Cavell-Clarke, Steffi.Caring for Earth.Crabtree Publishing, 2018.

This important title introduces environmental stewardship to young readers. Relatable examples show readers how to care for the environment in their own communities, and how even small changes can help address issues in the global community.

Dyer, Janice.Designing Green Communities.Crabtree Publishing, 2018.

Introducing the design thinking process as a vehicle for change, this timely title motivates readers to create environmentally sustainable practices and make them easily accessible in their communities. Beginning with a detailed look at the steps involved in design thinking, readers are guided through the process so they can design their own solutions to big issue—from minimizing pollution to limiting usage of non-renewable energy.

Kaye, Cathryn Berger and Cousteau, Philippe.Going Blue: A Teen Guide to Saving Our Oceans, Lakes, Rivers, & Wetlands.Free Spirit Publishing, 2010.

Written by service learning expert Cathryn Berger Kaye and ocean spokesperson Philippe Cousteau, Going Blueeducates teens about Earth’s water crisis and gives them tools and inspiration to transform their ideas into action as they plan and do a meaningful service project that benefits our planet’s water system.

Paul, Miranda.One Plastic Bag: Isatou Ceesay and the Recycling Women of the Gambia.Millbrook Press, 2015.

Plastic bags are cheap and easy to use. But what happens when a bag breaks or is no longer needed? In Njau, Gambia, people simply dropped the bags and went on their way. One plastic bag became two. Then ten. Then a hundred. The bags accumulated in ugly heaps alongside roads. Water pooled in them, bringing mosquitoes and disease. Some bags were burned, leaving behind a terrible smell. Some were buried, but they strangled gardens. They killed livestock that tried to eat them. Something had to change. Isatou Ceesay was that change. She found a way to recycle the bags and transform her community. This inspirational true story shows how one person's actions really can make a difference in our world.

Smith-Llera, Danielle.Trash Vortex: How Plastic Pollution Is Choking the World’s Oceans.Compass Point Books, 2018.

Millions of tons of plastic slip into oceans every year. Some floats and travels slowly with the currents, endangering the health of marine animals. The rest is hardly visible but far more dangerous. Tiny bits of plastic sprinkle the ocean’s surface or mix into the sandy seafloor and beaches. It ends up inside birds, fish, and other animals, harming them—and ultimately humans. Experts struggle with fear and hope as they work to stop the flood of plastic threatening living organisms across the globe.