"Who are the Change the
World Kids?
The Change the World Kids is an energetic group of approximately TWO DOZEN
students in middle and high school dedicated to making the world a better
place. Formed five years ago (1998), it is NOW a non-profit organization
operating totally with volunteer labor.
Thus far, these young adults have provided
many hours of volunteer service, locally and globally. Some of their
projects have included: yard and garden maintenance, creating a ten foot
high garden fence for deer protection made of natural materials, rebuilding
a dam to re-establish a goose and duck pond, assisting with numerous spring
cleaning housekeeping chores in the Woodstock, VT and Lebanon, NH areas,
providing meals for those in extraordinary circumstances, serving at
community dinners, offering assistance for The Haven in White River Junction
and the Listen Center in Lebanon, NH, supporting Central and South American
women artisans through fair trade arrangements, and helping to preserve
critical rainforest habitat in Costa Rica.
They also designed and received grants for a project called 'Save Energy for
Free!' Their awareness of the important role that energy plays in the
current and future world inspired their desire to educate people about the
importance of using renewable resources whenever possible. The result was a
project that involved the construction of clotheslines for free to minimize
the use of clothes dryers during the fair weather months and included
tracking the amount of energy conserved. They focused on encouraging sound
energy conservation practices now, to improve the world for future
generations."
Currently they have expanded their conservation goals by
creating "Bosque Para Siempre," or the "Forever Forest," an international
movement that will educate children all over the globe about
critical migratory corridors in tropical forests, as well as involve them in
fundraising to permanently conserve such a corridor in Montverde, Costa Rica
that is highly at risk. Without this habitat, many species in the rain forest,
such as the three wattled bellbird, will not survive.
For information on how to form a similar Change the World Kids group in
Arizona, contact the mentor of the Change the World Kids:
Phyllis Arata-Meyers <Phyllis.Arata-Meyers@valley.net>
