Citzen Science:Take Action at Earth Action Day!

Hi everyone, Nancy here.

Lacy and I are off to Chapel Hill today to Southern Community Park for it's Earth Action Day. This is our first time at the festival and we are really looking forward to it.

Earth Action Day celebrates sustainable living. The festival is full of interactive exhibits and demonstrations, live entertainment, and local food. The event is from 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

We will be in the children's area and we will be talking about the Museum's campus-wide composting efforts and we're bringing along some Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches to help talk about how animals are helpful as decomposers. We'll also show you how to make a reusable Butterfly Feeder using materials you can find around the home!

Well, back to packing for the event. Stop by and see us and hit us up on the blog with some of the actions and ideas your class or family are doing for Earth Day.

Stay tuned and stay curious,
-Nancy

Arbor Day! 4/24/2009 :o)

Arbor Day is a holiday that is celebrated by planting or caring for trees. Arbor Day was established in Nebraska and was first proposed in 1872 by J. Sterling Morton. Morton was very passionate about nature and trees. His love for trees was spread to others when he became the editor of Nebraska's first newspaper. He wrote and explained how beneficial trees would be to Nebraska's people and agriculture, and soon others caught on.

It is said that on the first Arbor Day, more than one million trees were planted!

"Arbor Day was officially proclaimed by the state's Gov. Robert W. Furnas on March 12, 1874, and the day itself was observed April 10, 1874. In 1885, Arbor Day was named a legal holiday in Nebraska and April 22, Morton's birthday, was selected as the date for its permanent observance."

Today, Arbor Day is celebrated all over the US and is a great excuse to get outside and participate in nature! There are many organizations that will send you trees for free, all you have to do is add the elbow grease!!

Happy planting!