Bloggers for Positive Global Change Award

Dawn at Suburban Wildlife Garden offered me a “Bloggers for Positive Global Change Award”. How do I feel about it? More below.

The progressive folks at Climate of Our Future created this award as a way to encourage "blogging with a purpose". Those who receive the award may bestow it upon five other bloggers who they think are helping to “build awareness among their readership in order to create a more sustainable and enlightened future”.

Dawn’s other four candidates in different countries are outstanding naturalists and actively pursue their passions. That’s why I was quite surprised to learn she nominated me because I don’t think I make a difference. I recycle, maintain a small wildlife habitat in my backyard, and that’s about it. No major productions or promoting going on here, for sure.

After giving this award some serious thought, I came to the conclusion that all of us who blog about nature are passionate people with a desire for an environmentally perfect wonderland. Whether we blog about our efforts as educators who reach out into the community on a large scale or whether we blog about our little 10-foot by 10-foot patch of native plants in our tiny wildlife habitats, we are contributing towards global change. We all matter.

Today I’d like to honor five friends who amaze me with their talents and continue to inspire their readers. I wish I could list many more.

Susan Gets Native in southwest Ohio. She is extraordinary. Susan is an education director for a raptor center and lives with daily emphasis on preserving natural resources to save the birds, bugs, and wildlife. I rely on her identification of anything living. There isn’t much she won’t do to sustain wildlife; for example, during a southwestern Ohio snowstorm she ran out of seed for her backyard birds so she rubber-banded a granola bar to the branch of a tree. Her photo of a wren munching away on her offering was priceless. Susan’s huge heart and ingenuity will make you laugh out loud.

Ruth at Nature Knitter in Rochester, Minnesota. She is relatively new at blogging but offers so much. She has a Monarch Butterfly Ranch and just recently tagged her first butterfly! Ruth is busy tending to her sprawling landscape and introduces something new to fellow bloggers every day. Her dedication to birds is appreciated by the many species that surround her. I am beginning to learn that Ruth is also a multi-talented woman. If she ever wanted a part-time job on evenings or weekends, there is a job as an appliance repair technician waiting for her as she is skilled at repairing broken dryers.

Alyssa at My Examined Life in Wisconsin. Alyssa lives on three acres of the most beautiful gardens. She and her husband work constantly on their lovely wildlife habitat. Since knowing Alyssa, I have learned how to can fruits and vegetables and live off the land. Alyssa is passionate about elephants and their freedom. She’s a factory worker with many talents and I enjoy reading her blog because of her passion for nature and her great literary talent.

Ruth at Body, Soul, and Spirit in Ontario, Canada. Ruth brings a wealth of knowledge into the blogosphere. These are only a few of Ruth’s blog topics that concern her and she’ll always add some history behind them: endangered species, human health, eating fresh - eating local, water and air quality, balanced ecosystems, landfills, conservation, and fuel consumption. At the end of the week, she delivers lovely “Friday Flowers”.

Tom at Monarch’s Nature Blog in western New York. I think Tom has the most enjoyable and rewarding job of anyone I know. He is a naturalist, field biologist, and nature photographer at Allegany State Park. His primary interest is in the life and welfare of birds and educates many young naturalists and their families during hands-on banding sessions and field trips. Just recently he photographed a Mudpuppy at ASP. That’s cool! Visiting his daily blog posts enriches me because I learn so much from his vast knowledge and love of nature. I need to add that his photography ROCKS.

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Awardees: Do not feel obligated to participate in this meme but if you care to bestow honors, here are the rules according to Climate of Our Future.

It’s easy to participate in this meme. At minimum, you can proudly display the BPGC badge (it’s available in two varieties: Transparent GIF and JPEG with white background) on your blog and bask in the glow of our collective good will. If you are sharing the kudos, however, please make sure you pass this list of rules to the blogs you are tagging.

1. When you get tagged, write a post with links to up to 5 blogs that you think are trying to change the world in a positive way.

2. In your post, make sure you link back to this post so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme.

3. Leave a comment or message for the bloggers you’re tagging, so they know they’re now part of the meme.

4. Optional: Proudly display the “Bloggers For Positive Global Change” award badge with a link to the post that you write up.

Thanks to Dawn and everyone who shares love of outdoor life.