How to Make a Can o' Lantern

Materials needed:

• Clean and empty cans of all sizes (try to use a can opener that cuts both the lid and can without sharp edges)
• Gesso (recommended but not necessary)
• Acrylic paints in the colors of orange, black, green and white
• A wine bottle cork
• Orange mesh ribbon
• Green natural raffia
• Hot glue gun or thick designer craft glue
• A pencil

Instructions: 

1. Paint a coat of gesso on the can if desired and let it dry.
2. Paint the can with 2 coats of orange acrylic paint and let it thoroughly dry.
3. Paint the can lid and the cork with green acrylic paint.
4. Use the pencil and draw the eyes, nose and mouth on the can. Paint then the facial features with black paint.
5. Once dry, add 2 white dots on the eyes.
6. Use the hot glue gun or the craft glue and glue the cork onto the center of the can lid.
7. Cut 2 or 3 pieces of green raffia about 12 cm long and lay aside.
8. Cut a piece of mesh ribbon about 10 cm long. Gather the piece in the middle and tie it off with the raffia to look like a bow. Split the raffia if possible to make the strands thinner.
9. Glue the raffia and ribbon now in front of the cork. Place the lid on the can with the bow in the front.

Find more BOOriffic green Halloween craft ideas at www.craftideas.info.

America, how do you really feel about the ocean?

Today is World Oceans Day, a day when people around the globe come together to celebrate our ocean and take action to protect it. And with good cause! The ocean not only makes our world livable, it provides us with food, water, commerce, recreation, and medicine. The ocean has suffered some serious blows lately: 90% of the big fish in the sea are gone, the gyres are filled with more plastic than previously estimated, the Deepwater Horizon disaster dumped 4.9 million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, and coastal dead zones from agricultural runoff are worse than ever.

The ocean has definitely seen rough times lately, and World Oceans Day is a good opportunity to rally and start turning things around.

Most Americans would probably tell you that they support a healthy ocean—after all, the beach is one of our all-time favorite vacation spots. But how does the Nation as a whole feel about protecting the ocean?  The Ocean Project’s ongoing survey of more than 30,000 Americans, both young and old confirm our gut feeling that Americans care about healthy oceans; and has further insight on what Americans think and feel about ocean conservation.

We don’t realize the ocean is in danger

Most Americans think that the ocean is healthy and “too vast” for individual action to have an impact. (The exception to this is in the wake of catastrophic events such as the Deep Water Horizon disaster – see below). In fact, the American public believes that ocean waters bordering the US are significantly less imperiled than are “foreign” waters.

We have short attention span

In the wake of the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the American public was very concerned about the health of the ocean, believing it to be threatened. But in a few short months (by Aug 2010 – four months after initial explosion), the level of concern was on the decline. See The Ocean Project’s April 2011 blog post for more details.

We feel powerless to affect ocean & environmental issues

‘My actions have little impact on ocean health.’ is the general sentiment when respondents are asked ‘In your opinion, how much of an impact can individual people have on solving our environmental problems?’. Even more troubling:  40% responded ‘None” or – “Not very much.’

On the bright side, we’re the sort of people who care!

We think we’re green

In 2010, 22% considered themselves to be active in the environmental movement, and 57% said they were sympathetic but not active.

We’ll change our buying habits to protect ocean health

The American public expressed strong support for a willingness to change their seafood habits to protect and/or preserve an endangered species

The children are indeed our future

Young people were the most knowledgeable about environmental & ocean issues, and parents look to them for guidance when making green household decision-making. They also were overwhelmingly more likely to believe that the actions of individuals can make a difference!

It’s time to transform that concern and “green-friendliness” into action! Let us come together this June 8^th and take action for our world ocean. There are hundreds of events being held all over the world, find one near you and celebrate with a purpose this World Oceans Day!  Or organize an event yourself! Go to www.theoceanproject.orgfor ideas, free materials, and event listing.

Blog provided by WorldOceansDay.org 

It’s as easy as 1, 2, 10!

In 1969, Senator Gaylord Nelson took a political stance on the effects of environmental pollution by helping organize the first ever “Environmental Teach-In”, held on April 22, 1970. Since then, Earth Day has blossomed into a full month of environmental awareness activities. In 1990, the Earth Day concept went international with 200 million people in over 140 nations participating. Earth Day involvement continues to grow, with over 1 billion people involved in awareness activities today.  

