POWERGRAMS

Community Classroom Demopolis High School senior Marlana Mitchell is beginning to understand what it means to be a good environmental steward. After volunteering with Renew Our Rivers, Mitchell is more aware of how actions today have a lasting impact on waterways that surround her community. As a volunteer at the recent cleanup at Lake Demopolis, Mitchell and 30 classmates worked alongside volunteers that included employees of Greene County Steam Plant and students from Westside Elementary School, Demopolis Middle School and the University of West Alabama. The 136 volunteers removed from the lake 6.6 tons of trash, 2,100 pounds of tires and a 1,500-pound abandoned boat. However, in the midst of collecting trash on a recent Saturday morning, Mitchell and her classmates learned lessons of stewardship and the importance of giving back to their community, all through Renew Our Rivers. "I learned that a lot of trash was on the riverbanks due to storms and floods. I never thought there would be so much trash on the riverbanks," Mitchell said. "It is important for us to participate in Renew Our Rivers because we should all help keep our communities clean." Cynthia Phillips, an Advanced Placement physics teacher at Demopolis High School, encourages her students to participate in the Renew Our Rivers cleanup each year because of its educational and stewardship opportunities. "For many of our students, this is the first time for them to go out on a boat and see animals and wildlife that are part of the lake habitat," said Phillips. "But more importantly, they learn what it means to be a good steward while also making connections with others in the community. For them, the experience is priceless." Like Mitchell, students across Alabama have had similar experiences learning about the environment through Renew Our Rivers. "The students that come out and participate in a Renew Our Rivers cleanup get to see firsthand how trash from a roadside or parking lot can wash into a ditch and then into a river," said Mike Clelland, an Environmental Affairs specialist and stewardship coordinator for Renew Our Rivers. "And as some of the trash that they remove has obviously been in the river for many years, they become aware of how long even a little bit of trash can impact a river system." Phillips said her students leave Renew Our Rivers with new observations about their role in the community. "Every year after the cleanup, the students often say they didn't realize how much trash was in the lake and what kind of trash is out there," Phillips said. "It causes them to become more conscientious of where their trash goes." Since 2005, the Lake Demopolis cleanup has attracted hundreds of volunteers who have helped remove about 375,000 pounds of trash. And for just as long, students from the surrounding areas have volunteered their Saturday mornings to make a difference. Clelland said students like the ones at Demopolis High School need to continue to convey the importance of youth involvement in projects like Renew Our Rivers. "It's important to get the next generation involved, to help create a vision and a mindset of the importance of keeping our aquatic ecosystems clean, for all things living." By Anna Catherine Roberson 100% CONNECTED 3 STUDENTS GET STEWARDSHIP LESSONS AT LAKE DEMOPOLIS CLEANUP Employees, volunteers removed tons of trash from Lake Demopolis. Demopolis High School students volunteered. Photos by Sha Torya Eaton

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