Pool Your Pennies: National Kids Fundraising Effort to Help Wildlife

Every penny counts, and pennies from Barrow can help protect wildlife and biodiversity.

Kids are invited to participate in the Audubon Pennies for the Planet educational fundraising initiative and action campaign.

Participants will not only learn more about conservation, but also directly help protect habitats by raising funds and conducting environmental projects in their own communities.

“Kids are our future conservationists,” Audubon President David Yarnold said in a news release announcing the initiative. “This program gives young people a chance to learn more and be empowered by seeing results from their actions. We hope that this year’s conservation projects inspire them to get involved and realize that they can make a meaningful difference in protecting our planet.”

Pennies for the Planet donations collected through Aug. 31, 2012, will be divided equally among the following three conservation projects:

• Restore Texas’ one-of-a-kind Sabal Palm Forest by replacing invasive plants with native species, providing necessary habitat for local wildlife such as ocelots, buff-bellied hummingbirds and green jays. The forest is home to many species of plants and animals that do not occur elsewhere in the U.S.
• Preserve North Carolina’s Lea-Hutaff Barrier Island by protecting habitat for the island’s threatened and endangered species. These islands provide a natural protection from extreme weather and play host to a variety of species, including beach-nesting birds such as piping plovers and least terns, as well as the endangered loggerhead sea turtle.
• Protect the Alaskan Arctic Ocean by supporting scientists working to learn more about the Beaufort and Chukchi seas and the unique species that call this remote area home, including whales, ivory gulls, eiders and polar bears.

Pennies for the Planet materials, including a full color poster and educators’ guide, and a participation form with incentives and awards are available for download at www.penniesfortheplanet.org for classroom or at-home use.

The group that raises the most funds postmarked by the May 5, 2012, deadline will be awarded an Audubon BioBash, a fun environmental educational assembly led by Audubon educators.