Dispatches from the Field & Project Summaries
Washington
February 22, 2010
On January 13th we had the pleasure of 
presenting to the students of St. Andrew Nativity School. The philosophy of the school alone is enough to spread the message of creating sustainability in a community, and yet they continue to make additions to their diverse goals. St. Andrew is dedicated to helping low income students achieve their full potential. As part of their expansion, St. Andrew invited the 
GLP tour to represent some sustainable practices they were experimenting with. Unique challenges were uncovered as one student explained that, after learning about the rules of recycling, her dad could only afford one trash can, so the entire pizza box would get recycled, as opposed to the whole thing being trashed. As we left we were notified that the students had also
started a recycling project and would be donating the rewards to the mission of GLP! As we talk of sustainability and travel to areas that are working on different issues, each is valuable and teaches us; enriching our experience and confirming just how important the message of sustainability is for both the earth, each other and our relationship to one another. Many thanks St. Andrew Nativity School!
Kids can be a great inspiration to us all. Because of one student’s hard work, we were able to visit 
The Option Program at Seward (TOPS). A young man in Ms. Binder’s class wrote a paper on sustainability and thought it would be a good idea to have us come share the message with his classmates. Thanks to the wonderful parents and teachers of Seattle, all of the kids were very aware of sustainable issues and had already been participating to help the 
environment in their own communities.
The John Stanford International School is an award winning public elementary school in the Seattle area. Offering a dual-immersion language program to all students, John Stanford addresses issues of cultural sustainability in and outside of the classroom. We met with 380 K-6th graders and talked with them about sustainable projects in South America. All grade levels actively participated in the conversation and were excited to continue learning. Thanks to the staff at John Stanford being such gracious hosts!
Although we were booked throughout Seattle, we still caught some time to check out pockets of the city. And speaking of sustainability, we found a gem, Theo Chocolate. “The only Organic, Fair Trade, Bean-To-Bar Chocolate Factory in the United States.” Theo Chocolate is the perfect example of a sustainable business, and after taking a tour and eating tons of yummy samples we were hooked!
The Seattle Girls School was our next stop and we were a bit surprised. After meeting Wendy and setting up our equipment, the girls walked in and starting spewing personal facts about Kyle and I. How do they know all this, we thought. It ends up, that our brief experience actually reflected the skills these girls had learned. Being in an environment that teaches girls to be agents of change, to be confident, speak out against injustice and to be solution oriented. Thus, they had done their research on us and on GLP and were fully engaged in learning about sustainable practices and questioning techniques. Way to go Seattle Girls School!
We ended January on a great note presenting to 400 2nd-5th graders at Lawton Elementary School. Talk about motivated, although they were just beginning their transition into a “green” school, Lawton’s students were excited to have us there and eager to answer our questions. When asked what they use to help soil become rich with nutrients, one young student shouted “poo!” Of course we all had a laugh and someone followed him up by saying “composting”. These kids were truly amazing!
Oregon
February 22, 2010
The first stop in the New Year was Newport, 
Oregon at the Oregon Coast Aquarium. Some people may know of this aquarium because it is famous for housing the orca whale from the movie “Free Willy.” The aquarium lies right on the water in a quaint forest with trails that meander between the organic shapes surrounding each tank. Each species at the aquarium also represents the local wildlife
of the area, thus creating a unique bond between the visitors and their surroundings.
Wow, it’s no joke that the Pacific Northwest is the place for rain…and you can tell when you’re not a local because you’re the only one to use an umbrella! After a few days we settled into the weather and made our way to Laurelhurst Elementary. You have to hand it to teachers these days, when they are passionate, their students truly benefit. We visited Laurelhurst for two days, each day presenting to 
multiple 6th & 8th grade classes. Thanks to Tracy, her classes started a composting project and are helping to develop new sustainable initiatives!
