“Cherish and preserve the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known.” —Carl Sagan

 

Since the height of the industrial revolution near the 1920s or earlier, and with the advent of the plastic industry in the 1950s, we’ve been spreading the message about the need to be mindful of our natural environment—oftentimes led by young people.

 

In 1969, the Beatles were still together and my brother Daniel was 10 years old when he won a local community contest for creating the best awareness poster encouraging people to help stop pollution.

 

 

In 1981, Sherri Mason was 10 years old when she “realized that humans could have an adverse effect on the environment, and that there can be consequences for us,” after watching an episode of the TV show “Diff’rent Strokes.”

 

 In 2012, my niece Abby was 10 years old when she posted a “Family Shopping Contract” in her family’s kitchen to change the way they shop, eat and wash clothes after reading the book, You Can Save the Planet – 50 Ways You Can Make a Difference.

 

Two of the images above are my family members as young children doing their part to create awareness. On top of Abraham Lincoln’s head in the other photo are samples of the plastic microbeads that Sherri Mason found in the open waters of the Great Lakes in 2012. Her findings from this study of plastics ultimately led to passage of the federal Microbead-Free Waters Act of 2015. Mason is now the director of sustainability at Penn State Behrend, in Erie, Pennsylvania, and the full article, entitled Sounding the Alarm, by Robb Frederick, can be found in the Fall 2022 issue of Research | Penn State at Research.psu.edu/magazine.

 

Air pollution, smog, litter and clean water have been a significant part of our existence for a century or more, and now climate change, severe weather and drought are piling on.

 

In addition to all the great content in print this month, be sure to check out two online exclusives, including our Healing Ways department: “Toxic Overload – How to Clean Our Water, Food and Indoor Air,” and the Green Living department, “The Winds of Change: Young Activists Pursue Climate Justice and Green Living.” Those darn kids just can’t stop ‘sounding the alarm’ as they wreak havoc on their way to feeling good, living simply and laughing more.