Happy Earth Day!!

Did you know that 40 years ago Americans took to the streets in what became the 1st ever Earth Day? Those 20 million citizens protested for the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act, both of which still remain the basis of environmental policy in our country. 

Ok, so Earth Day was actually yesterday, and I hope you all took a moment to appreciate this incredible planet. But as Mozer* so cooly suggests, "the importance of an event or activity is that it happens, not the timing or the quality." Well, World Camp's activity in celebration of the earth will continue ALL summer long, and you get to join us! (Though we'll focus on the quality of it as well.) 

Above: Trees for planting initatives at WC schools in India. Photo by: Katy Lackey

 Below: Indian child at WC workshop with her tree gift   Photo by: Katy Lackey

You hear us talk about HIV quite a bit, but half our curriculum is actually dedicated to environmental issues-deforestation, alternative fuel sources, climate change, and sanitation. We focus on these issues because of where we work and  the inextricable link between the health of ourselves and our planet. In Malawi 90% of the population relies on trees as resources for cooking and building, yet the past 10 years has seen over 30% of the forests disappear. A simple border jump into Zambia or Tanzania is a harsh reminder of how lush Malawi used to be. India is the 4th largest contributor to global warming, and faces severe droughts, floods, and river pollution.
Sure, we'll discuss environmental degradation. And we'll build mock solar ovens and wind turbines. But we're not just talking about the environment. This year, World Camp will plant trees at 22 schools in India and Malawi. We hope to be able to gift a tree to each of the 2,500 kids that will attend our camps.

If you're interested helping out, donate here (any amount helps! trees cost about $1 each). Just specify "Tree Planting Initiative" for the donation purpose.

Left: Tree planting initiative with WC camp participants in Ahmedabad, India Photo by: Katy Lackey

* "The western preoccupation with time as an exact, linear unit of measurement with a future dimension is generally foreign to traditional African cultures. This seems to cause no end of anxiety for westerners. In Africa, the importance of an event or activity is that it happens, not the timing or the quality. In fact I think that the essential difference between western and African culture is that Africans are concerned with the form of life and westerners dwell on the content." 
-David Mozer in Bicycling in Africa, The Places In Between. 

Right: Teachers in Malawi act out the effects of deforestation at a WC school presentation   Photo by: Katy Lackey

Below: WC volunteers and school staff with their mock solar oven. Yes, it did heat up the water! Photo by: Jaren Folden