Print
A gorilla sat on a blanket on a secluded grassy patch in an enclosure at the Los Angeles Zoo and calmly munched lettuce leaves. It appeared to be a perfect socially distanced activity for a bright and sunny Tuesday afternoon.
Onlookers gathered for their own pandemic-friendly excursions. The zoo had re-reopened that morning after shuttering Dec. 7 for the second time amid the COVID-19 pandemic and attendees were eager to see the animals. Many were eager just to be doing something, anything, outside their homes.
The gorilla paused his picnic to look back at the small crowd, the first “fans” he’d seen in just over two months. From the other side of the enclosure, Riley Hampsten, 5, of Lancaster, exclaimed, “Hey, I’m looking at you, and you’re looking at me, and you’re funny.”
NOAA Ocean Guardian Schools Continue to Care for Our Blue Planet
By Naomi Pollack
December 2020
In 2009, NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries established the NOAA Ocean Guardian School program. Each year, K-12 schools from around the country submit project proposals for funding and participation in the year-long program. Selected schools carry out hands-on school- or community-based stewardship projects that fall under one of the five program pathways: Marine Debris, 6Rs (Rethink/Reduce/Refuse/Reuse/Rot/Recycle), Watershed Restoration, School Garden/Habitat, and Energy & Ocean Health.
With the goal of reducing single-use plastic at their school, North Point High School (Waldorf, MD) Ocean Guardians model their new reusable water bottle slings.