Sixth grade student Liz Mayer waits to ask Ms. Barlow a question
Council of Canadians chairperson Maude Barlow spoke to students at the Eagle Hill Middle School in Manlius, New York today.
Their school website reports, “Ms. Barlow visited Eagle Hill for an hour Wednesday and talked about the importance of protecting and conserving water. The auditorium was filled with about 400 sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students, as well as students from the Fayetteville-Manlius High School ECOS Club, a student group that focuses on the environment. ‘It’s a gift,’ Ms. Barlow said of water. ‘It’s a gift we’ve been given, and we need to be a lot more respectful of it. Water is something everyone needs for life. Plants and animals need it. Future generations are going to need it.’ …She advocated for the students to think about their water usage, especially at home. She told them to shut off water faucets when they brush their teeth and urged them not to leave water running if they walk away from the sink. And she pushed for them to reconsider drinking bottled water, noting that they are the first generation to grow up with bottled water.”
“Sixth grade student Liz Mayer said Ms. Barlow’s talk was interesting. ‘I never knew how much of a problem this was,’ she said. ‘I use bottled water a lot.’ …Sixth grade student Claire Shields said she learned a lot about the world’s water issues. ‘It’s really sad,’ she said. ‘We never really realized any of this.'”
“At the end of Ms. Barlow’s presentation, sixth grade teacher Carol Borg noted that Eagle Hill staff celebrated World Water Day on March 22 by holding a fundraiser in which teachers made a donation of any amount to wear jeans to work. In honor of Ms. Barlow, the staff donated the $103 collected to the United Nations World Water Day Fund.”
