G8 Encouraging kids to connect

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One of the things that was wonderful and a bit surprising, was the way that the community of Huntsville, and the activist community encouraged and facilitated participating and inclusion of kids into the G8 experience, and not only through displays like the SGI Culture of Peace display. There was a young man encouraging community drumming at the water front, activist art which people were invited to sign, community concerts, even clowns doing a bit of street protest theatre, bubble machines and sidewalk chalk.

My kids may remember some of the details of the protests we saw, but I am almost sure they will remember drumming in community as one way to be heard, or talking about how art can be more than just one person's expression, or listening to the community concert on the theme of water.

Global Village Voice

Education, Activism and Resources for a Better World

Welcome to The Global Village Voice, where we’re bridging the worlds of education and activism – bringing together visionaries from the worlds of alternative education, humane education, homeschooling, peace, justice, diversity, sustainability, human rights, psychology, spirituality, indigenous issues, the arts, and life in general – to share information, inspiration, and thoughtful reflection.

So often the realms of education, activism, psychology, spirituality, etc. don’t have a lot to say to each other. We want this site to be a place that unites people from different worlds, a place for community-building, sharing of resources, and respectful exchange of ideas.

Book drive for literacy programs

A few weeks ago I was talking to our contact at the food warehouse where we volunteer to pack food boxes. There was mention of some items needed for First Nations communities in northern Canada and books was one of the items. I got thinking - it was time for spring cleaning and the homeschool group had a book sale coming up. Perhaps we could funnel our no longer needed books towards this organization who would provide books to 12 different communities to support literacy, enrichment and intervention programs.

And so on Friday our co-op friends unloaded boxes of books and sorted them into categories and then again into piles for each community.  Some of us worked on books, and some of us worked packing boxes. And at the end the kids enjoyed more popsicles and listened to stories about how their work helps lots of different communities. 

The more time we spend with this organization, the more opportunities we find for ways to help.  There are plans in the works for other projects as well - handmade dolls to send up for Christmas gifts, collecting our soccer balls and shirts at the end of our season to support soccer programs, more box packing, and more book drives.

First Costa Rica...then the world

Wednesday morning was our homeschool groups third annual World Expo. Each family chooses a country and puts together a display to educate our friends about the geography, history and culture of our destination. This year we used photos from last summer's trip to the Cleveland Botanical Gardens Costa Rica biome. The kids made a plasticine rain forest diorama. We served hearts of palm and pineapple (which really came from Costa Rica.)  After we set up in our continents with our food and artifacts and display boards, the kids all received their passports and we spent the morning touring the world.

We chose to do Costa Rica this year, which, as it turns out, is a fascinating country. Some of the things we found most interesting:
25% of the country's land is set aside as environmentally protected space.
5% of the world's biodiversity exists in this space that represents only 0.1% of the earth's land.  There is a 50,000 acre Children's Rain Forest Preserve which was established when Swedish children decided in 1987 to raise money to save the rain forest. The effort has grown and is still funded by donations from children around the world.
Costa Rica is a peaceful nation with no army (as written in their constitution) and it is home to the only United Nations university - which is called the University of Peace.
Costa Ricans just elected their first female President who was sworn in this week (how timely for our project).

I love this opportunity for my kids to study a country in depth and then talk with their friends about what they have learned - giving them a taste of world travel without leaving home.

Doors Open

Every year our city runs a Doors Open program when interesting buildings open their doors to the public. In the past we have toured a number of churches and houses of worship as well as spaces we wouldn't always have access to.  This year we managed a stop in at the Mosque, which was fascinating. A number of members of the Mosque gave presentations to visitors about the space and about their religion. We were invited to watch midday prayers and after could ask questions about what we saw. The mosque also provided snacks (very yummy samosas) as well as various samples of the Qur'an and other information about Islam that we were welcome to take home.

The oil spill - the tipping point

One cannot be deeply responsive to the world without being saddened very often.
~ Erich Fromm

Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world's grief. Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly, now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.
~ Talmud (attributed)



There have been horrific images of the BP Gulf oil spill on TV and in the papers.
And yet I have not looked at them.
I just can't.
I cannot bring myself to be informed on this issue, to figure out how to talk to my kids about it, to find a way to do something meaningful in the face of this crisis.
I am sure that the damage is astounding, the figures staggering, the prognosis bleak.  And yet I doubt I would be surprised by it.

