Earth Camp has really made me think about all the water I’ve been using without even thinking. This experience has been so great I wish it didn’t have to end so fast. But our staff always ask us two questions at the end of each day; what did you learn about water and how can you be a better leader for a shared planet? Those questions really got my mind going and thinking can a little girl, like me, make a change in this world? The answer is yes, and I learned this thanks to Earth Camp.
One person that I think we should admire is Brad Lancaster. This is because he has made such a big effort to be earth friendly, his whole house is earth friendly. First, he uses only energy from his solar panels and uses rainwater and city water for drinking. In his neighborhood they planted mesquite and iron wood trees and use the beans to make food. They created a "sponge", they used leaves, twigs, bark and other things so the water wasn't wasted. He also has his chickens and bees. His family and he take showers outside with a shower they created using rainwater and they sometimes sleep on the roof of their storage shed. Lastly, he doesn't have a car, he uses his bike. He is someone I admire.

First I thought of all the ways I waste water and other things, then I thought of ways I could try to fix it or even amend it a little. For example, I take the longest showers out of all my family, the day I got back from Earth Camp I took a short shower, my mom was surprised. Also, if I leave the water running I could catch it in a bucket and water the plants with it. My mom conserves a lot of water when we wash dishes, for example we only use warm water on dishes pots or pans that have oil on it and we don’t fry a lot of things. In fact, we reuse some of our oil. I will unplug our computer every night to conserve energy and allow our computer to refresh for a new day. Whenever I have to rinse fruits, vegetables and other things instead of letting the water run I will wash it in a bowl and reuse water. An idea a book gave was to catch rainwater and water the plants with that.
A big project I would like to work on is recycling in our neighborhood. My mom has boxes full of papers that need to be recycled, but we don’t recycle in our neighborhood. So I was thinking about talking to the managers about installing recycling bins. But of course it isn’t as easy as I make it sound, I would have to research what company could help us, if it cost money and if it does, finding ways to raise that money. I’m sure if I succeeded, together we could make a change. I want to be a leader for a shared planet.