Earth Day 2008 was a great success in getting EARTH HEROES from over 60 cities in the United States to sign up for our “Express Yourself for the Earth” contest.  See the EARTH HEROES ART GALLERY at
www.earth-heroes.org

We are proud to support one of our new EARTH HEROES, 10 year old writer/director and earth advocate Nikos Spiridakis, who has created a PSA called, “Abuse It.. We Loose It.” This compelling short film shows the intense thoughts of our young minds and expresses the need for all of us to come together for our planet. The PSA will be posted here shortly, as well as run in movie theatres, network television and more over the coming months, to announce the video EARTH HEROES contest to build the social network of young, concerned global citizens.

This year, we also worked in conjunction with TREE PEOPLE (www.treepeople.org) to plant trees for our carbon neutral footprint. Several tree planting ceremonies took place in other countries to celebrate the universal EARTH HEROES program. (South Africa, Thailand, Australia and more).

Our Mother Earth dance team performed at the Earth Day LA event on Wilshire Boulevard  (www.earthdayla.org) and the family festival in Encino, CA at World Fest – (www.worldfestevents.org)

World Trust Foundation continues its mission to be carbon neutral and to plant trees of offset Co2 emissions.

Here are some highlights on our EARTH HEROES & EARTH DAY MISSION since EARTH DAY 2000.
Santa Monica Mirror: 15,000 People Attend Earth Day on Promenade
> Organizers estimate that 15,000 people attended Earth Day on the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica last Saturday.

John Quigley and Tess Cacciatore watch as City Council member Michael Feinstein accepts award on behalf of the City of Santa Monica.

"Clean Energy Now" was the theme for the day, which featured 60 environmental exhibits.
> Musicians Jillian Speer, Frankie Hernandez and the Rising Tide, Los Pinguos, Captain Dan, and KidTribe performed during the day on a solar-powered stage. Read more..

> Hug-a-Planet, through Earth Friendly Promotions, generously donated 10 planets to be our Earth Hero awards program for the youth who are committed to the environment. These awards were given out to the participating schools on April 22nd, where over 1,000 students will attend our annual Education Faire at Griffith Park.

> The World Trust Foundation, Earth Day Los Angeles and Coalition for Clean Air joined a newly formed organization, Whole Earth Expo, to create a powerful Earth Day for 2002.

> The educational and media event on April 19th, 2002 was for invited schools who have participated in the Green Power Program, and a two-day event, which open to the public, took place over the weekend, Saturday, April 20th and Sunday April, 21st. The theme promoted clean energy for Earth Day. The goal promoted the "Clean Power Earth Day" fair as a day to co-create with the students a Conservation Hero Program called, "Earth Patriots".

Pictured with Tess Cacciatore and Youth Ambassadors (Debra Jarret and Aaron Yamagata) is now Mayorial-elect, Antonio Villaragosa.

> The events of this past year have asked us to look at the world with a different set of eyes. Many students have already learned multiple meanings of "patriotism." At its essence, patriotism is love of and devotion to one's country. Through the "Earth Patriot" theme we hope to help students connect love and devotion to the one thing we all share in this world¡  the earth.

> The World Trust Foundation and Earth Day Los Angeles joined with the Coalition for Clean Air to create a powerful educational and media event promoting "Clean Energy" for Earth Day 2001.

> Approximately 2000 students were bused into Exposition Park, as part of a school field trip. Participants engaged in an aerial art media event as their call to action for Los Angeles to support Green Power. Standing hand in hand they formed a giant Clean Energy message "Go Solar" with letters one hundred feet tall. This image was photographed from the air by local TV and print media. City-elected officials, celebrities and environmental leaders joined students, as they created the "Green LA Declaration" for Earth Day 2001.

Previous aerial art projects, produced and designed by John Quigley, have been published in the following: San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco Examiner, LA Times, LA Daily News, La Opinion, Daily Breeze, San Diego Union Tribune, as well as had extensive television coverage, including all local TV stations and NBC Nightly News.

"Green Power Earth Day" was created to send a message to our community and to involve our youth so that we can collectively work together in being more responsible "clean energy" citizens. Through expanding public awareness of solutions available now, the event will empower participants with tools for energy conservation and clean energy choices.




