June 16 is World Sea Turtle Day. You can use this free downloadable poster to raise awareness about sea turtles and the dangers they face. Of the seven sea turtle species in the world, almost all of them are considered endangered. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists three species as vulnerable, one as … Continue reading “A Poster for World Sea Turtle Day”
This inspiring documentary features teen activists around the world who see a problem and try to fix it. From Malawi to Colorado they are fighting pollution, opposing child marriage, supporting education, freedom of speech and sustainable agriculture and demanding rights for the planet and indigenous people. Melati Wijsen and her sister founded Bye Bye Plastic … Continue reading “Bigger Than Us”
This giant sculpture has been installed as a message to the G7 leaders meeting for a summit in Cornwall, England. It’s made entirely of electronic waste and is designed to draw attention to the environmental problems caused by the 53 million tonnes of phones, tablets, computers and other electronic devices discarded every year. The sculpture, … Continue reading “Mount Recyclemore”
Since 1988, British charity Comic Relief has been encouraging people to don a clown’s red nose and “do something funny for money”. Red Nose Day is back on Friday 19 March and this time, it’s plastic free! In 2019, for the last Red Nose Day, Comic Relief received hundreds of letters from children and schools … Continue reading “Red Nose Day is Back!”
Gitanjali Rao from Colorado, won America’s Top Young Scientist 2017, for her innovative gadget to test for contaminants like lead in drinking water. She’s continuing her research to try to bring her test to market, while also working on cyberbullying and opoid addiction. She has also mentored 30,000 students, encouraging them to use science and … Continue reading “Young Scientist Named Time’s “Kid of the Year””
How to take a pollution problem – discarded chewing gum – and turn it into a green resource by recycling it and using the result to make products like re-usable coffee cups. This A1+ document aims at developing your students’ reading skills and autonomy. Its general theme is protecting the environment, and should prove of … Continue reading “Chewing Gum and Doing Good”
Language is constantly changing and every year British dictionary publishers Collins likes to look back and see which words have dominated the national conversation. Not necessarily new words, but ones that have come to the fore. The Word of the Year 2018 is… “single-use”. It’s been in the news as more and more campaigners have … Continue reading “Word of the Year: Single-Use”
The Ocean Cleanup non-profit organisation is hoping to remove vast quantities of plastic pollution from the oceans. Here are some articles and videos you could use to introduce your pupils to this topic. To set the scene, and with lower-level pupils, there is an article provided at A1+, A2 and B1 levels about Ocean Cleanup … Continue reading “Ocean Cleanup Webpicks”
Plastic pollution, particularly in the oceans, has been in the news a lot recently, with governments, institutions and big business calling and pledging to reduce the use of disposable, single-use plastics. But a young Dutchman has been fighting for eight years to tackle the other end of the problem: removing existing plastic from the sea. … Continue reading “Cleaning Plastic From the Oceans”
A British university made progress on two environmental problems with one successful campaign: it got rid of unsightly used chewing gum littered about the campus and significantly reduced use of unrecyclable disposable coffee cups. How? By getting students to put the chewing gum into special bins, then using the recycled gum to make free re-usable … Continue reading “Green Coffee”
