The Life of a Crazy Volunteer: GWF Day 2

Day two of the GWF was focused on MDG7 (Environmental Sustainability) and we spent the day out and about at the Brookfield Zoo. The zoo is committed to manyenvironmentally friendly projects and the girls learned a lot about the Earth's resources and the jeopardy that they are in.

We started the day with introductions...and dolphins!

We didn't see any reular ol' dolphin show either. We were treated to something most zoo guests don't get to see - dolphin training! The trainers showed us the husbandry exercises they do with the animals - training them to lie still for a vet, present their fins for a blood draw, etc. For someone who has been fascinated by dolphins their whole life it was definitely a great way to start the day (especially a day that began at 6am!!).

After we finished with the dolphins, the girls and chaperones split into three different (large) groups and rotated through the 3 presentations of the day. The first session for my group was on climate change. The girls viewed a powerpoint presentation about the melting of the polar ice cars, the destruction of the ozone layer, and basically how we are ruining our planet!! The second session was on water, and how it is not an endless resource like people seem to think it is. The girls did an activity where they had to divide up a 5 gallon bucket of water until they found the amount representative of all the drinkable water available on Earth. Needless to say the girls, and some adults, were shocked to find out only a few drops from that huge bucket would equal the drinkable water...something to think about next time to leave the water running while brushing your teeth!

After some free time and lunch we were off to our third and final session where we learned about deforestation. During this session we mostly learned about the push toward using sustainable palm oil. Palm oil is an ingredient in many items we use each day, but unfortunately most companies don't want to spend the money to use sustainable means of harvesting the oil. As a result forests are being cut down and many animals are losing their homes - especially the orangutans. The Forest Stewardship Council is committed to educating people and companies about the dangers of non-sustainable palm oil. I'm proud to say that after seeing this presentation, McKenna was so moved that she decided to make this her forcus for her Take Action project! She is currently (I hope) working on contacting companies explaining to them the benefits of switching to sustainable palm oil. McKenna will also be creating a presentation which can be shown to companies or to fellow scouts so that they can be educated on the crisis.

Then the girls had some free time at the zoo with their chaperones...