The World Trust Foundation is dedicated to the process of honoring individuals, businesses and community leaders who are committed to making a difference in the local community of Los Angeles with a larger vision of helping the world.

Earth Day 2001 was the first annual "Awards Luncheon" that was included in the Clean Power Earth Day at Exposition Park. City elected officials, foundation members, honored guests and celebrities were invited to attend the banquet at the Science Center, to listen to speeches from leaders and celebrities who are on a mission to help support environmental education.

Awards were given out to the following:
Atossa Soltani - FRONT LINE AWARD - for her work in the world to protect the rainforest and the UWA tribes in Brazil.

Patagonia - BUSINESS LEADER AWARD - for their incredible example of how to run a eco-friendly business. They were recognized for their in-store policies and the products they create.

Dave Freeman - LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD - for his commitment to clean energy and for his creation of the Green Power Program for DWP.

Pictured is: John Quigley (Executive Director for Earth Day L.A. & Director of Environment for the World Trust), Tess Cacciatore, (Founder/Executive Director/World Trust) & Dave Freeman, recipient of the Life Time Achievement Award.

The 30th Anniversary of Earth Day was on April 22, 2000. The Earth Day Network, led by Denis Hayes and Gaylord Nelson, supported the networking of groups around the world. A coalition involving over 250 Los Angeles Area environmental, social justice and religious groups was formed to organize Earth Day Los Angeles, which successfully planned a powerful series of Earth Day events during April.

On Earth Day 2000, 15,000 people came to Exposition Park beside the Memorial Coliseum (the site of the 1984 Olympics) for a day of education, celebration with booths, music, etc. The day included the Clean Energy Ride, Clean Energy Fair and Earth Fair. World Trust Foundation became the fiscal sponsor of the 250 organizations, which formed the coalition. This event, open to the public, was recognized in the nation to be one of the most successful Earth Day events in the country. The theme for this year was environmental justice, including: Clean Energy, Global Warming, Transportation Alternatives, Waste Reduction, and Civil Rights.

Earth Day 2000 was also the launch of the World Trust Foundation's, "Youth Ambassador Program" sponsored by AT&T. The World Trust Foundation had a raffle for kids to win a variety of prizes donated by local business, along with a grand prize $2,500.00 scholarship. Miss Annie Bird was named the "Youth Ambassador for Social Change" and won the coveted grand prize scholarship. She raised the remaining money through Santa Monica College and traveled to the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland to participate in the "YES!" Youth Empowerment Summit - FETE d' EXCELLENCE - in conjunction with the United Nations Palais d' Nations. This program is run by Ms. Wilda Spalding (Senior UN/NGO Advisor for the past 30 years). Ms. Spalding sits on the World Trust Foundation's Advisory Board.

"The opportunity to participate, as a "Youth Ambassador for Social Change," inside the United Nations was one of the most unique and valuable experiences I have had. It is not often that a young person is able to come face to face with some of our world leaders and not only have the opportunity to listen and learn, but also to become an active part of social change. My favorite memory from the Youth Empowerment Summit was when I heard Julian Bond, the chair of the NAACP, address the Sub-Commission on issues of racism in America. Afterwards, I met him and was able to have a personal interview with him over dessert. I will never forget the education I received in Geneva, I look forward to returning there some day as a real ambassador." - Annie Bird

Pictured: Tess Cacciatore and Annie Bird (Youth Ambassador for Social Change) - outside of Alabama Room, Geneva, Switzerland

The "Green Power Hero" Assembly Program is an engaging 45-minute assembly slide presentation for grades 2nd-12th. Energy and conservation is a timely and rich topic.

The recent energy crisis has made energy conservation a state wide initiative. This program looks at how and where energy is generated for Los Angeles and why it is important we all take small actions that make a big difference!

Being SMART about the energy we use helps to keep our air clean and our environment healthy!

Fact: If every household in California replaced 4 (average 100 watt) incandescent light bulbs with 4 (equivalent 27 watt) compact fluorescent light bulbs, burning on average 5 hours per day, we would save 22 gWh per day - or enough energy saved to shut down 17 power plants!

