Take action (and have some fun, too)!
Simple, everyday actions make a big difference. Whether you do something for the community like shopping locally, something for the environment like avoiding plastic bags, or something for you, like learning to paint, sing, or speak Spanish, you CAN change the world! Here’s how.
Featured Action
Bake something for a friend
Next time you need to buy a friend a present, don’t.
Make them one instead.
Gingerbread Men
1/2 cup softened butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
2 cups plain flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
Preheat oven to 350º F.
Cream together butter and sugar.
Beat in the egg and syrup.
Sift in the dry ingredients and mix.
Chill the dough before rolling onto a lightly floured board,
to a 1/8 inch thickness.
Cut into shapes, using a gingerbread cutter.
Bake on a lightly greased tray for 8 – 10 minutes.
Give away immediately.
Featured Action
Recycle your books
They dreamed up a scheme in Amsterdam a few years ago, where white bicycles were provided free. And the idea was that – after you’d finished your ride – you’d leave the bike in the street for someone else to use free.
And if that isn’t recycling, we don’t know what is.
But unfortunately this idea flopped, because they failed to take into account two things:
One, the fact that criminals exist. And two, the fact that colored paint exists.
But the idea was fantastically optimistic and deserved to
succeed.
A better version of this might be to ask people to recycle their books. Give them to a thrift store, your local library, or just leave them lying on a park bench.
Featured Action
Save the world while brushing your teeth
Most people leave the faucet running while brushing their teeth. This wastes more than 2 gallons a minute!
This means your street alone could fill an Olympic sized
swimming pool each year.
This wastes huge amounts of water and is a bit stupid – it’s like having the toilet flush the whole time you’re on it.
So why not turn off the faucet while you brush your teeth?
(We bet this is one of the actions you don’t forget from the book. For some reason, it seems to strike a chord with
everyone.)
Featured Action
Use a mug not a disposable cup
Every year Americans throw away an estimated 25 billion Styrofoam cups, which is enough to circle Earth about 400 times.
Additionally, 410,000 paper cups are used every 15 minutes in the United States for hot beverages.
Where? Where do they all come from? Is there some mad genius breeding them in underground bunkers? Do they sneak out at night and eat our leftovers?
I could have sworn I saw two of them whispering to each other
in the garbage can.
But why not just put your coffee into a mug, not a Styrofoam or paper cup? It’ll taste better, and you’ll be doing your part for the planet.
I refuse to walk by someone in need on the street- what if we all did the same?
Donate my old glasses to be recycled.
[...] the site says: “Take action (and have some fun, too)! Simple, everyday actions make a big difference. Whether you do something [...]
I’ve put up instructions for fabric grocery bags made out of repurposed sheets as well as produce bags made from old sheer curtains, which is green on two levels.
The bags are so cute that they are a real conversation starter.
I’ll be with Chante tomorrow working hard and hopefully playing hard too! I can’t stop smiling
I’m going to volunteer at Bret Harte Elementary school on Monday June 22nd. I’ll be working with KaBoom to help build a playground for Bret Harte’s students.
I’m going to attend the National Conference on Volunteering and Service, where Change the World author Eugenie Harvey and Michelle Obama will speak!!