Environmental education in Rhode Island schools is proving to be an effective way of inspiring stewardship in young people, as seen through the efforts of schoolyard green spaces and gardens, and adding climate change in the curriculum. However, there are still boundaries being faced by those trying to provide access to environmental education to all […]
The World Is Not Their Oyster Right NowWith restaurants shuttered because of the COVID-19 crisis, Rhode Island’s oyster farmers are facing market collapse. “We sell 98% of our oysters to restaurants in Rhode Island and New York, and when they closed, our sales dropped by 98%. That was certainly eye-opening,” said Jules Opton-Himmel, co-founder and […]
Whatever Happened to the Climate Crisis?Back in early February — can you remember that far back? — the climate crisis was drawing public (and mainstream media) attention, and environmental activists were planning for the 50th Earth Day celebration scheduled for April 22. Then came COVID-19, and the global pandemic took up all the oxygen in […]
Medical Waste Cooked 24/7 in West Warwick A proposed medical-waste-to-energy processing facility in West Warwick would operate around the clock, heating human blood, pathological waste and syringes to 1,652 degrees Fahrenheit (using a process called pyrolysis) to generate electricity. The net power generated would be sold to the regional power grid. Blood-powered Netflix, anyone? The […]
These days it is hard to avoid thinking about the COVID-19 outbreak. I am mostly working on climate issues, and I am sure there are conspiracy theories about how they are linked. Conspiracies aside, there is one way that the virus and our climate are definitely linked, and that is through deforestation. Let me explain. […]
At first, MJ Robinson may seem an unlikely choice as community gardener in residence for the City of Providence Parks Department, a position created by the city to determine how best to serve the city gardens. MJ found the position through sheer chance while looking over a city job board for opportunities for a friend. […]
Almond milk is the latest food product to come under scrutiny as a destroyer of the environment and killer of honeybees. But the reality is that almond milk is just one of many manmade food crises decaying the planet’s ecology and eradicating populations of wild pollinators across the globe. The scrutiny surrounding almond milk began […]
Educational experiences that create awareness and connections between personal actions and the natural world are helping kids to develop perception and values regarding their environment. Schoolyard Habitats, the program that provides grants to create green spaces on school grounds, shows that when kids have informative experiences within the natural world, they begin to understand their own connection to nature. However, these experiences infrequently happen organically as kids stay […]
Imagine a February without a snowfall. And then imagine a January without any significant snowstorms. Finally, take your mind back to December 1, the date when the last snow of any note fell in our backyard. During that period, the average temperature was 49.6F (historically, the average temperature in December-February is 40F), with an unseasonably […]
Note: This continues our series on environmental education. For part one in the series, go to motifri.com/a-new-generation-of-environmentalists As I begin to uncover what encourages environmental stewardship in young people, my first thought turns to one question: What’s being incorporated into education that inspires a sustainable mindset toward nature? The importance of this became clear to […]