Planet Ark’s new book, Now for the Good News, focuses on positive environmental initiatives to inspire future action.
You may recognise Planet Ark as the organisation behind National Tree Day, but did you know that the important environmental advocate has also published a book?
Titled Now for the Good News, Planet Ark’s children’s book features good-news stories about the environment to teach kids that ‘WE CAN DO THIS’.
By sharing informative and inspiring stories, the book showcases what is already being done to reverse environmental damage, and how kids can play a part.
We caught up with Planet Ark’s CEO, Rebecca Gilling, to learn more.
What inspired Planet Ark to venture into children's literature with Now for the Good News?
At Planet Ark, we like to recognise issues but focus on solutions.
Much of the news we hear these days about the environment is negative, despite the fact there is a lot of good happening too.
With concepts like ‘climate distress’ and ‘eco-anxiety’ becoming more recognised in mental health (especially among young people), we felt that there was a need to highlight the positive action taking place.
In 2017, we started a newsletter called 'Positive Environment News', and it quickly became some of our most popular content.
A few years later, Penguin Random House approached with the idea of putting a book together, full of good news for young Australians. It was an opportunity we couldn’t pass up.
We spent over a year finding the stories and crafting something we are all very proud of. We hope it will help the next generation recognise the good work being done today and inspire them towards further action tomorrow!
The book covers a wide range of environmental topics. How did your organisation decide which issues to address in the book?
We wanted Now for the Good News to be both educational and inspirational, so we tried to cover a broad range of topics, issues and solutions. There was also a big focus on recognising the fact that the world has managed environmental systems very well for millennia, and it’s our human impact that has thrown this balance out of whack.
In nature, there is no such thing as waste; this is a purely human phenomenon. We can and need to learn from the circularity that is pervasive in nature (such as in the water and carbon cycles, for example) and the book showcases that.
How do you believe young readers will benefit from the environmental lessons in Now for the Good News?
I think it starts with getting away from the doom and gloom that comes with the 24-hour news cycle and its focus on conflict and negativity.
As important as it is to recognise the significant environmental issues we face, this version of events can lead to feelings of helplessness. We hope that by bringing attention to the many solutions being brought to the table in Australia and around the world, young readers can feel empowered to be changemakers and inspired to act.
What are your hopes for the future of Australia’s environment, and how can Now for the Good News contribute to that vision?
Our mission is to help build a world where people not only live in balance with nature but thrive.
To achieve this, we aim to unite people, businesses and governments through positive environmental actions.
We believe that Now for the Good News provides a blueprint of positive action for younger Australians to take, become inspired by and run with.
The younger generation has already proven itself to be environmentally conscious and willing to walk the walk through events such as the School Strike 4 Climate. That kind of political activism is powerful and must continue, but we need to build on it with positive, solutions-oriented action. That is what we hope to inspire with Now for the Good News.