Fund raising: Schools who participate in the Green Power Heroes Assembly program are invited to join in DWP's Green Power community fund raising partnership. For each students family that chooses to sign up for DWP's Green Power, $3-$7 will be donated back to the school. School PTA's, booster and science clubs can partner in one of the nation's largest renewable energy programs in the country. Los Angeles students can play an important role in facilitating the switch from fossil fuel dependence and smog to non-polluting renewable energy leaving cleaner air and a healthy planet.

If you would like to have an assembly at your school, please contact:

Environmental Education Services
Susan Cox - 310-450-2931

Senator Gaylord Nelson and Denis Hayes founded Earth Day in 1970. These two men created the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Endangered Species Act.

Twenty years later, Earth Day 1990 took the message of environmental solidarity to a global audience, with more than 200 million people involved in events in 141 countries. The international groundswell helped lead to the United Nations Earth Summit i n 1989, where for the first time the issues of human impact on climate and bio-diversity were front and center on the international stage.

Since 2000, Earth Day L.A. has become an annual event for the World Trust Foundation to:

• Participate in an environmental education day for Los Angeles Unified Schools District - Green Power Earth Day - led by Green Power Girl, Susan Cox.
• Support nonprofit organizations dedicated to environmental hands-on projects and education outreach
• Honor businesses, individuals and community leaders who have made a significant impact with regard to the environment, at our Annual Awards Show.
• Announce new participants to the Youth Ambassador Program
• Produce an Arts-In-Action project to support bringing art back into the schools

John Quigley, Earth Day L.A. (Executive Director) is the Environmental Director for the World Trust Foundation. e-mail to spectralq@aol.com

Congratulations to our June, 2001 Amazing Kids! of the Month, the World Trust Foundation 2001 Youth Ambassadors for the Environment! These amazing young environmentalists were chosen by the World Trust Foundation to be their ambassadors because of their dedication to supporting our environment to insure a clean, healthy, safe and beautiful world for all.

The follow is the story about these amazing kids and the World Trust Foundation's work to help give kids like you a voice helping make the world a better place. As you read it, we hope it may inspire you to get involved in helping save our environment. Who knows? Maybe you'll even want to try and become next year's Youth Ambassadors for the Environment!

The two 2001 World Trust Foundation Youth Ambassadors for the Environment are both very bright, hard-working and dedicated environmentalists. Each of them was chosen for their work to help save our environment, but each has found their own unique way to do so!

AARON YAMAGATA

Aaron Yamagata, age 10 Youth Ambassador for the Environment

Meet Aaron Yamagata, amazing 10 year old Youth Ambassador for the Environment for 2001 and artist extraordinaire! Aaron was chosen as the Youth Ambassador for the Environment for his work with the Department of Energy in Washington D.C. and for using his art to help educate youth worldwide about environmental concerns.

Amazing Aaron's art has also been published by Hallmark and is used by UNICEF to help raise funds for impoverished children around the world. He has appeared on several television shows, including Nickelodeon, Good Morning America and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno!

Most recently, Aaron won the grand prize in the Amazing Kids! Earth Day 2001 Poster Design Contest! His winning poster will be on display with the other winners at an international children's arts festival this summer in Hong Kong! His award-winning art is also featured on a kids' limited edition collector plate offered by the national restaurant chain, "The Old Spaghetti Factory," to raise funds for children's museums across the United States.

Aaron sums up his love of art and helping the world by saying: "Art is my way of speaking to the world from my heart."

DEBORAH JARRET
Have you ever thought about what you could do at home or at school to help make a difference and save the environment? Well, industrious Deborah Jarrett, a high school student from Los Angeles, California did. She came up with an idea to start a recycling program at her high school! Deborah has also been recognized by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (DWP) for her work as part of their "Green Power" Program!

Deborah's hard work and dedication is an inspiration to her fellow students and peers, and helped catch the attention of the World Trust Foundation in selecting her to be one of the amazing World Trust Youth Ambassadors for the Environment for 2001! Way to go, Deborah! We hope your hard work and caring attitude inspires many kids who might be reading this story about you to start their own recycling program at their school too!

Photo Pictured here is Debra Jarret, "Youth Ambassador for the Environment" for her work organizing and running the recycling program out of her school. She is interviewing a student who attended the educational faire. Debra Jarret and Aaron Yamagata were named "Youth Ambassadors for the Environment", for their work in the community.