I am not one to stick my head in the sand. Usually.
But this time I just can't. I know the images will paralyze me. It will be my tipping point.
We created this spill with our demand for more and more oil. We are responsible.
I have decided that instead of facing this one head on, I will redouble my efforts to do what I can here. To drive less and bike or walk more. To reduce our use of plastics and eliminate disposables as much as we possibly can. To buy less, and to choose local and used over new and well travelled. To continue our efforts to make our home more energy efficient.  To spend, save and give ethically.

The work I can do. The images, details, and powerlessness....I just can't.

Talking with children about the Oil Spill

Planting trees

One of our family traditions is planting trees during earth week. It's something we have done every year for the last number of years and each year we plant more. This year we planted about 30 trees in the farmer's field not too far from our nature centre. The kids love to think about how their trees will look when they have their own kids. It provides a starting place to talk to them about not only curbing our use of paper, but also how long it takes for the trees to grow to the point that they can function as the lungs of our earth.

We've also been inspired by the story of Wangari Maathai about how tree planting is not only an environmental action. It can also be one of peace and hope.

Resources
Planting the trees of Kenya: the story of Wangari Maathai by Claire Nivola,
Wangari's trees of peace : a true story from Africa by Jeanette Winter,
We planted a tree by Diane Muldrow,
Grandpa and me on Tu B'Shevat by Marki Gold-Vukson,
The man who planted trees by Jean Giono, (also check out the National Film Board film production of this story).

Ecokids tree planting tips

Family Friendly Earth Week Activities

This week we gathered with a group of friends to do a park clean up. The older kids immersed themselves (literally) in cleaning up the creek. Younger kids helped in the park and along the trail. The park had been cleaned recently - we were the second sweep and we still ended up with 12 bags of garbage.

Our city makes it easy for us to participate in this program during Earth Week, providing bags, gloves and garbage pick up services - as well as a gift of reusable mugs for participants. However it would be relatively simple to do this on a smaller scale.

Last week a nearby neighbourhood group had organized their own clean up event at a beautiful creek not too far from our house. In addition to the clean up activities, the group had organized a pot luck snack, a barbeque and some kids' activities.

Resources

Youthnoise tips for organizing an event

Youth Can

As I dig deeper for opportunities for my children to expand their understanding of world issues, I am frankly blown away by the heroes that are all around us.

Last month I took Ryan to a program at a nearby high school. Michel Chikwanine, from Me to We, was speaking to the entire student population on their Youth Activism Day.  Students in the school, had organized a full day of programming which included not only the key speaker, but also workshops about volunteering, activism, youth engagement and world issues. The organizations involved ran the gamut from Amnesty International and Oxfam to Right to Play and to  Kiva loans and Katimavik and included workshops on song writing, journalism and social media to African drumming.

The initiative was student led and the school seemed to be a hotbed of social activism and youth engagement. Nishin Nathwani, another young man we've seen speak recently and his contemporaries were the organizing team and they had been congratulated by numerous adult activists, politicians and organizations for their efforts to make activism accessible and integrated into their school culture.

Michel's presentation was both funny and sad.  A former child soldier from the Democratic Republic of Congo he talked about his journey to Canada and his life here, his father and his activism. 

I sat in this school auditorium thinking back to my high school days and how unaware I was compared to the young people around me and how fascinating this group of kids are.

Resources:
Me to We

Please note Michel's video is for older children. Please preview before deciding whether to share with your children.

The boy who harnessed the wind

While working on our lego project about wind energy the kids and I were inspired by the young man in this youtube video.  The idea that he could take garbage and make something that could profoundly change the way of life for his village generated a lot of conversation about what we truly need, how we can get it and how not to be defeated by circumstance.


From Amazon:

Discarded motor parts, PVC pipe, and an old bicycle wheel may be junk to most people, but in the inspired hands of William Kamkwamba, they are instruments of opportunity. Growing up amid famine and poverty in rural Malawi, wind was one of the few abundant resources available, and the inventive fourteen-year-old saw its energy as a way to power his dreams. "With a windmill, we'd finally release ourselves from the troubles of darkness and hunger," he realized. "A windmill meant more than just power, it was freedom." Despite the biting jeers of village skeptics, young William devoted himself to borrowed textbooks and salvage yards in pursuit of a device that could produce an "electric wind." The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind is an inspiring story of an indomitable will that refused to bend to doubt or circumstance. When the world seemed to be against him, William Kamkwamba set out to change it.

