This will be the final blog about my trip to the tundra surrounding Hudson Bay. Future blogs will focus on polar bear facts, issues, climate change, ideas for taking action to help the bears, etc. We will also have updates posted about current activity on the tundra. A group of scientists, photographers, and other experts will be contributing to this ongoing blog. But, prior to that, I’ll write a quick summary here of the end to this year’s tundra trip.
What an amazing experience this has been, and how fortunate I have been to be able to participate in it. It has truly been incredible.
On Sunday, I left Winnipeg to fly to Nashville, TN. I was scheduled to present two workshops on global education and web 2.0 in education at the Tennessee Association of Independent Schools’ Biennial Conference. Although I was very tired, I had committed to this before the trip to the tundra, so I wanted to be sure and participate in the conference. All went well with the conference and presentations, but I began to feel the after-trip letdown and was feeling weary. While my workshops were great, I know I wasn’t my usual energetic self. The conference ended, and I jumped on the St. George’s bus to ride back to Memphis where I quickly unpacked and went to bed early.
Being back at work on Tuesday was great…although I was still weary. The sixth grade students were very excited to see me! I was a “rock star” in their eyes, and it was very cute and comical. Some of them had fabulous questions, and it was so rewarding to see the impact the videoconferences and iChat A/V sessions had on them. It made me recognize the value of what we had done during our week of webcasts and videoconferences, and it was very affirming and rewarding.
So, now I have work ahead of me…editing and posting the webcasts that will be archived for future viewing, uploading photos, planning and publicizing the student psa contest, and much more! We even have a live interview on the local CBS affiliate station on Friday in which Julia (a student), Bill McClain (a teacher who has been involved with the project), and I will all participate. Fun–we’ll share the story and be PBI advocates once again!
And, I’ll start planning for the future of the blog…how to best utilize it as a forum to provide information and promote changes that will benefit polar bears as well as all of the other animals that share this planet with us. Bill Nye once said, “We are a speck on a speck on a speck in the universe.” But, let’s all work together to make our speck the best it can be!
