Yosemite National Park

Yosemite National Park was established in 1890 which was home to the

Ahwahneechee people for thousands of years before settlers arrived in the area. Yosemite National Park is

United States national park lying between Western Sierra of Northern California. Almost 95% of the park of the is classified as wilderness. Yosemite National Park offers an abundance of activities and sightseeing destinations. Yosemite is known for its Waterfalls which includes Yosemite Falls the largest waterfall in North America.  Yosemite National Park supports more than 400 species of vertebrates including fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.Three species: grizzly bear, California red legged frog, and foothill yellow legged frog are believed to be extirpated in the park within recent history. An astounding 262 species of birds have been documented in Yosemite. Two Mammals that are being protected from being threatened at Yosemite include the Sierra Nevada Red Fox and the Wolverine.

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is a body of marine debris and broken down plastic particles concentrated in the centre of the North Pacific Gyre. Also known as the Pacific Trash Vortex, it spans from the West Coast of North America to Japan and is a collection of the Western Garbage Patch closer to Japan and the Eastern Garbage Patch closer to America. Research shows that about 80% of this debris is land-based, 65% of which, is plastic that hasn’t been disposed of properly. Carelessly discarded plastics and other garbages makes its way into the ocean by wind, streams or rivers. Another contributor to this disaster is cargo and passenger ships. Ships lose cargo due to storms and it makes its way into the gyre. The ocean’s currents traps the debris in the center of the gyre, creating what could be perceived as an island of disposable plastic and other types of debris. Its estimated size is said to be twice that of Texas. It has been in existence for over fifty years and in that time, over one million pounds of garbage has been accumulated.

Not only is it an unpleasant sight, marine debris is harmful to marine life. Loggerhead turtles often mistake plastic bags for jellies and can choke on it. Albatrosses mistake plastic resin pellets for eggs and feeds it to their young ones. This causes the birds to die of starvation and/or disruptured organs. The garbage blocks out sunlight from the ocean’s autotrophs that depend on it for food. This then changes the food web and as a result, seafood populations slowly deplete and as seafood becomes scarce, it also becomes expensive. In an effort to clean the mess we’ve made and rid the ocean of this disease, eliminating or limiting our use of disposable plastic and switching to biodegradable resources would be a fantastic start. Throwing away our garbage in the appropriate bins is also another way to help. Recycle and Reuse while there is still have time to choose if we win or lose.

John Muir (Man of Mountains)

John Muir was one of the most influential people in the world because of his role in creating and maintaining our National Parks as much as he could from 1855-1914. This Scottish American man was born from Scotland and later moved to Wisconssin with his family at the age of 11. Fondly enough this national park enthusiast didn't enjoy nature and thought life around the homestead was boring. After seeking a job in a factory, he suffered an industrial accident making him temporarily blind. During and following this incident he started appreciating the things around him for what they were. Muir then realized preserving nature at all costs would take top priority, and so, made it his mission to do so. John graduated from the University of Wisconsin and became an author along with the hobby of a naturalist and enviromental philosopher which he treated like a job. With education and motivation to preserve the surrounding environment, he created a organization known as the Sierra Club. This club focused on caring for parks and preservation camps such as Yosemite, The Great Rainier, and the Grand Canyon parks and still does to this day. John was so influential he even intrigued the president at the time, Theodore Roosevelt, and agreed to have a partnership with him. Together, they greatly supported these parks and today we couldn't be more grateful.

Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park, the first national park in the united states and on this planet. Yellowstone national park was founded on March 1st,1872 by US congress and signed into a law by president Ulysses S. Grant. Yellowstone is located in Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana. 96% of the park is located in Wyoming, 3% in Montana, and the last percent in Idaho. This park was home to multiple Native American tribes, and currently is home hundreds of animal species and natural attractions. Due to the significance of this park many things are being protected, 60% of the worlds geysers and hot springs are located in these parks. Things like geothermal and hydrothermal features pools are things that make the park really interesting and attractive. The park also protects cultural information and historical information that pertained to many of the tribes. Yellowstone also inhabits many endangered species on this planet, animals like the gray wolf, bald eagle, grizzle bears and many more. This park is amazing and only hold beautify through and beyond this park. This park continues to be a home for many animals and is a huge tourist attraction for people all around the world.

Sir David Attenborough: Symposium

David Frederick Attenborough was born on May 8, 1926, currently 91, in London England. As a young child, Attenborough always wanted to be a natural scientist, which is why he attended the University of Cambridge and studied Natural Sciences. Throughout his life, he became a well known Broadcaster, an excellent Naturalist, and a respected Science Communicator.  

Attenborough briefly served in the British Royal Navy before entering the broadcasting business. The ‘Zoo Quest’ series, which ran from 1954 through 1963, was his first show at BBC. Initially, the producers at BBC did not want Attenborough to host the show because they believed that he had huge teeth. However, he eventually got his shot to host the series and brought a lot of success to the network. This was the beginning of Attenborough's seminal work and contribution to environmental science. He later worked on another series, ‘Life’ (1979), which would set the standard for modern nature documentaries. At the same time he narrated every episode of Wildlife on BBC One, 253 episodes, between 1977 and 2005. In each of these shows, Attenborough describes animals and environments, bringing this kind of information to people all around the world. Attenborough also contributes to the conservation of the environment. In 2006, he publicly backed a BirdLife International project to stop the killing of albatross by longline fishing boats. After giving his support, many others followed his footsteps and eventually got the message through. Attenborough also supported the World Wildlife Fund's campaign for Borneo's rainforest, which was a victim to industrial logging. He is currently the vice-president of BTCV, vice-president of Fauna and Flora International, president of Butterfly Conservation and president of Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust. These are only a few of the positions that Attenborough holds regarding to the conservation of the environment. Throughout his life he has received many recognitions and awards, including a knighthood and an honorary doctrine from the University of Cambridge.