EarthPlex - Climate Platform for Teens

Why Arbor Day is so Important Today is one of the most important environmental holidays: Arbor Day. Everybody should be informed about the importance of this holiday and why trees are necessary to sustain life on Earth.  For you: We Need Trees What is Arbor Day? Arbor Day is a holiday when people are encouraged to plant trees. It's observed on the last Friday of April and has been celebrated since the 1870s . Millions of trees have been planted on Arbor Days. Why it's Important Global warming is caused when too much carbon dioxide enters the atmosphere. That causes our planet to heat. Humans and human activity increase the amount of carbon dioxide in the air. How do we combat this? Trees. Not only do trees absorb carbon dioxide; they also create oxygen which humans and animals need to breathe. Also, trees provide us with food and boost the economy . How to celebrate Planting trees is the greatest way to celebrate Arbor Day. Every tree planted has monumental impacts on our plane...

South Park's ManBearPig: Symbol of the Climate Crisis ⏱Read time: 2 minutes South Park is one of the longest-running shows of all time; they recently released the Vaccination Special, the second episode of the 24th season. South Park also created a character called ManBearPig that accurately represents how people viewed and used to view the climate crisis. Season 10 Episode 6 (April 2006) of the series is titled ManBearPig . The origin of ManBearPig In the episode, (then) former Vice President Al Gore visited South Park to warn the children of ManBearPig, a monster that would destroy the planet. The children helped Al Gore "fight" ManBearPig because they thought that the Vice President didn't have friends. To oversimplify the episode, Gore got the kids stuck in a cave because he thought he was saving the world from ManBearPig, and the episode made Gore look ridiculous. ManBearPig never made an appearance in the episode, leaving the audience to believe he didn't ex...

Sustainable Tourism in the Covid Era By Xander Smith, age 17 With the distribution of millions of vaccines throughout the world, the beginning of the end of the Covid-19 pandemic seems to have begun. Because of this, many people are starting to feel more comfortable to travel abroad again and are planning summer getaways. However, in order to make sure beloved locations are able to endure an influx of tourists, we need to remember to travel sustainably.  Sustainable tourism is the act of traveling somewhere while making little-to-no impact on the environment and local culture, and a positive impact on the local economy. This can be seen as staying in a locally-owned Airbnb and eating at locally-owned restaurants opposed to staying at a large resort owned by a big corporation. This becomes much more complex however when Covid is involved. Each country has responded to the pandemic in different ways and are currently at different stages of recovery. Thus, it is vital to only travel ...

 Review | National Geographic's Recycle Roundup Game ⏱ Read time: 2 minutes Let's take a break from the usual posts on the EarthPlex website and discuss a game... for kids. National Geographic (NatGeo) is one of the greatest sources for environmental education.  They have social media accounts showcasing Earth's beauty (be sure to follow EarthPlex on social media) , a library of documentaries on Disney Plus, and a website with articles, photos, and games. I found one of their many games, and it's called Recycle Roundup .  Description NatGeo's description of Recycle Roundup  looks like this: "Help clean up the park! Your job is to sort the stuff people throw away and put it in the proper bin. Is it recycling, compost, or trash? Get facts about climate change and tips on how you can help save the earth."  Basically, you're a monkey that has to pick up materials falling out of the sky and place them in the correct bins. Gameplay I was honestly very confu...

Meet Lily Morse, the New Executive Director of the Green Schools Campaign! EarthPlex has interviewed many members of the Green Schools Campaign (GSC), and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to learn more about Lily Morse, the new Executive Director. We discussed a range of topics including her involvement in climate organizations and being a girl in the Boy Scouts program. How did you first find out about the Green Schools Campaign? I was virtually trained as a Climate Reality Leader in July 2020, and I met Simon and a few other people who were founding members of the Green Schools Campaign. I thought it was a great cause and reached out to get involved! What is your role as the Executive Director of the Green Schools Campaign? I basically think about and help implement the big picture: How can we grow? How can we keep people involved and working towards transitioning their school? How can we keep a positive and loving team environment? I work closely with all of the GSC director...

  Our Planet  Review  ⏱Read time: 1 minute Nature documentaries are quite boring for some, but for others, they showcase Earth's natural beauty. Narrated by David Attenborough, Netflix's  Our Planet is arguably the greatest nature docuseries of all time. The series consists of eight episodes that take place in different biomes. One episode takes place in the high seas, and another takes place in the jungle. Review My biggest complaint is that my TV is too small to capture the beauty of the cinematography. I am sure that Our Planet  would look crisp on a 100 inch TV, but I am unable to test that out. Every episode of the series tells stories about the plants and animals that inhabit Earth. The show is also action-packed, as it showcases animals hunting for food (which is bolstered by intense music and David Attenborough's lovely narration). Thoughts I highly recommend watching Our Planet if you like nature and have a Netflix subscription. The 2019 series effect...

 Reacting to Instagram Posts from Youth For Our Planet ⏱ Read time: 1-2 minutes Youth For Our Planet describes itself as " the global youth movement calling for world leaders to take ambitious and urgent action on the oceans, biodiversity, the climate and sustainable development."  EarthPlex is going to provide commentary on some of their posts. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Youth For Our Planet (@youthfor_ourplanet) If you enjoy nature documentaries, watch the ones in this post. Additionally, if you would like to write a review of a film related to nature or the environment, check out how to submit a post to EarthPlex! View this post on Instagram A post shared by Youth For Our Planet (@youthfor_ourplanet) Forests are an essential part of life on Earth. According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) , "Forests are home to 80% of the world’s terrestrial biodiversity." Damaging forest ecosystems means damaging...

The Problem With Eating Fish  ⏱ Read time: 4 minutes Netflix recently released an original documentary called Seaspiracy  that exposes the issues occurring in the world's oceans. If you want to post a review of Seaspiracy or another film related to the environment, visit our "Submit a Post"  page for details about creating EarthPlex posts.  Months ago, I declared that I would (for the most part) stop eating red meat , and I have spent the past 9 months eating very little red meat and a lot more fish. Last August, I labeled fish "The Miracle Meat for the Environment,"  but it's necessary to explore the environmental downsides of eating more fish.  Overfishing As demand for seafood increases, more and more fish need to be taken from rivers and oceans. Because we fish at a rate faster than fish can reproduce, we endanger the populations of multiple aquatic species.  Overfishing doesn't just affect fish. Species that hunt fish have declined in population f...

Instagram Accounts Young Environmentalists Must Follow Instagram is one of the most popular forms of social media among Gen Z. There are a plethora of accounts that cover environmental justice, and we're going to highlight just a few of them. EarthPlex - (@earthplexmedia) Of course, we must mention our own Instagram account! We post on Instagram each time we release new content on our website, so be sure to follow! Also, by following us on Instagram, you get early access to our upcoming posts! Altruists (@altruistslb) Altruists empowers Gen Z to make social change in their communities! KeepEarth (@keepearthorg) KeepEarth posts extremely useful content about world issues. Their posts maintain a consistent and attractive appearance.  Youth v. Oil (@youthv.oil) Youth v. Oil is "fighting against the oil industry and for climate justice!" YOUTH.IFY (@youth.ify) YOUTH.IFY describes itself as "a global youth-led platform dedicated to connecting Gen Z environmentalists for c...