Activities for sustainable living Earth scouts are all about learning to live sustainably in modern society. Given below is a list of activities that Earth Scout organizes for its members. You can get detailed description and steps of each activity by directly contacting Earth Scouts. Recycling Plastics This activity addresses the role of plastics with regards to sustainable living. The aim is to share facts about why and how plastics are harming the environment. This is followed by a simple experiment (described below) to show the difficulty of disposing off plastics. The session ends with two short (5 to 6 minutes each) films that show what happens to the plastic bags and bottles of the world that are not disposed properly.   (List of Activities...) Community Garden Learn to build a garden in your community or in your backyard. The garden project involves participating in either an existing community garden or building a new one. Earth Scouts of Hillsdale have started their own Community Garden.   (List of Activities...) Hazardous Waste Lack of proper disposal of hazardous waste is a major problem for the land fills around the world. Paint cans, batteries, computers, cell phones etc. are routinely being disposed off in regular garbage. This activity is all about learning the dangers of hazardous waste and adopting ways to dispose off the waste responsibly.   (List of Activities...) Follow the garbage truck This activity is a trip that the group takes to see the final destination of the garbage truck of the town - the recycling center. The purpose of this activity is to understand how and where household trash, both recyclables and non-recyclables are disposed.   (List of Activities...) Gift wrapping made earth friendly Wrap holiday gifts in an earth friendly way this year. This activity addresses the problem of excessive waste generated in gift wrapping. How can we adopt less plastic and paper based gift wrapping. What earth-friendly gift wraps are available in the market? How to evaluate whether they are earth friendly or not. Can we make our own packaging with recycled materials?   (List of Activities...) Energy audit of residence This activity is intended to explore the basics of energy use in a typical home. Ideally, a home energy audit may include a written report estimating energy use given local climate criteria, thermostat settings, roof overhang, and solar orientation. This could show energy use for a given time period, say a year, and the impact of any suggested improvements per year. The kids are shown how to record the energy use of their residence using a simple spreadsheet. Following the collection of the data, the results are discussed with the goal to reduce the variation in consumption and increase efficiency of use and promote conservation.    (List of Activities...) Pen Pals around the world Learning to live sustainably is not a local effort only. In a world inhabited by billions of people, this activity seeks to set up a communication forum for children around the world to talk about the environmental issues. The aim is to let Earth Scouts kids reach out to kids around the world and establish a conversation on the pressing environmental issues.   (List of Activities...) Film show This activity is perfect for winter months when outdoor activities become restricted. To raise awareness among the Earth Scout kids, a set of films that address the various environmental issues and scientific findings is shown. The film showing is followed by a discussion of the issues.   (List of Activities...) Trash to art. Trash that cannot be recycled can be used for multiple ways. One way that trash has been made useful is by converting it to trash. A huge 25 acre garden with over 5000 sculptures was made out of ‘trash’ in Chandigarh, India. This activity will focus on how to use everyday trash to create art.   (List of Activities...) Alternative Energy Projects These projects focus exclusively on 'alternative energy'. The objective of these projects is address the various components of alternative energy. The need for and sources of alternative energy will be reinforced through multiple projects.   (List of Activities...) Holiday Gifts Made Earth Friendly Soon the holidays will be here. I am sure you have started shopping for the occasion! Have you thought where the gifts/toys come from or go after they have been played with? I wish they had a section in Toy Story movies where they actually showed where the toys go after Andy or Emily finished playing with them. But even though Toy Story movies didn't talk about it - we will. In this activity: "Holiday Gifts Made Earth Friendly", we will learn about the role of environment in choosing and discarding gifts. We will also learn to make few gifts made from ordinary items and yet they are special and good for the environment.   (List of Activities...)