Friends of the Earth

Friends of the Earth is an environmental activist group that works towards becoming a leader in environmental issues, such as climate change and global warming. Friends of the Earth strives to not only alert the public of the dangers of these global phenomenons, but also to create and alter policy that is in the best interest of the Earth. This organization uses various media sources to convey their messages, and aims to target a younger audience so as to educate not only members of academia, but also high schoolers and college age students.

On the Friends of the Earth website, there are many resources that can be used to assist secondary students in becoming active in the climate change movement. Users have the option to donate money or become a part of the solution. On the "Action Center" portion of the website, an individual may choose to participate in an event, either online or in person. If I was a teacher, I would break my class into groups and require each group to become involved in at least one of the events. Although it may look challenging, I believe that a group of dedicated and determined high school students could undertake the work that Friends of the Earth does, particularly regarding the environmental policy. A group of government students who are concerned about the Earth could access the policy information on the Friends of Earth website to learn how to proceed with doing such a things.

Although I had not previously heard about Friends of the Earth, I was quite impressed with their website. The website is very user friendly, and provides great information and resources for students and adults. Their approach is different from that of some other groups that are geared towards fighting climate change, for they separate the issues into "climate and energy," "food and technology," "oceans and forests," and "economics for the earth." To me, this is a great way to attract a wider audience, and may be easier for high school students to narrow their focus and truly make a defense in the global warming pandemic.

Click here to access the Friends of the Earth website.

How the "Stay at Home Mom" May Change the Future

Over the course of this class, many of us have probed "why" and "how?" Why are individuals not taking climate change and global warming more seriously, and how can each of us play a part in combatting this horrendous change that is taking place on Earth. Although I do not have the answers to these questions, I believe that, with the assistance of the "right group", climate change may soon become a known global challenge, to which we may be able to someday mend.


Yesterday, as we were strolling through the woods and adventuring around the lake, I was having a casual conversation with Jacob. Although I do not recall the exact context of the conversation, I do remember cracking a joke at the expense of stay at home moms. It was then that an idea sparked in my mind! "I will write about the stay at home mom profession!" I had struggled to target a profession before yesterday, because I am still a lost teenager who cannot even decide where she wants to spend the next four years of her life. Although I do not desire to be a stay at home mom on a long-term basis, I know that I will someday have a family, and I will stay at home with my children while they are growing up. To me, stay at home moms may be the solution to global warming wound.


Although this is not true in every case, stay at home moms are typically associated with wealth, and quite often are deemed "trophy wives;" at least where I am from. Many of the mothers who I now know that stay at home have grown children that they do not have to look after during the day. Many of these moms are married to doctors, lawyers, financial advisers, CEO's, professional athletes...all professions that allow for only one spouse to work, while providing quite a large cushion for "family adventures" on the side. Many stay at home moms have the luxury of being able to afford large gas guzzling automobiles, the finest cut of steak, and hundred dollar heels. They often join clubs such as Country Clubs, workout facilities, and more. Just think, though, of the power that these moms could have if they were to apply this wealth to combatting climate change. Instead of paying a monthly fee to West Hills indoor athletic club, the Beverly Hills mom could pay a monthly fee that would allow her to enjoy local foods and rock climb and bike outside, without the use of electricity.




Although it may be challenging for stay at home moms who have little kids to find time to dedicate their lives to climate change, I have many friends whose moms now say they have "nothing to do with their lives" now that their kids are in high school. These mothers could spend their days presenting at schools, attending conferences and forums, preparing healthy meals for their families and friends, and alerting the general public about the dangers of climate change. While researching "stay at home moms and climate change," I came across an article that discusses exactly that. Mothers vs. Climate Change describes the mechanisms that would allow mothers to become the next environmental activists. Because scientists and politicians have not seemed to convey the message, perhaps moms who shop, vote, care for their families, and network, may be able to do the trick. By making climate change an issue that concerns mothers and their children, we may be able to solve the problem. After all, stay at home moms quite often have a fountain of wealth and connections that may allow them to combat global warming once and for all.

My Sust House (Climate Change Game)

I was absent on class Monday evening, so I did not choose a video game to research. As I was looking through the list of available games, I noticed "My Sust House" was not chosen. I decided to play the interactive online game, and I'm glad I did! "My Sust House" is a Scottish game that allows players to create their own town, environment, and house to live in. The goal of this game is to create a house and living situation that is as economically friendly as possible. Overall, this game is very informative. Before creating your own house, you must watch a short yet detailed introduction video. For each section (environment, town, and building) a short synopsis is given on the environmental dangers and causes of many different scenarios. 

The environmental section of "My Sust House" describes the importance of location and housing projects on the environment. The player must select appropriate settings for their house based on different locations. For each decision, a cost and benefit analysis is given, as well as the environmental impacts. The building section of this game gives the user a budget and an environmental impact sustainability meter. The player must make decisions regarding which resources to use to create a house. Like the environmental section, a cost and benefit analysis of using each resource is given. In the town section of "My Sust House," the same concepts as the environmental and building sections apply, however the user must play more than just one game. To create a sustainable environment, the player has to make decisions in different aspects of the town such as retail, agriculture, and transportation. At the end of the three sections, the player is given an overall sustainability score. The user may read about how to improve their sustainable everyday methods. 

This game seems to be appropriate for a middle school audience for the concepts are not extremely complex, however the information is also not appropriate for elementary school students. A teacher could use this game as a resource in a classroom that is learning about climate change and global warming. 

If you'd like to delve into the fun, go to http://www.mysusthouse.org/game.html!