Over the weekend we had the chance to visit some local hot spots. Our “must see” was Multnomah Falls. It’s more than 600 ft. tall and is just the beginning of a beautiful trail that leads through bright green moss covered trees along
the river with fall after fall, each one more exquisite than the last. We were also lucky enough to get a local tour from our friends and take a canoe ride through the farmlands in Hillsboro.
Moving on, we were very fortunate to get the unique experience of presenting at Bridlemile Elementary School. As part of a collaborative school effort, Bridlemile began conducting “Green Team” as an afterschool program. Run by parent volunteers, each week children from Kindergarten through fifth grade 
gather to learn about and participate in sustainability issues for their school and community. This was a great group of students who exemplify how beneficial it is to have several age groups working together!
Our next visit was with Skyline Elementary School. As you can imagine, they are located on the top of a large hill, which takes multiple switchbacks to get to, and is surrounded by beautiful farm country. Skyline was unique due to the PTA’s involvement. After applying for, and receiving a grant, Skyline hired a green coordinator to establish sustainable practices in the school and integrate a sustainable curriculum. After meeting the coordinator, talking with the students, and having the press at the school to document their success in sustainability, I’d say we could all look up to Skyline!
California
February 22, 2010
On the way to the coast we had to get our last 
fill of the desert and stop in Joshua Tree National Park for the weekend. Such beautiful scenery and an awesome place to take adventurous hikes. The site of Joshua Trees and large granite monoliths throughout the park gave us the sense that we were on a different planet. And can you believe, in the middle of the desert on a hike called 49 Palms there was 
an oasis with huge palm trees? I must admit, I hit my chest like Tarzan and let out a howl.
After passing through the impressive 5,000 Tehachapi wind turbines, we arrived in San Diego the next day and thanks once again to family, were able to stay right on Pacific Beach! Not only were we happy to 
leave our jackets behind and burry our toes in the sand, but also to find out that when it comes to sustainability, California schools have jumped on the bandwagon.
Our first stop was Southwest High School. An hour before their field trip, we had the pleasure to present to several of Hector Arias’s classes. Mr. Arias has been introducing the importance of sustainability by providing his students 
with hands on experience. Along with other community groups, these students had participated in the Tijuana River Project. They took samples of river water, picked up 6 tons of trash and wrote their congressmen in order to confront the issues at large.
The next stop was eye opening. The school was Herbert Hoover High and the class 
was Business Environment. These high school students were focusing on career placement and preparing for senior internships, as opposed to continuing education. Their teacher, Maria Contreras, invited us to present, not because their school was “green” friendly, or because they were proud of their compost bin, but rather because she felt that no matter 
one’s economic background, ethnicity, or even business interest, that providing children with a broad perspective and showing them the vast opportunity that exists, they will one day be great contributors to their surrounding communities.
Thus far we had been on the road for 6 weeks and had yet to meet our teammates so there wasn’t any time better than the present! Thanks to Jen, Kyle and I had a place to lay our heads for another night. We arrived to open arms as Jen welcomed us and 
we settled in for the night. The next evening Jen cooked up a feast for the crew and one by one everyone arrived…everyone but our fearless leader that is! Over homemade pizza, hummus and other goodies, Jen, Laura, Rebecca, Nicholas, Kyle and I began sharing our stories of how we came to be fans of Green Living Project. Three cheers for a team of passionate, dedicated and fun loving people!
Good to have friends in small places, that’s how the saying goes, right? Yet again we needed a place to crash and our friends, the Darton’s, needed some 
help moving in. We spent the weekend in L.A. with them, ate a delicious friendsgiving dinner and admired the life of a struggling musician and his bona fide nurse/artist wife.
The next week Laura came through once again as the team machine, and rounded up a few presentations at the University of Redlands. We presented to an Environmental Studies class and the SEA campus group. Redlands has integrated sustainability into the university’s curriculum,
which is demonstrated through their energy center reducing the campus’ carbon footprint by nearly 30% and through other projects such as developing a community farmers market.
