By Grace L. (9th Grade), Poster by Alina T. (9th Grade)
Cupertino’s annual earth and arbor day festival is truly a great event where it connects everyone into a community. I had the honor to be able to be a part of this festival, where I was able to interact with various people throughout the Cupertino community.
interactive seed planting
The standee that Ecolyst held involved various activities, one of them being an interactive seed planting activity. The activity involved being able to germinate a seed by using a paper towel. It is an easy and effective way to speed up the seeds’ growing time. To do this, you would put about 4-6 seeds inside a paper towel, and then spray it down with water. After you fold the paper towel together, you put it inside a ziploc bag. After about 2-10 days the seeds should be able to grow. For the first hour of the event, I was able to teach various people how to germinate their seeds. We had sunflower seeds, rose seeds, basil seeds, and a lot more. Sunflower seeds seemed to be the most popular among all the people that came to germinate their seeds. It was truly a fascinating experience.
answering questions and winning a prize
The second activity I was able to help out for involved answering questions and winning a prize. People who came up to the standee were invited to write a short paragraph about how they would feel if they were an animal that was experiencing the effects of pollution. If they wrote down the paragraph, they were able to win a free toy that we provided. On the other hand, if they answered a short survey about pollution, we would give them a free snack that they were able to enjoy. Lots of people were able to experience this activity. At the end of the festival, we were able to pass out all of the toys with little to no snacks remaining. It was fascinating reading all the different answers that people wrote on the paragraph and survey. But in the end, after reading all of the responses, everyone agreed that pollution was a horrible phenomenon that is affecting our everyday lives.
It is truly amazing to see lots of people in the Cupertino community be able to come out and experience this event. I was able to work in a team with different people while also helping out people coming up to our standee. I am glad that I was able to participate in this event, where I am able to promote the growing of plants while also spreading awareness about pollution.
