Roy Elal
Mrs. Medenica
Environmental Systems and Societies
March 17, 2015
Some of Earth's greatest biological treasures are disappearing, just as we start to gain their true value. Rain forests once covered 14% of the Earth's land surface -- while in the present day they cover a mere 6%, and experts estimate that the last remaining rain forests could be extinct in under 40 years from today. In the past years, many of the rain forest in Africa and Asia have been destroyed. Large areas in which the rain forests reside are being destroyed, in fact, rain forests are currently being destroyed at double the rate of all earlier evaluations. Unfortunately, this means that there is a very high rate of destruction, as the wildlife depending on the forest dies alongside them, therefore killing off all the biotic factors that come in to play with each of the rain forests.
People don't have to have all ecocentric worldviews in order to care or see a problem in the environment, and therefore most people can read this and feel something -- whether sympathy for the rain forests, or compassion and even pride for a girl called Janine Licare, this story is something special. After exploring different news articles and ecologically and environmentally-related events that had occurred, I found one determined teenager from Costa Rica who has tried to change the world. She believed that the smallest thing she can do for her environment will help, and maybe one day even grow out and really have made a change, instead of doing nothing like most people because they are too scared. Her name is Janine Licare and she was only nine years old when she decided to take action. She was worried, because the rain forests around her home in Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica were disappearing. The animals and the bird were disappearing too, and for a nine year old that knows nothing about the world and how things work -- she became worried and confused. What Janine went on to do together with a friend, was that she started a campaign to protect her local environment. They called it “Kids Saving the Rain forest.” This organization is one that was started 15 years ago and lives on until today, expanding in size and continuing to help day by day. The aims of KSTR are to teach children about the rain forest and to help the animals that live there, especially the Moko Titi monkey. Janine and the KSTR have achieved substantial amounts of things, making a true impact. They have raised over $50,000, planted over 4,800 trees, found over 250 volunteers to work with her during the whole project, saved many injured animals, started a variety of different projects, including ‘adopt-a-tree’ which has you pay for them to go and plant a tree in your name in the rain forest in order to help for its growth, and most majorly, Janine and the KSTR work with many different schoolchildren around the world, and have developed an environmental library and research center. Janine has an amazing story, giving her all to protect the environment in which she lives in really from the beginning of her life. Janine has appeared in several magazines, and she has appeared on National Geographic to promote her projects and talk about how other people can help.
She has also developed a website: www.kidssavingtherainforest.org , I would suggest for anyone who cares to at least have a look -- just to see what this is all about.
Looking upon Janine's life achievements, which were all out of her own personal interest, time, planning and of course, making the action, is something inspiring. This shows that anyone, with the right mindset, ambition and patience, can make a difference -- even as a 9 year old American girl living in Costa Rica. So if there is something that you care about -- go for it, and when it comes to the environment and the rain forests, you will definitely have the support of Janine Licare! :-)
"It is very important that we save the rainforest. If the rainforest disappears, then so will our planet." Janine Licare
Janine in the forest near her home Mono Titi monkey, Costa Rica
Bibliography:
"Costa Rica: Kids Saving The Rainforest." BBC News. BBC, n.d. Web. 15 Mar. 2015.
Janine Licare in the Rainforest. Digital image. Wylandfoundation.org. WY Land Foundation, n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2015.
Mono Tito Monkey. Digital image. Taringa.net. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2015.
No comments:
Post a Comment