Our adventures continued, just before we headed north we stopped to see a good friend at FOX Studios and got a personal tour. Way to go FOX for supplying 
compostable plastics in your cafeteria! As we traveled up the coast we stopped in Santa Cruz, camped in Big Sur, admired the elephant seals and sea otters, and hit up a lighthouse hostel!
The last stop in CA, but certainly not least, was at Laguna High School outside of Sacramento. Eric Johnson and his students undoubtedly win the award for outstanding achievement when
it comes to implementing, teaching and learning sustainable practices through science! Through GETA (Green Energy Technology Academy), students study the technology of renewable energy. We were fortunate to sneak a peak at some of their projects like building portable solar power stations, wind turbines and turning algae into electricity!!! If that’s not enough, the students also participated in a 
drive, raising money by avoiding buying bottled water, and instead donating the money in order to build a well for students in Kenya. Laguna High is the perfect example of how we all can think globally and act locally!
Arizona
February 22, 2010
Although there was only one stop to make in 
Phoenix, it was well worth the drive!
On November 12th we visited Jennifer Cole’s history class at Desert Edge High School. The students were well prepared having learned about sustainability because of their new building, which will be the first school in AZ that is LEED certified and uses solar panels to conserve energy. Nothin’ like taking advantage of your natural environment!
That night Kyle’s cousin, Weston, was nice enough to put us up for a night and even treat us to yummy Ethiopian food.
Central America Expedition 2010: Arrival in Costa Rica
February 21, 2010
Green Living Project’s new expedition to Central America is underway! Our team of four – GLP founder and host Rob Holmes, videographers Ryan Claypool and John Hudak, Jr., and I, writer Annika Hipple – flew in from various parts of the U.S. and met up in San Jose, Costa Rica. After winter in the U.S. the tropical climate here feels like a different world, particularly for John, who couldn’t be happier to flee the 40 inches of recent snowfall in New York.
This is GLP’s fifth expedition overall but our first to Central America, and we’re looking forward to checking out some of the exciting sustainability-related projects underway in three different countries: Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Panama. Over the course of 20 days we’ll be visiting nine projects ranging from sustainable tourism and community development to marine conservation, agroforestry, and renewable energy. First up: Rios Tropicales, one of Costa Rica’s top river rafting companies and a leader in conservation and sustainable community development. Stay tuned….
One Year Update
February 15, 2010
Questions & Answer: Suni Magyar
Does Banana Boat have new craft items for sale? You had mentioned bringing on more suppliers. Is this happening?
Yes we do have new craft items for sale and we are always buying from new suppliers. We have started to sell beautiful hand blown recycled glasses and vases which have recently started to be produced by a family on the outskirts of Kampala. They use recycled wine bottles and window panes. So far there is only one man who knows how to blow the glass but he is going to start training others. We have new coasters and bowls that are made from recycled papers and are great holding dry goods such as candies, fruits, keys, and any other bits and pieces. These are produced by an income generating project for vulnerable youth called Bantu Culture to help pay for higher education. We also have lovely new soft fabric bags that are produced by the mothers of children with special needs at the Mukisa Foundation which is a support centre providing…
Have you implemented the “stories” behind each product for sale at Banana Boat? If so, what has the response been like?
We are continuing to label many of our products and customers do really like this but we still have many labels still to do.
How is the overall production at Paper Craft going? What are the employment opportunities you offer?
The production at Paper Craft is going very well. They were very busy at Christmas producing corporate Christmas cards and calendars for many different companies in Kampala. The soap that paper craft produces is sold to many smaller guest houses and lodges in Uganda. Paper Craft are still continuing to produce lovely recycled glass beads which they make into necklaces and earrings. At the moment Paper Craft has 22 employees.
What has been the impact of Paper Craft and Banana Boat’s involvement in the local community and/or Ugandan population as a whole?
Together Banana Boat and Paper Craft support hundreds of families in Uganda which rely on our orders in able to have a regular supply of income.
Does Banana Boat still offer workshop opportunities for local crafters?
Yes we continue to help many suppliers with interest free loans to help them to purchase equipment or materials that they need.