Roots and Shoots Presentation

Roots and Shoots
    Tuesday, February 27, 2007

On Tuesday, February 27, 2007, 51Honors College students gathered in Gottesman Room and listen to a presentation from Grace Felten about the Roots & Shoots Program, part of the Jane Goodall Institute.  Felten spoke about the history and objectives of the organization, as well as the Institute itself.  The organization’s main goal is to make important and positive changes for various communities, animals, and the environment.  Felten conveyed a strong message to her audience regarding the organization: Through knowledge, people can gain compassion for others and the world around them, and once they do, they can start acting and getting involved to help their community as well as other communities.  The Roots and Shoots Program was established in 1991in Tanzania, Africa when high school students wanted to learn more about what they could do to help improve the environment around them, especially in the forests.  Since then, Roots and Shoots has provided students of different ages and in many parts of the world with exciting volunteer opportunities.

As part of this program, students and adults have the chance to work on a project of their choice that is geared toward improving the environment, the community, or animals.  Projects that have been done in the past include making toys for chimpanzees in animal shelters and creating ways to make schools and other buildings in places in Tanzania more accessible to handicapped people.  Felten also explained that different groups around the world are able to communicate with each other through the program’s website which has discussion boards and chat rooms where they can share ideas and discuss different issues.

The event was co-sponsored with the UNICEF C.H.I.L.D. Project and Golden Key International Honour Society.