I Am Joining The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup

Have you ever heard of the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup (GCSC)? I hadn't, until last year. It's pretty much what you would expect from the title. People join together to cleanup shores around lakes and rivers and the oceans, all across Canada, for a few weeks in September. After reading about it, I thought it would be a great thing to participate in. It would be good for me and my family, good for my community, and especially good for the environment in this wonderful and beautiful, coastal city I live in, called Vancouver. I thought, wouldn't this be a great lesson to teach my children? It would help me to teach them about giving back to mother nature, the way that she gives to us everyday. I always tell them about how lucky we are to live in such a beautiful place, with mountains and the ocean and so much to do outdoors. But isn't it also great to teach them how to take care of this place and not to take it for granted?

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 I was really stoked to do it last year, but then life stepped in and changed my plans. Not to make excuses, really it was just that a bunch of other things came up. Two birthday parties and an Aunt that wanted to see the kids on the particular day we signed up for. It ended up being a crazy day of driving all over and visiting and kiddie party madness, but it was a great day. I was really bummed that we didn't get to do the cleanup though, especially because I was telling everyone that we were doing it and I was asking friends if they wanted to participate too. So I made a promise to myself that we would do it next year.

And next year is here. I just signed up today. I am going to do it right this year. I was even contemplating being a site coordinator and taking on a whole area to organize by myself. But I decided to be realistic and just participate this year and see what it's like. If it's something I think I can handle on my own, then maybe I can be a coordinator next year.

Doing this kind of thing is important to me. I took an Environmental Studies program in college and it was really eye opening. I learned so many things in those two years. One thing that really shook me up was seeing a picture of a lake that was turned into a dumping ground for electronics. People would come there to find parts to sell, or scrounge for copper or other metals in the stuff that was dumped there. It was so filled with junk that it didn't even look like a lake anymore, it looked like a garbage dump, but it was just filled with electronics. I was looking on the internet to see if I could find that same picture (which I'm sure is really old, I saw it at school, about nine years ago), and I couldn't. But I did find some other horrible pictures. Like this...

The Citarum River in Indonesia

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And this...

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I really don't want the beautiful place, that my family and I call home, to end up like these places. So I am doing my part to help. If you feel inspired too, and you live in Canada and want to join, click here to find a cleanup site in your area. If you don't live in Canada, but want to help out where you live, here are some other shoreline cleanup programs:

• International Coastal Cleanup
• California Coastal Cleanup
• Clean up Australia!
• Project Aware
• The Daily Ocean

This list is from the Other Resources page on the GCSC website, which has tons of useful info if you want to know more.


"You must be the change you wish to see in the world." - M. Gandhi

Happy Earth Day, And Thank You David Suzuki!

Here is a wonderful message from my favorite Earth activist, David Suzuki. I remember seeing him speak when I was a teenager. Our school's Environmental Club went on a field trip to Vancouver for an environmental conference. It was so great to leave my small little town and go on an outing to the big city. I was really moved hearing him talk about environmental issues and things that we could do to help our planet. And even though that was probably about twenty years ago, and I don't really remember it that well, I was left with a lasting impression of who he was and how I could be a part of something bigger. He inspired me to get involved and really care about what is going on around me. At the time, I didn't know that I would later go on to complete the Environment Studies Program in college and become passionate about environmental issues. I remember thinking that it was just going to be a fun day out, with my school. I didn't realize how hearing him speak would spark a whole lifestyle change and influence me to be a better person, but he did and I am so grateful. I don't know if you've ever seen his show, "The Nature of Things," but every time I watch it I am reminded of how knowledgeable he is and how much he's done to change our world for the better. If there weren't people like him around to inspire us, then I think the planet would be in an even worse state, than it is right now. So thank you, David Suzuki, for everything you've done for this precious planet we live on, and may many more people heed your brilliant words and implement the change we need to save our Earth.

Tony The Tiger Update

Last month I did a post on Tony, a Siberian/Bengal tiger held in captivity at a Louisiana truck stop. Tony's story is sad, he's been locked in a cage with no place to run or swim, and he's been breathing in toxic truck exhaust fumes and hearing loud diesel engine noise for ten years. He's been on display as roadside attraction, to draw people to his owner's Tiger Truck Stop store and restaurant.  Many people have been fighting for years to have Tony moved to the Big Cat Rescue in Tampa, Florida, but his owner, Michael Sandlin, refuses to give him up. He even claims on his website that "unscrupulous "activists" from out of state are trying to steal Tony away from the only home he has known. Their real intention is to put him on display themselves, far away from the people that hand raised him." Just because the place that Tony has been living in for the past ten years is his home, doesn't mean that he belongs there. Tony could have a much better home at the Big Cat Rescue. He would have lots of room to run and play and swim and would have a much better quality of life.

