Illinois Public Health Community Map

This resource is an interactive map provided by the Illinois Public Health Department. Using the map, you can look at doctor visit rates for the health issues listed below. The map provides data on race/ethnicity, age, education, and household income in various community areas across the state of Illinois. The map provides data for the […]

IQAir Earth

This resource is an interactive map that shows the Air Quality Index in cities all over the world. It also provides a daily world AQI ranking. Organization: IQAir Every year, 7 million people die from air pollution, and billions suffer unnecessarily from the effects of poor air quality. Yet many of people don’t have access to […]

Night of the Spadefoot Toads

Lonely after being displaced by his family’s move from Tucson, Arizona to Edenboro, Massachusetts, Ben Moroney misses the desert ecosystem, his best friend Tony, and his pet lizard Lenny. Desperate for the connections he had in his old home, the fifth grader begins walking through the woods near his house and spending time with his […]

Wangari’s trees of peace: A true story from Africa

A book biography of environmentalist Wangari Maathai shows young readers exactly how much of a difference one determined person with a vision can make. Born near Mount Kenya, Wangari misses the trees of her homeland while she is in the United States studying. Upon her return, she finds a desolate land where buildings have displaced […]

Don’t Waste Your Food

Amara’s dad says they shouldn’t waste food. But why is this such a big problem? Follow their story and find out what happens to food waste, what can be composted, and how to reduce the amount of food we throw away (Source). Author(s): Deborah Chancellor & Diane Ewen Deborah Chancellor is a writer of children’s fiction […]

The Weight of Numbers: Air Pollution and PM2.5

Emanating from smokestacks, vehicle engines, construction projects, and fires large and small, airborne pollution – sometimes smaller than the width of a human hair, and very often the product of human activity – is not just contributing to climate change. It is a leading driver of heart disease and stroke, lung cancer, and respiratory infections the […]

Chicago Flood Equity Map

This interactive map shows the racial disparities in flooding by Chicago zip code. Click a location on the map to view underlying flood statistics within that zip code. You may also search for an address or zip code to locate a specific place of interest (Source). Creator(s): Center for Neighborhood Technology CNT delivers innovative analysis […]

Margarito’s Forest / El Bosque de Don Margarito / Ri k’iche’laj ri tat Margarito

This true story, set in a remote village in the mountains of central Guatemala, helps explain one Maya family’s understanding of living in harmony with nature. Margarito’s forest was inspired by Don Margarito and his lifelong commitment to the ecology of his community. After a young Esteban complains of having to carry a seedling tree […]

Old Enough to Save the Planet

An inspiring look at young climate change activists who are changing the world. The world is facing a climate crisis like we’ve never seen before. And kids around the world are stepping up to raise awareness and try to save the planet. As people saw in the youth climate strike in September 2019, kids will […]

Green Machine: The Slightly Gross Truth About Turning Your Food Scraps Into Green Energy

From Cats Are a Liquid author Rebecca Donnelly, Green Machine is a playful nonfiction picture book celebrating innovation in the energy cycle with food waste composting–featuring illustrations by Christophe Jacques. Composting is cool! Celebrate the innovation and science that helps turn your food waste into green energy. See how food scraps are composted, collected, and processed, transforming trash into […]