Think Globally Act Locally | The Power Of R

"I am often telling people about Zac Whyte and what a great speaker he is, however, every time he presents, he never ceases to blow my mind. The students are simply captivated, resting on his every word.”

In late April I was invited to speak at Valley View Elementary School. My presentation  addressed issues of garbage and actions we could take locally to shift the growing consumer trend that has doubled our per-capita garbage output by 100% in only 10 years. I spoke about our responsibility as an educated and capable nation of individuals to lead initiatives that 'better the planet' in every sense of the phrase.  The presentation really resonated with the youth and teachers in the room that day because what happened next... well let's just say that it makes me proud to be surrounded by such an incredible group of community leaders.

The entire school rallied over the next two weeks to fulfill the schools 2009-2010 theme of "Making A Difference." Hours upon days of debate and discussion followed the presentation about the issues addressed in my talk. The school decided to hold a penny drive. " I thought the kids would raise about $80," teacher Andrew Ferneyhough told me after the fundraiser, "I was taken aback when they raise almost $100 per division." The week following the penny drive united the school in further discussions about the Comox Valley, Canada, and the rest of the world on the whole, as they rolled a staggering $1500 worth of pennies together. Students were led by teachers and explored the history of pennies, properties of copper, the significance of Queen Elizabeth II, and the origin of money among other topics. It was "applied learning, the best type of learning" Grade 6 teacher Jay Bridges commented.

On May 13th the students invited me back to the school because they had a surprise for me. I was presented a hand crafted cheque for $1400 and a wagon of neatly rolled and boxed pennies to endorse it. "We used a $100 to celebrate with pizza," one of the kids blurted out. "Was it fun to celebrate your accomplishments and make a positive difference in the world," I asked. The room collectively cheered "yes!" It was energizing. The school had chosen to donate the pennies to fresh water, education, health care and alternate income projects in Kenya through a Canadian child rights organization called Free The Children.

These are the moments that I love. I love to see the shift in the eyes of kids when they make a connection or realize the individual power they have to direct positive change in their world. It gives me chills, good chills. What's interesting, is when it happens for a majority of the kids - it's not during the talk, during the fund raising,  or during the learning, penny rolling (in this case) or in the camaraderie they feel with their friends united together in their common goal - it's when they reflect on their journey and see how their journey has impacted the world. Actions like this are outside of ourselves and I am grateful that today the earth has found over 400 new harbingers of her true spirit.

Congratulations Valley View Elementary on taking ownership of your home and becoming a powerful part of your global community. Let's celebrate that everyday from now.