We participate in Earth Month every year and incorporate all of its action steps into our daily zoo routines. Below are 10 simple tips you can integrate into your daily routine to minimize the negative impact on the environment.

1.        Use scrap paper for informal notes to yourself and others.

2.        Start an office recycling program for office and computer paper, cardboard, etc.

3.        If you buy disposable items, buy compostable products rather than plastics or Styrofoam.

4.        When you shop, use one big sack instead of collecting several small ones, or better yet, take your own totes with you.

5.        Turn your car off if you are stopping for more than one minute to avoid wasting gas and polluting our air.

6.        Recycle your vehicle’s and recreational vehicle’s engine oil and battery.

7.        Turn down the heat and turn off the water heater before you leave home for vacation.

8.        When you’re on vacation, hang your towels back on the rack to be used another day.

9.        Compost your food waste. Composting, especially with worms, is an easy and fun project that kids can get excited about.

10.     Take only photographs and leave only footprints when you explore.

"But now, says the Once-ler, Now that you´re here, the word of the Lorax seems perfectly clear. UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not." – Dr. Seuss

 *Sourced - History.com

Happy Earth Month!

Earth Day Green Crafts - Toothbrush Bracelets

Turn your toothbrush into a unique recycled bracelet and watch your kids start a new fashion craze for Earth Day!

What you'll need:

·        Old toothbrush

·        Tweezers or pliers

·        Pot

·        Tongs

·        Large mug

·        Oven gloves

How to make it:

1.      Remove all the bristles from the toothbrush with tweezers or pliers.

2.      Boil water.

3.      Keep water boiling, put toothbrush in water for five minutes.

4.      Remove toothbrush with tongs, bend to desired shape.

5.      If toothbrush doesn't bend enough, submerge again in water.

6.      Remove brush and bend as much as possible.

7.      Place bent toothbrush in bottom of mug to hold its shape while it cools.

8.      Pour cold water in mug and remove your new bracelet.

Tips:

1.      This craft requires fishing the hot toothbrushes out of boiling water and bending them while they are still hot. Be sure to use a simple toothbrush for this, it seems the fancier, and more high tech the toothbrush the stronger, and more difficult to bend. We had luck with the classic REACH toothbrushes.

For more green craft ideas visit: http://crafts.kaboose.com

The Zoo is getting Crafty!

Here at the zoo we are celebrating National Bird Feeding Month with bird friendly children’s activities. Follow the instructions listed below to build a backyard bird “tweeder” with a recycled soda bottle or steal some of your mom’s favorite ribbon to create a festive bird “tweet”.

Backyard Bird Feeder

Materials

      ·        Clean 1-liter soda bottle

      ·        Craft knife

      ·        2 wooden spoons

      ·        Small eye screw

      ·        Length of twine for hanging

Directions

1.      Start by drawing a 1/2-inch asterisk on the side of a clean 1-liter soda bottle, about 4 inches from the bottom.

2.      Rotate the bottle 90 degrees and draw another asterisk 2 inches from the bottom.

3.      Draw a 1-inch-wide circle opposite each asterisk, as shown.

4.      Use a craft knife to slit the asterisk lines and cut out the circles (a parent's job).

5.      Insert a wooden spoon handle first through each hole and then through the opposite asterisk, as shown.

6.      Remove the bottle cap and twist a small eye screw into the top of it for hanging.

7.      Finally, fill your feeder with birdseed, recap it, and use a length of twine to hang it from a tree.

"Tweet" Treats

Materials

• 1/4-ounce package of unflavored gelatin
• 2 cups of your favorite wild birdseed
• Three 4-inch mini bundt or fluted pans
• Colorful ribbon

Directions

1.      To make a batch, bring 6 tablespoons of water to a boil. Empty one 1/4-ounce package of unflavored gelatin into 2 tablespoons of cold water in a large bowl.

2.      Let the gelatin sit for 1 minute, then add the boiling water and stir for 2 to 3 minutes or until the gelatin has dissolved. 

3.      Next, stir 2 cups of your favorite wild birdseed into the gelatin, mixing thoroughly.

4.      Let the mixture set for a few minutes, then stir again. Repeat this process a few times, if necessary, allowing the seed to absorb the liquid.

