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As part of its mission to protect natural lands and preserve the environment for all people, Earth Day Network developed The Canopy Project. Rather than focusing on large scale forestry, The Canopy Project plants trees that help communities – especially the world’s impoverished communities – sustain themselves and their local economies. Trees reverse the impacts of land degradation and provide food, energy and income, helping communities to achieve long-term economic and environmental sustainability. Trees also filter the air and help stave off the effects of climate change.
With the reality of increasingly unpredictable weather patterns and more frequent and violent storms and floods, tree cover to prevent devastating soil erosion has never been more important. That’s why, earlier this the year, Earth Day Network made a commitment with the Global Poverty Project to plant 10 million trees over the next five years in impoverished areas of the world. Please join us to help make this commitment a reality.
Accomplishments:
Over the past three years, The Canopy Project, has planted over 1.5 million trees in 18 countries. In the US, projects to restore urban canopies have been completed in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, St. Louis, Atlanta, Baltimore, Cleveland, Flint, and Chicago. In Haiti alone, where earthquakes caused landslides on deforested hillsides, leading to horrific devastation, Earth Day Network planted 500,000 trees. And in three high-poverty districts in central Uganda, we planted 350,000 trees to provide local farmers with food, fuel, fencing, and soil stability.
Our tree plantings are supported by sponsors and individual donations and carried out in partnership with nonprofit tree planting organizations throughout the world. We work in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme’s Billion Trees Campaign. Each tree planted is counted toward A Billion Acts of Green®.
Help Earth Day Network grow the Earth’s canopy by planting trees where they are needed most
Good Black News
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Ever wonder how a single act of kindness can prompt a domino effect of others? Meet Lysa Terkeurst, a mom of three girls, whose decision to adopt two members of a boys choir from war-torn Liberia has prompted several other families from her North Carolina community to do the same.
“These 12 beautiful boys from the other side of the world got up and started to sing from the depth of their soul, just the most beautiful music,” Terkeurst who lives near Charlotte, North Carolina, told TODAY’s Jenna Bush Hager. “I was very challenged by the reality that these boys who had been singing and smiling and just had such joy in their life, that they had nothing.”
In the 10 years since Terkeurst’s decision to adopt two of the boys — Mark, who was 13 at the time and Jackson, who was 14 and had lived in an orphanage since the age of six after his parents were murdered — 45 other children have been adopted from the same orphanage, including fellow members of the boys choir that originally stole Terkeurst’s heart. Watch video above for the rest of this heartwarming story.
article via huffingtonpost.com
April showers brought more than May flowers for first lady Michelle Obama and a group of elementary school children from two New Jersey schools seriously damaged by Hurricane Sandy, Monday. Students from Union Beach Memorial School in Union Beach, N.J., and Long Beach Island Grade School in Ship Bottom, N.J., joined Obama to harvest crops, such as lettuce and broccoli, planted in the White House garden in April.
“One of the reasons why we wanted to invite you guys is I understand that given all that you guys have been through,” she said. “Many of your schools got damaged in Sandy, right? — but despite that, you guys are still going to school every day, and you’re working on eating healthy … And it hasn’t been that easy, but you guys have managed to get through the school year way on top of the game, and we’re just very proud of you,” she added.
The children’s visit to the White House coincided with President Obama’s visit to their home state of New Jersey to highlight rebuilding efforts in coastal areas damaged during Hurricane Sandy last fall.
HALLE, Germany — When Karamba Diaby arrived in Germany as a student from Senegal he knew only two things in German: Bundesliga and BMW — the professional soccer league and the automobile manufacturer. The only hitch was that it was October 1985 and Mr. Diaby had landed in East Germany, where comrades frowned on both West German capitalist institutions. “They weren’t too fond of hearing that in the East,” said Mr. Diaby, 51. “They told me, ‘We don’t say BMW here, we say ‘Trabi,’ ” the nickname for the rickety yet ubiquitous East German car, the Trabant.
The bland, greasy food in East Germany was a far cry from the spicy cuisine of his native Senegal, where his sister used to cook his favorite dish, thiebou dien, a paellalike preparation made with fried okra, yams and fish. But he stuck it out to the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Germany, making a home for himself here in the state of Saxony-Anhalt and becoming a German citizen in 2001.
Now Mr. Diaby has the opportunity to make history himself. He placed third in the Social Democrats’ state primary in February to earn a coveted spot on the party’s parliamentary list. If Mr. Diaby and the Social Democrats can defend the three seats they won here four years ago, he would become the first black member of the Bundestag in German history.
