Holloway kids raise money for rainforest

Holloway Middle School students raised funds to help preserve the rainforest of the Osa Peninsula in Costa Rica.

The students at Holloway have something extraordinary to celebrate this year - they have actively participated in a conservation project in order to better their world! The entire fifth grade took part in a specific rainforest "Adopt an Acre" project being conducted in over 10,000 schools across the country via a special network of educators called Earth Foundation.

By selling environmental Tshir ts, Holloway students raised funds that will help protect plants and animals in the rainforest of the Osa Peninsula in Costa Rica. So far, Holloway has protected over 50 acres of endangered land.

Students elected to become involved in the projects after learning about the importance of the rainforest in their science classes.

According to Earth Foundation, a Houston-based environmental education organization, rainforests really do need rescuing. At present, half of the worlds rainforests have been burned and bulldozed. According to the Rainforest Action Network, an area of rainforest the size of a football field is destroyed every second. At this rate of destruction, tropical rainforests will vanish within 30 years.

In the balance lie thousands of plant and animal species, tribal groups, and the health of our planet. Rainforests play an essential role in our weather, the prevention of global warming, reduce erosion, and provide a bounty of riches including hardwoods, rubber, food and medicines.

Although the fate of the rainforest is indeed dire, there are reasons to be hopeful.

Earth Foundation believes that the next generation brings hope. This organization empowers young people by providing educational materials that teach solutions like the "Adopt an Acre" program and sustainable uses of the rainforest that do not require deforestation.

Students also learn about the impact of consumer choices on rainforests, how recycling helps the rainforest, and a way to express their concerns and opinions to governmental leaders and corporations.