I was eating my tea before, and my brother was watching a program called ‘The Big Green Thing.’ It was yet another piece of propaganda telling me how if I didn’t re use my plastic bags the world is going to end. However, my brother wouldn’t turn it over so I ended up watching it. I saw the presenter and thought ‘That looks like David Rothschild’, but having ever only seen one picture of him I wasn’t sure. Anyway, I thought I would google the program and his name came up. Here is an interview I found:
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In Nick’s Big Green Thing, kids’ TV channel Nickelodeon and National Geographic Explorer David de Rothschild, have got together to explain how the small things you do make a BIG difference when it comes to protecting our planet. One of the show’s highlights is Nick’s Big Green Challenge, where David challenges kids to uncover evidence of global warming – with some rockin’ results! NG Kids catches up with David to find out why he’s convinced it’s kids that hold the key to changing the world for the better…
NG Kids: Hi, David! Tell us about Nick’s Big Green Thing?
David de Rothschild: We thought it was time kids had their own voice, so we sent them off in pairs for a day in London to find proof of climate warming. It was like an eco investigation and the kids were Agents Of Change – we call them AOCs for short.
NGK: What kind of challenges did you set the AOCs?
DR: Well, two were sent to the airport to ask travellers if they really needed to go on their journey, while another pair sent a guy wearing a gorilla costume into a mobile phone store to grab the staff’s attention! They then asked if the store had recycling policies or if it knew that Coltan – a mineral used in mobile phones – is mined in the Congo, which is endangering the already almost-extinct mountain gorillas.
NGK: We bet that gave them food for thought. Any other challenges?
DR: There were 10 challenges in all, including going to Canary Wharf in London, which is full of huge office buildings, to find out why they often left the lights on all night in empty buildings. Another AOC was worried about all the free newspapers floating about London, so he stood on London Bridge and read out the news over a loudspeaker! His solution was that all of London should be wired up to a news Tannoy system, so there’d be no need for newspapers. How cool would that be?!
NGK: What a top idea! But why did you get children to do the challenges instead of grown-ups?
DR: Kids are brilliant at breaking down barriers. For example, some of our AOCs were sent into a supermarket to ask customers if they’d pay 15p for a plastic bag or if they would reuse them. The adults ignored them at first, but eventually the customers listened to what the kids had to say. One lady even came back to the shop later, and said: “Look, I’ve brought my plastic bag back!” It just goes to show that if you arm people with information, they WILL make the right decisions.
NGK: So you really believe that adults do take notice of what these AOCs are saying?
DR: Yes, and that includes the people who are in a position to make changes, such as Hilary Benn, Secretary of State for Environment. The AOCs went along to ask him what he’s done to help the fight against global warming, and Mr Benn really took notice of what they were saying. It was awesome!
[http://www.ngkids.co.uk/cool_stories/366/nick_s_big_green_thing/]
