underground in burrows where it is very hard to see them.  Using CJ’s great skills, researchers can find Eastern Indigo Snakes much faster and more accurately.  That makes CJ the top dog!

To learn more about The Orianne Society and CJ, please visit www.OrianneSociety.org.

My friend’s dad, Scott Wilson, owns the Quorum Architects firm in Fort Worth, Texas.  They’ve been in business for almost 20 years. Quorum Architects try to build with the earth in mind. I (Joe K) talked a little with Scott about how his company is trying to help conserve and maintain natural habitats.

J: Why does conservation in architecture interest you?

S: Well, instead of taking down a building and then re-building another one, we try to restore the existing building. We can’t do that every time but we try to as much as we can.

J: Why do you think it is important to be conscientious about conservation in your business?

S: Saving energy in as many ways as possible is important. For example, we try to be green by recycling paper and using energy efficient lighting to save money and energy. Our own office building provides another example of why we try to be conscientious of nature. If we tore down this building, the office roof alone has about 20,000 square feet of lumber on it. It we rebuilt, we’d have to use that same amount of lumber to replace our roof. By doing that,  many trees would be cut down. These trees are home to thousands of organisms and animals – so we wouldn’t be doing them any favors by rebuilding, would we? It’s best to keep what already exists so that we  can save the materials that are being used and do not further deplete our natural resources.

J: Can you explain one specific example of the things do you do in your business to be earth friendly?

S: When we design a building we try to get materials that are within 500 miles of our location. We try not to go someplace like China to get materials. This method saves gas (because of less travel), keeps carbon emissions down, and makes for cleaner air. It also helps our economy by keeping business within the states.

J: What are some of the different types of earth friendly projects you have worked on?

S: Sherwin Williams and Quorum work together to build their first Leaders in Energy Environmental Design (L.E.E.D.). This is a rating system for earth-friendly buildings. We designed the first L.E.E.D. project which used less energy to build and to run.

J: Have you worked on any conservation projects that have affected animals? What were they?

S: We have done numerous animal adoption centers where natural light is allowed into the space. There is fresh air and a small outdoor area where dogs and other animals can stretch. There are no toxic or unhealthy paints on the wall. We also used recycled steel to make the animal cages!

J: What is your main goal with conservation and architecture?

S: As our architectural footprint grows we try to make a smaller carbon footprint.

Thanks Scott. I’m glad you’re serious about conservation in the things we build.

Here is a link to Quorum Architects http://www.qarch.com/

What About Peace? is an international arts contest for youth ages 14 – 20 to express ideas and thoughts about peace by responding to the question, “What About Peace?” through artistic expression, with $1500 in prize money to be given out.

The accepted mediums include essay, poem, painting or collage, photography, cartoon, and graphic design.

If you know youth between 14 – 20, please encourage them to enter this special contest. An easy way to spread the word is to download the flyer and hand out to teachers and others who work with youth ages 14-20. All entries must be received on or before February 15th, 2012. Complete details can be found here: http://www.whataboutpeace.org/

T’was the night before Solstice, and all through the house

 Not a creature was sleeping, not even a mouse

For all folks were worrying ’bout something heard

  Outside – could it possibly be – not… a bird?

That’s right, it’s time for CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNTS, y’all! Every year, Cornell Ornithology Lab has a little program where you can watch your feeders for a day, and send in all the info about your birdwatching. Also, at my church, we’re doing something else very exciting: we’re having a potluck and training night to prepare for our BioBlitz (say WHAT!) next May. Reader, whomever you are, I wish upon you the gift of counting wildlife during your holidays as so many others will be during theirs. Get outdoors!

Even if you don’t want to do things in such a science-y way, there’s still plenty of wildlife fun to be had during the holidays. Why do I say this? Because I’ve been having some wildlife fun of my own. Every night, when I go to bed, I hear a thunka-thunka-thunka in my attic. Which, as those of you who have experienced the Attic Thunka-Thunka-Thunka phenomenon will know, is a VERY disconcerting experience.

For those of you keeping score, Home Team 0, Attic Creatures 1.

At about the same time, we found a flying squirrel running around in our kitchen, which we caught and released – and which came back, three times; of the four sightings the squirrel was caught three times (Home Team 3, Squirrels 2). And then we made the connection, and put a Havahart brand trap (a live trap, so you can safely move animals out of your house without hurting them at all) in our attic, and within a day… flying squirrel was captured. Despite this early success, two days later another squirrel made it home in our house. (Home Team 5, Squirrels 2). So we’re nowhere near done dealing with what a friend of mine called “the cutest household infestation ever,” but I want to put out a good word for Havahart. Please remember to be considerate of all animals’ feelings and remember this is the Season of Mercy.

That still doesn’t mean I’m letting any of those darn squirrels stay in my attic. No, they are going. And that decision is final. This is the season of mercy, not the season of unconditional love.

Carter and Olivia Ries, 2011 runners up, from Georgia are doing their part to protect the planet by campaigning to reduce the use of plastic bags in the US. Their project entitled “Say No To Plastic Bags,” works to raise awareness about the dangers of plastic bags to the natural world.

So far, they created their own non-profit called One More Generation (OMG), bought the rights to the movie “Bag-it,” launched their “Plastic Awareness Week” curriculum program for elementary schools, and met with their congressman. They have achieved a lot, but they are just getting started. What began in 2010 as an effort to save turtles in the wake of the Gulf oil spill, has blossomed into an ongoing effort to care for the environment for years to come.

Please submit applications for the Eco-Hero Award ASAP! Here is a link to the award guidelines.

The weather is getting cold and Monarch butterflies have been seen all over the place. They are migrating to a warmer place for the winter.

Every year monarch butterflies migrate. They are cold-blooded so they need to be in a    warmer climate to survive. They also need to be near flowers so they can’t live in cold    climates where flowers do not continually grow.

A monarch’s migration starts sometime around August or September. They usually head to places like Mexico or California. They can come from as far away as Canada, so it’s a lot of work for a little butterfly to make its way to a warmer climate.

Deforestation is hurting monarch butterflies and has led to a reduction of their numbers. There are efforts by groups who are trying to get the monarch butterfly classified as a protected specie. A lot of people are trying to make habitats for them, as well.

Monarchs eat flowers from the milkweed family. If you plant a medium-to-large pot of flowers for them in your yard, it would really help. It’s simple to do and it’s a fun project. I got a list of flowers from Wikipedia that you could plant to help feed monarchs on their journey south or when they are back in the neighborhood. So start planting!!!

• Indian Hemp
• California Milkweed
• Swamp Milkweed
• Common Milkweed
• Butterfly Weed
• asters
• thistles
• Wild Carrot
• Teasel
• Horseweed
• Spotted Joe-Pye Weed
• Common Boneset
• Dame’s Rocket
• Alfalfa
• golden rods
• Lilac
• Red Clover
• Tall Ironweed

Sources:

Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarch_%28butterfly%29

The Butterfly Site

http://www.thebutterflysite.com/butterfly-migration.shtml