by Sarah Lane
So the City Council of Asheville, North Carolina, wants to keep a man elected to the council, Cecil Bothwell, from being sworn in because he is a nontheist, and the North Carolina Constitution, in direct conflict with the U.S. Constitution, disqualifies for office “First, any person who shall deny the being of Almighty God.” At the same time the Rotary Club of Leesburg, Virginia, has been blocked from doing what it has done for 50 years: set up a Christmas tree on the grounds of the Loudon County …

by Katy Leakey
Color and beauty are the thoughts that strike me when I see a Maasai woman. Each morning, as I walk out to greet the women who work with us, I am impressed by their dramatic allure. With their long slender necks, ear and wrists adorned in layers of beaded jewelry, and fit bodies draped in colorful patterned shukas, they are both stately and voluptuous—a blend few cultures have achieved.
My husband and I live among the Maasai in Kenya and employ the women to handcraft jewelry. The business started …

by Jennifer Calkins
Sand colored egg cases litter the Puget Sound Beaches dotting the city of Seattle at low tide.  These cases are produced by Lewis’ moon snails (Polinices lewisii). The mucus emitted to form the egg cases is shaped by the snail’s large foot. If you see the egg cases, you will also see empty shells of other animals with neat little holes drilled in them.  A hungry moon snail grabs a clam or mussel or some other shellfish, drills a hole with its radula (a drill-like structure found in …

by Sarah Townsend
I’m scheduled to pick grape leaves tomorrow for a meal that will celebrate locally grown wine and produce. I have been instructed to pick the leaves that are both large enough to stuff and not tough. I know to feel the veins and note the curvature of the leaves. I also know not to strip all the leaves from any one branch which may cause it to wither—a reminder that no one individual can carry the weight of community. These leaves will be rolled into dolmas for our …

by Sarah Lane and Julie Hall
Our July issue features the dueling and yet associated themes of Independence and Interdependence. As living organisms, we are all more or less independent, able to perform certain functions—swallowing, moving, gripping, looking—on our own, and yet each one of is connected to all others on this planet. Whether tree, primate, amphibian, parasite, flowering plant, reptile, insect, aquatic mammal, or crustacean, we are all inextricably linked by virtue of place. Here’s an example (look here for the source):

The drop by one or two degrees Fahrenheit that …

by Pat Leonard and Christianne White, Cornell Lab of Ornithology
What kind of wild animal do you see nearly every day of your life? Birds. They are living right near you, in your neighborhood, leading busy lives, building nests, laying eggs, and raising young. They are independent from us yet also dependent on us because we have such a big impact on the places they live—especially in cities.
Fascinating Pigeons

One of the most common city birds is the pigeon. But don’t think that common means “uninteresting.”

The Rock Pigeon can fly 50 miles …

Blue Planet Run Foundation’s The Race to Provide Safe Drinking Water to the World tells the story of our planet’s interdependent relationship with water in 250 stunning images. Download the book now for free (look for the free download box on the Amazon.com page) and read it. Then choose an image that you respond to the most. And then tell us in the comments box below

the image you chose,
the page number it’s on, and
the connection you feel to the image (in 50 words or less).

We’ll choose the best response, and …

by Kirsten Corsaro, The Green Guru, Nexyoo.com, The Revolution of Consumerism ~ Empowering Positive Change
It’s that time of year again where we all celebrate our freedom in the United States: our Independence. And what great fun this is: fireworks and BBQ grills, with fun-filled gatherings of our best friends and family. We’ve been celebrating this since the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. It is awe inspiring to review the last 233 years and how we’ve grown and evolved as a society. We’ve created some amazing technologies and …

by the Staff at Blue Planet Run
Consider these facts about water:

One out of 6 people on the planet lack access to safe drinking water.
Each year 1.8 million children die from waterborne diseases (1 every 15 seconds).
Women and children walk on average 6K, almost 4 miles, to collect water each day.
One quart of wastewater can pollute 8 quarts of fresh water.
Half of the world’s 500 major rivers are seriously depleted or polluted.
Four quarts of oil discarded can contaminate 1 million gallons of water.
Poor sanitation …