Rainbows, hugs and pink balloons

One of my favourite magazines sends out weekly emails of stories they are featuring.
This one, about celebrating birthdays in simple and meaningful ways arrived in my inbox today. It's timely as our family heads into birthday season and I am listening closely to my kids real wishes and trying to drown out the idea that birthdays need to be equated with "buy, buy buy".  My friend Emma has a gift for creating special celebrations for her family birthdays,with hand madegifts and beautiful gestures.

I remember one year when he was about 4 Colin wanted a rainbow and a hug for Christmas. Santa obliged with a rainbow playsilk from the Waldorf school store, and a beautiful book about hugs. He could not have been happier.

Even among mindful parents I know we can use the reminder that what children need is for us to buy less and be with them more.

What is a birthday? It is an opportunity to celebrate the life and the development of a person. Do my children need to see a table covered with a pile of wrapped toys in order to know that their family and friends are delighted and honored that they share this lifetime with us? Somewhere in our consumer culture, we have confused “presents,” material items, with expressions of love and gratitude.

Growing Up Global

Run, don't walk, to your local bookstore and order this book. I'll wait here.

This book is exactly what I want this blog to be. Full of resources and ideas about how to expand our children's world even if we can't hop on a plane.

The book is written by a mother who wanted to bring more of the world to her daughter's lives. Starting with the idea that children can learn to be a friend to the whole human race, the book relates what friends would do as they get to know each other. Opening with a chapter called Be a Friend, the author Homa Sabet Tavangar reminds us of basic principles of how to make friends from different parts of the world - everything from remembering to separate a person from regional politics, to learning how to properly pronouce and use a new friend's name. There are lots of suggestions about how to expand your family's circle to include people you may not otherwise come in contact with.

Other chapers, entitled Greet Your Friend, Play, Go to School, Watch the World  - Read a Movie, and Break Bread give excellent suggestions for activities and resources to help your family beome immersed in other cultures through language, games, sports, food, stories, music, movies and education. The chapters Celebrate and What Do They Believe delve into religion and culture, always with the goal of finding common ground and teaching children how to connect in respectful, genuine ways. The last chapter called Sustain Your Friendship talks about ways to put education and connection into action to widen our circle through giving and service, using the Millenium Development Goals as the starting point. 

This book weaves through threads of respect and caring for both the children it aims to educate and the ideas, cultures and people it highlights. The ideas are easy to implement, the resources it recommends are excellent and incredibly thorough and applicable to a wide age range. It is an inspiring resource to help your children become citizens of the world.  

Crafts around the world

Over at Crafty Crow this month, there are posts for "travelling" using recipes and crafts. Lots of fun.

Encouraging Simplicity in Kids

There's a great blog post here about ways to encourage kids to live simply.  I particularly like the idea about changing our language from "I want" or "I need" to "I like", which implies less attachment and less urgency.

Yesterday we took the kids to the mall - which happens about once or twice a year. We wanted to participate in an engineering program which was supposed to have been held in the mall but was unfortunately cancelled. While we were there we needed to look for a new kettle, get birthday presents for Gran and a cousin.

We traipsed from one end of the mall to the other in search of a simple stove top kettle that was 1) under $100 and 2) not made in China of cheap materials. No luck. But we did have plenty of time to talk about why malls are laid out like they are, the effect of advertising and image, and why there were so many people in a mall on a beautiful Saturday morning (the parking lot was full!).

I think my kids get it. I think they understand the role of advertising in their lives, the impact of a consumer culture in the lives of others and the choices we make. But I fully admit that they are still young and easily protected from the pull of those forces which are so ingrained in our culture. The hard work on those issues is still in front of us.

Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood

What is enough?

A few years ago my children were involved in a program and came home with an Enough Pledge.  It was a wonderful tool to talk to kids about what is "enough", and how that looks different depending on where we live. We talked a lot about living simply so that we could share the earth's resources. The pledge is no longer stuck to our fridge, unfortunately and I haven't been able to find it again. Luckily there are lots of other great resources to spark a lot of conversation about what is enough, what is fair, what we have in common and what our cultures value. Each book highlights families from around the world with their homes, possessions and weekly food supplies.

What the World Eats or the Hungry Planet

Homes Around the World

Material World

My kids are fascinated by the differences in lifestyles around the world and are developing a growing awareness of the implications that has for our planet in creating peace and sustainability.

This month I'll be watching a movie called Consuming Kids with some girlfriends and exploring simplicity resources, how the call to consume affects so much of our lives, and how to teach our kids to think about what they truly need.