Media titan and global philanthropist Oprah Winfrey gave the Commencement Address at Harvard College today after receiving an honorary Doctorate of Law from the University. According to Harvard Magazine.com, Winfrey, appropriately clad in Crimson (the school color) gave a 30-minute address of inspiration, anecdote, and uplifting aphorisms, drawing on her own experience. She hoped to offer inspiration to “anyone who feels inferior or disadvantaged or screwed by life—this is a speech for the Quad” (a reference to the former Radcliffe, now College, residences considered by some undergraduates to be inferior to the Houses closer to the Charles River and the center of campus).
During her introduction, Winfrey said one did not have to have a Type A personality to come to Harvard (or to succeed in television), “but it helps.” Her original talk show had been an enormous success for a quarter-century, she noted, topping the ratings in its time slot for 21 years. But she felt the need for new challenges, stopped the program, and launched the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN), only to see it become a dismal flop. A year ago, at the low point, she recalled, “the worst time in my professional life,” President Faust called to ask her to speak today. At that moment of stress, frustration, and embarrassment, Winfrey said, she could scarcely conceive of addressing successful Harvard graduates. She repaired to the shower (“It was either that or a bag of Oreos”), remembered the spiritual lyric “when the morning comes,” and determined that her professional woes would not last—that she would turn things around, certainly by the time of her Commencement address.
More broadly, she told the graduates, “It doesn’t matter how far you might rise,” no matter how they might raise their own bars and push themselves, they would surely stumble and fall. Then, they must remember, “There is no such thing as failure. Failure is just life trying to move us in a different direction”–even though, from deep in a hole, it might feel like failure.
To proceed, to learn from every mistake, the graduates must figure out the right next move by consulting their “inner moral GPS.” When members of the class of 2013 Google themselves hereafter, she said, their Harvard identity will always appear. But their success will be measured not by what they want to be; rather it will depend on who they want to be. Knowing who they want to be depends on creating the story that’s “about your purpose.”
Winfrey said she found her purpose in 1994, when she met a young girl who collected pocket change, ultimately amassing $1,000, to help others—an act that inspired Winfrey to call on viewers to do something similar. They collected $3 million in one month, she recounted, and established the Angel Network to fund education and build schools. That “focused my internal GPS,” she said, changing her purpose from appearing on television to determining to “use television and not be used by it.” She aimed to do so by finding the things that unite people and highlighting the transcendent nature of humans’ better selves.
The beautiful New York City brownstone once an incubator for “Bitches Brew,” breathed an “Essence of Miles.”
What took place was a commemoration of Miles Davis through the installation of a “cultural medallion” on the brownstone at 312 West 77 Street, Manhattan. Barbaralee Diamonstein-Spielvogel, Chairperson of the Historic Landmarks Preservation Center opened the dedication where all hands were on deck.
Old friends and family spoke at the event. Author-Biographer Quincy Troupe followed reading excerpts from his works describing Miles. Next up was composer/ arranger son of Jimmy Heath, Mtume, who expressed his experiences with the “genius.” Others who spoke were Lee Konitz, Gary Bartz, Wallace Roney, Phil Schaap, George Coleman and Miles’ nephew from Los Angeles drummer Vince Wilburn, Jr. Also present were Bill Saxton owner of Harlem’s Bill’s Place, Noah Evans son of arranger Gil Evans, Juini Booth bassist for Thelonious Monk and SunRa plus Sandra Trim-DaCosta (former Director of Marketing, Columbia Records/SONY Music) who worked closely with Miles for several years, after being assigned by the late legendary music industry executive Dr. George Butler (former Sr. Vice President, A&R, Columbia Records) to develop the overall marketing campaign for Miles and his recordings for the label … Dr. Butler played a significant role in the jazz icon’s return to the music scene and we are forever grateful to him for his tenacity and vision for Miles.
Of course, music filled the air and that was provided by Wallace Roney on trumpet, Gary Bartz on alto sax with Monty Alexander on keys. They performed a swinging version of Miles’ infamous “If I Were a Bell” a tune often used on the seventies hit The Cosby Show whenever a doorbell was written into the script. The trio was backed by the Advanced Jazz Combo at Harlem School of the Arts a brilliant young quartet with Matthew Whitaker on keys, Frank Rankin on Guitar, Dominic Gervais on drums and Oren Maximov on bass under the directorship of D.D. Jackson. An elegant set was provided by these young men prior to the event. All those present knew, contrary to popular belief, on this day… “Miles Smiles.”
article via eurweb.com
Idris Elba is poised to make a big splash at the movies this year. Not only is the sexy British actor headlining Guillermo del Toro‘s latest sci-fi epic Pacific Rim, he will be also playing Nelson Mandela in the biopic Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom. His performance as the legendary South African leader is already generating tremendous buzz. Elba himself has not been shy about touting his upcoming movie. In a recent interview with The Guardian, Elba called his version of Mandela “hands down the best.”