Some good news regarding Tony has just come to light. Yesterday the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) filed a law suit against the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) for giving Michael Sandlin the permit to exhibit Tony. They have also started two petitions to have Sanlin's permit, to keep Tony, revoked. One is through the ALDF but is for US citizens only and the other is through Change.org and can be signed by anyone. Please sign one or, if you live in the US, both petitions and help free Tony from his horrible life of exploitation and abuse. Click here for the ALDF petition, and here for the Change.org petition. If we all stand together and fight for him, maybe we can help Tony have a better life.

For more information about Tony visit the Free Tony Tiger website and the Animal Legal Defense Fund website.

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Help Free Tony The Tiger

Tony the tiger is a Siberian/Bengal tiger held in captivity, for ten years, by a cruel owner and showed on display at Louisiana truck stop. This is such a sad story. People have been fighting for years to have this tiger moved to the Big Cat Rescue, a big cat sanctuary, in Tampa, Florida. The owner has also fought hard, to keep his tiger living in horrible conditions and to keep making money off of him. The tiger's main living area is an outdoor concrete cage, visible to the public and people driving by on the freeway, where he is breathing in toxic car fumes and surrounded by loud traffic noise. He has no room to run or swim and leads a stressful, unhappy life. The poor creature is being exploited by it's owner, Michael Sandlin, as a roadside attraction for people to come and shop at his truck stop. It's sickening the way this beautiful animal is being treated, like as if he is a commodity to be capitalized on and not a living creature that needs to be protected and cared for properly. Tigers need space and freedom to roam. It is cruel and abusive to keep this magnificent animal locked up in a small cage. Watch this video by Big Cat Rescue. For more information visit Free Tony the Tiger.

On Dec. 14, 2010 Michael Sandlin's yearly permit to keep Tony was yet again approved by the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. But the fight is not over. To find ways to help, click here.

To do my part I am going to send a letter to Avaaz to ask for their help in petitioning the American government to free Tony. They are an organization that gets millions of people all over the world, to sign petitions for important causes. Let's hope we can get their help on this one too.

*Correction I have just sent this letter to Avaaz:

"To whom it may concern,

I am writing on behalf of Tony, a Siberian/Bengal tiger, held in captivity at a truck stop in Louisiana for the past 10 years. His living conditions are deplorable and he is inhumanely being exploited by his owner as an exhibit to make money. He is on public display, in a small concrete cage, beside a freeway where he breathes in toxic truck exhaust and hears loud traffic noise 24/7. He needs your help to raise awareness and have a petition made to fight for him. The Big Cat Rescue in Tampa Florida has offered to take him and provide him with a good home where he can run and live in proper living conditions and be treated with the respect he deserves. But his owner refuses to do the right thing. For more information about his plight visit http://freetonythetiger.wordpress.com/tonys-story/ . Also I have just posted on my blog about this and have said that I am going to ask for your help in this matter http://enviromommy.blogspot.com/ . I have signed many of your petitions and I believe that you are the one organization that can really help Tony, because thus far nothing anyone else has done has worked. This needs a global campaign. Please help."

Let's hope it works!

Will You Participate In Earth Hour?

Join the cause to fight climate change. Last year over a billion people, in 128 countries, around the world took part and it was the largest voluntary action ever witnessed. This year lets make it even bigger. On Saturday March 26 at 8:30pm (your local time) turn off your lights for one hour. Have a nice candle lit dinner or play board games or tell stories or play hide and go seek with your kids. There are lots of fun things to do in the dark. Participate in Earth Hour and show your support for our planet. Let your voice be heard, stand up and take action on climate change.

For more information visit the WWF Earth Hour website.

Libya: Stop the Crackdown, Sign This Petition

In Libya, Colonel Qaddafi's armed forces are using machine guns and fighter jets against pro-democracy protesters -- hundreds have already been killed and, without immediate international action, the situation could spiral into a national bloodbath.

Click here to help stop the crackdown in Libya!

I've just sent a message calling on the UN and the EU to take immediate steps against Libya's brutal regime to stop the crackdown on protesters. Join me!

Chocolate production and child slave labour, yes it is happening.

I watched this on CBC a few months ago, coincidentally right after baking a whole shwack of chocolate Christmas treats. It made me never want to eat chocolate again. How can this be happening and barely anyone knows about it. I really want to post things that people can do something about, but sometimes there has to be awareness about the problem before anything can even happen to make things better.  

Chocolate The Bitter Truth 

Watch the whole documentary here:

http://www.cbc.ca/documentaries/passionateeyeshowcase/video.html?ID=1695580327