5.      Spoon the seed mixture into three 4-inch mini bundt or fluted pans

6.      Place the pans in the refrigerator or a cool room and let them set for at least 3 hours.

7.      Remove the wreaths from the molds by inverting the pans and tapping along the bottoms.

8.      Allow the wreaths to air-dry overnight. 

9.      Finally, tie colorful ribbon around your wreaths and hang them outside in a protected spot, such as under an awning or eaves, where the rain won't melt them.

Send photos of your completed project to kwhite@cmzoo.org, for a chance to be highlighted on Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s Facebook page.

*Check out http://familyfun.go.com for more kid crafts.

Don’t “E-Waste” your Chance to Help the Zoo!

What is e-waste?

“Electronic waste" may be defined as discarded computers, electronic office equipment, entertainment device electronics, mobile phones, television sets and refrigerators.

Trashy E-Waste Facts

The nation now dumps between 300 million and 400 million electronic items per year, and less than 20% of that e-waste is recycled.

E-waste represents 2% of America's trash in landfills, but it equals 70% of overall toxic waste. 

Only 15% of the population recycles their computers, which means the other 85% end up in landfills.

E-waste is the largest source of lead in solid waste.

E‐waste is still the fastest growing municipal waste stream in the US.

Green Solutions = Zoo Funds 

Being part of the solution and helping the zoo is as easy as 1, 2, 3.

1. This Saturday, January 14, from 10:00am to 2:00pm the 2^nd annual E-Waste Recycling event will be taking place in the main parking lot at the zoo.  Bring your computers, audio/video equipment, small appliances, batteries, ink cartridges and cell phones to recycle. For each pound of e-waste collected the zoo will earn a percentage of the fees charged on monitors, TVs and hard drive destruction. During the event the zoo will also be collecting monetary donations as well.  

2. The zoo collects and recycles cell phones, batteries and ink cartridges every day of the year. Place your recyclable items in the bins at the zoo admission booths between 9:00am and 4:00pm daily.  The collected items are shipped to companies that recycle them, and in turn contribute funds to our animal conservation programs.

* If we recycled just a million cell phones, it would reduce greenhouse gas emissions equal to taking 1,368 cars off the road for a year.

3. Headed to the junk yard with an old vehicle? Donate it to the zoo! We accept vehicle donations through vehiclesforcharity.org. The proceeds from the salvage sales are contributed directly to the zoo.

Sources – Wikipedia.org & dosomething.org

96 Yards of Waste

For many years the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo has been searching for composting opportunities in an effort to resolve the question…What do they do with all the poop?  As you can imagine we have literally tons of organic material, or in other words poop, which can be composted.  In the summer of 2011 Bestway Disposal announced it had started a composting sector for commercial businesses and after considering all aspects of what a disposal transition would mean for the Zoo we decided to join the movement. 

What is composting?  It is nature’s way of processing and recycling decomposed organic material and returning the nutrients from organic material back into the ground.  Composting creates a rick, dark soil fit for growing just about anything.  Compost helps reduce pest problems which ultimately reduces your use of pesticides; diverts material from landfills; it improves moisture retention in the soil; prevents the need to purchase soil conditioners; increases the nutrient levels in the plants you are growing and consuming; allows for children to learn about the cycle of life…the benefits are endless. 

So far Cheyenne Mountain Zoo has started composting in African Rift Valley (ARV) and Elephants.  By composting in ARV and Elephants we have eliminated all but one of our regular consumable waste bins along the ARV Road.  In those two areas we have gone from 96 yards of waste per week to 2 yards of waste; that’s approximately 680 tons of material being diverted from the landfill on an annual basis.  Future moves include expanding our composting efforts to other areas of the Zoo to include Hippos, Primate World, Commissary and Food Services. 

You may ask yourself, how can you make a difference?  Well, composting is easy.  All you need is a relatively flat location, a pile of organic waste to include nitrogen and carbon, water and a way to rotate or turn the pile.  For additional details on how to compost please visit websites on composting practices, speak with representatives at your local nursery, call your disposal service or chat with a landscaping company. 

The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo continues to strive for sustainability through conservation, recycling, composting and education.  Please visit our website to learn more about our conservation efforts.  


Written by: Mindy Carney