| SAVE THE DATE:
Wild and Scenic Film Festival!
"e" inc. is once again proud to present The Wild & Scenic Environmental Film Festival.
March 20th, 2010 @ The Benjamin Franklin Institute!
(Located in Boston's South End)
For more details check our website @
To checkout WSFF website click here |
|
Great Gr"e""e"n
Ideas Contest!
Have
some fabulous tips for staying green in our busy world? Would you like
to win 2 tickets to the Wild & Scenic Film Festival?
Submit your tips/contact information for this month's theme to administrator@e-action.us
The Great Gr"e"e"n Contest winner will receive 2 tickets to:
The Wild & Scenic Environmental Film Festival!
Along with publication of their name and tip in our next newsletter!
This Month's Theme:
Green cleaning.
How do you keep toxic cleaners out of your household?
|
|
"e" inc. wishes to extend a warm welcome our new Board Chair
Annis Gill-Miller
 Ms. Gill-Miller is the Boston Area Sales Manager, Vice President for Salem Five Bank. She has been a member of "e" inc's
board of directors since February 2009 and was named Chairperson in
September 2009. Ms. Gill-Miller brings over 20 years of business savvy,
a focused work ethic, and a warm smile to the position of Board Chair.
"I
have been in retail banking for more than twenty years and my primary
goal as Chairperson will be to infuse my passion around corporate
community involvement and my collaborative, business minded,
professional work ethic/style into the "e" inc. board. I look forward
to all the great things we will accomplish!"
-Annis Gill-Miller
|
SAVE THE DATE:
Barnes and Nobel Bookfair!
Save all your upcoming book purchases for December 10th, and help support "e" inc!
Come show your support for "e" inc at our Barnes and
Nobel December 10th Bookfair.
5% of all bookfair purchases made on December 10th at the Prudential Barnes and Nobel will go to support "e" inc's work.
You
must mention the Bookfair and "e" inc. for our organization to receive
the 5% donation. Stop by our table at the bookfair to say
hello!
| |
|
|
The "e" Update
Newsletter
Fall 2009 |
Dear Jerry,
Welcome to "e" inc's Fall update! We hope you enjoy reading about our recent activities. We invite you to learn more about us at www.e-action.us .
|
A Letter From Dr. Ricky S. Stern, "e" inc. Executive Director
As the leaves outside are changing their colors and signaling the quietude to come, so too, the young people who take part in "e" inc.'s
projects and programs are buckling down. In sites around the city,
children are learning to grapple with new science ideas and the
responsibilities that this knowledge brings.
Here at our office, the "e" inc. staff is busy organizing lessons for new topics, testing experiments, setting up field trips for the Teen Green Teams, and working on plans for our new program: The "e" inc. Challenge!
"e" inc.
is in its sixth year of bringing hands-on residency programs to Boston
communities. To achieve our goal of linking science with
civics, we have created a model that engages our students as
investigators and links their newfound excitement to skills that make a
difference.
We have pressed to answer two questions: "Does
gaining an understanding of how something behaves help you to care
about it?" and "Can anyone learn to initiate change and then sustain
it?" We can now say that the answer is "Yes." However,
getting to that 'Yes' is challenging.
To succeed, we have
had to learn about questions of motivation, behavior systems, and how
to support afterschool staff. It has required us to create a new
sort of science experience. We have learned how to build a vision
from the bottom up.
We have held fast to our
determination to bring science literacy to everyone and have considered
and refined these ideas since our inception. From this, we have
created a set of themes and structures that inspire children and teens
in novel ways.
Last June, we had a gymnasium filled with "Planet
Protectors"--children gathered together from 11 afterschool sites who
had each completed 12-sessions of science and 28 separate action
projects ranging from: lowering electric use, buying rainforest land in
Costa Rica, teaching adults about water conservation, and sending
letters to our mayor asking him to place cans near storm drains so we
could protect whales.
For the 09-10 academic year we are focusing on how to sustain action and go green
from the bottom up. We already know that action in a community
site or school begins with enlisting every partner in a unified
vision. Our job is to involve the adults, coax and inspire the
children, and help all of them create actions that will benefit the
planet.
To further this process, we are about to launch The "e" inc. Challenge,
a new project to get children and caregivers to dig deeper as
scientists and conservationists. Now students and teachers can learn
and 'do' together. "e" inc.
is asking them to sit on the same side of the table and work for a
sustainable future. Stay tuned for updates as we roll out The "e" inc. Challenge!
-Dr. Ricky Stern
|
|
Wrapping up summer - Although the leaves may be falling, the success of "e" inc.'s
summer programs are still on our minds. This summer we challenged
students to explore the Urban Wilds, dive into the Ocean, and plant
sustainable Gardens.
Exploring the City - Urban Wilds!
The sound of wind rustling through the trees, the crisp crunch of leaves, the gurgle and squish of mud underfoot.
When is the last time you experienced a day in the woods?
For
many, living in an urban environment means not only the absence
of green space, but a loss of connection to the natural
world. This summer, "e" inc. began a new program to allow urban youth to explore and learn about these mysteries. "e" inc.'s Exploring The Urban Wilds program brought urban youth from across Boston to the Allendale Woods -- an Urban Wild in Jamaica Plain.
A group of students begin their journey into the forest.
On each trip through the Allendale Woods, "e" inc.
Education Coordinator, Chamberlain Segrest, focused on inspiring
students to become 'Planet Protectors' by teaching them about forest
habitat through an experiential and inquiry based adventure. Students
observed animals by a pond, ran through the woods looking for creatures
on a scavenger hunt, investigated decomposing trees and compared them
to soil nearby. Through these games, and lessons students
discovered a new, fascinating wild and wonderful world.
Student's investigating one of their scavenger hunt discoveries.
Over
18 urban day camps, serving 200 children, were able to experience this
Urban Wild for the first time. This program was presented free of
charge, through a grant from Mt. Washington Bank, and The Springhouse
Elderly Assisted Living Center's donation of an indoor teaching space.
Giving
students opportunities such as these to explore and become connected to
the natural world around them, is one of the many ways "e" inc. is seeking to build dynamic environmental citizens.
|
The Teen Green Teams Are back!
Entering its second year the Teen Green Teams
program is ready to take off with help from the Massachusetts
Cultural Council YouthReach Grant and The New England Environmental
Grassroots Fund, Boston Initiative Grant. The Teen Green Teams program
strives to teach and inspire teens to take initiative, share ideas,
problem solve, teach others, and take positive action. Our Teen Green
Teams will take these newly acquired skills into the community for
their environmental action projects and future green careers. "e" inc.
is excited to have the opportunity to offer a program for teens that
challenges students to reevaluate both their impact on the environment
and their power to cause positive changes in their communities. We
can't wait to see these Green Teens in Action!
  |
"e" inc. is in full Swing!
We
are proud to bring back our Teen Green Teams, and Planet Protectors
programs, as well as, our Global Warming Workshop. We are now serving
sites in Boston, Somerville, and Cambridge.For more information about our organization visit us at www.e-action.us
| |
|