He went on to clarify, “Not in terms of performance…but my film’s about his entire life. Anyone wanting to understand who Mandela was should go and watch my film.” “Morgan Freeman is outstanding. Terrence Howard is an outstanding actor. But my film is about his life,” Elba added, referring to Freeman’s 1999 movie Invictus and Howard’s depiction of Mandela in Winnie – a 2012 film which never made it to theaters.
Now we’re getting our first glimpse of Elba as the iconic man. A promo poster for the movie has been released (pictured above). Elba may have some stiff competition from his fellow black actors come awards season with both Michael B. Jordan (Fruitvale) and Forest Whitaker (The Butler) earning early praise for their starring roles in prestige pictures due out this fall. Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom is expected to be released on November 27, 2013.
article via thegrio.com
The clip, entitled “Cherishing Life’s Special Moments,” seeks to raise awareness about the importance of speaking with your doctor about prostate cancer.
Prostate cancer is the second most common cause of cancer death for men in the United States, affecting one in six men, according to PCF. In the U.S. alone, 2.5 million American men and their families are currently living with prostate cancer.
“As a father, I cherish the special moments in life and understand how they can fly by in an instant,” said Quincy Jones. “Prostate cancer has affected dear friends and family of mine, so I am honored to be part of this campaign with Stand Up To Cancer and the Prostate Cancer Foundation to reinforce how incredibly important it is for men to talk to their doctors about prostate cancer.”
“I was excited to shoot this PSA with my father,” said Rashida Jones. “We have to protect the men we cherish, so please talk to your fathers, your grandfathers, husbands, brothers and sons and make sure they speak to their doctors about this disease and how to reduce their risk.”
“Men are 40 percent less likely than women to have visited a healthcare provider in the past year…But talking to one’s doctor about prostate cancer is critically important,” said Stand Up To Cancer President & CEO Sung Poblete, PhD, RN. “We are thrilled to have the father and daughter pair of Quincy and Rashida Jones spread that message through this PSA, and hope it empowers men to speak with their doctors about prostate cancer and when screening is right for them so they can make informed decisions.”
To learn more, visit StandUp2Cancer.org or PCF.org.
article via thegrio.com
Not long after the curtain rises on the second act of “The Trip to Bountiful,” the Broadway revival of the Horton Foote play at the Stephen Sondheim Theater, something unusual happens. Cicely Tyson, as Mrs. Carrie Watts, sits on a bus station bench in a small Texas town. She is on the run from her abusive daughter-in-law and henpecked son in Houston, desperate to see the family farm in Bountiful once more before she dies.
Audience members join in as Ms. Tyson sings “Blessed Assurance.” Overcome with emotion, she begins singing an old Protestant hymn, “Blessed Assurance.”
From the first note, there’s a palpable stirring among many of the black patrons in the audience, which the play, with its mostly black cast, draws in large numbers. When Ms. Tyson jumps to her feet, spreads her arms and picks up the volume, they start singing along. On some nights it’s a muted accompaniment. On other nights, and especially at Sunday matinees, it’s a full-throated chorus that rocks the theater.
SEVERAL YEARS AGO when a women’s magazine asked CNN special correspondent and 2013 Harvard Class Day speaker Soledad O’Brien ’88 about the best advice she ever received, she recalled what her tough Cuban mother once told her: “Most people are idiots.”
The words were a bit too harsh to make it into the magazine, but O’Brien said the advice has stuck with her because it rang true: Most people are idiots, she said, because instead of building you up, they will tell you why you will fail.
“Do not listen to others people’s take on the life you should lead,” O’Brien told the audience of seniors, families, and friends gathered in Tercentenary Theatre today for the Class Day ceremony. “By not listening, you can figure out what your heart is telling you to do.”
O’Brien called her own parents excellent role models in not listening. Her Cuban mother and Australian father were a couple in Maryland in 1958, when it was illegal to be in an interracial relationship. As they walked down the street together, they were regularly spit on and called names. When O’Brien—one of six children who all graduated from Harvard—asked her mother how she dealt with such racism, her mother replied that she knew America “was better than that,” and wanted to be part of the change.
The words were a bit too harsh to make it into the magazine, but O’Brien said the advice has stuck with her because it rang true: Most people are idiots, she said, because instead of building you up, they will tell you why you will fail.
“Do not listen to others people’s take on the life you should lead,” O’Brien told the audience of seniors, families, and friends gathered in Tercentenary Theatre today for the Class Day ceremony. “By not listening, you can figure out what your heart is telling you to do.”
O’Brien called her own parents excellent role models in not listening. Her Cuban mother and Australian father were a couple in Maryland in 1958, when it was illegal to be in an interracial relationship. As they walked down the street together, they were regularly spit on and called names. When O’Brien—one of six children who all graduated from Harvard—asked her mother how she dealt with such racism, her mother replied that she knew America “was better than that,” and wanted to be part of the change.