Page 132 - EarthHeroes

I hope you enjoyed meeting these Earth Heroes as much as I did. I was inspired and humbled to hear what they achieved, often against the odds. Writing their stories filled me with mixed emotions: anger that countries that have contributed least to climate change are worst affected by it; sadness at the ongoing loss
of our wonderful natural world; gratitude that these people, and many others like them, are working tirelessly for our planet; and joy and hope on seeing the impact they have had. Everything I’ve learned has made me more determined to look for ways that I can help too.
I’d like to thank the people who generously made time to talk to me or answer questions on email: Bittu Sahgal, David Turton (Andrew’s big brother), Doug Smith, Felix Finkbeiner, Isabel Soares, Isatou Ceesay, Mohammed Rezwan, Perrine Hervé-Gruyer, Pete Ceglinski and Rok Rozman. Their contributions really helped me get to the heart of their incredible stories, but for those I wasn’t able to speak to I’ve had to imagine how it might have felt to walk in their shoes. If you’d like to know more about the people in this book, many have their own websites and some, such as William Kamkwamba and Sheila Watt-Cloutier, have written autobiographies. Search online for more details.
There are so many other amazing activists I could have included, it’s impossible to list them all. From 11-year-old Yola Mgogwana spreading the environmental message in her community in South Africa, to 11-year-old Finlay Pringle campaigning against sharks in captivity and his 10-year-old sister Ella organising anti-whaling marches in Scotland. From teen activist and hip-hop artist Xiuhtezcatl Martinez, one of 21 young people suing President Trump for failing to act against climate change, to Boyan Slat, the Dutch inventor creating technology to clean up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. There are change- makers all around you.
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