____________________________________________________________________ WHAT’S NEW……   . LEARN ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT . Take classes through the city of Santa Monica: www.sustainableworks.org Plastic Bags - most crucial to view Remember to bring my own bags to the market! Once in the slide show, use the scroll bar on the right side of the screen to scroll through. Everyone on earth should see this. It's that important. Please take a look http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080506/MULTIMEDIA02/80505016  Watch Online: www.storyofstuff.com Watch dvd: The Eleventh Hour Invonvenient Truth Buy Resource Book: "Loving God Through Nautre" - $10 Learn the basics of Greening Your Life and the Interconnectedness of our Resources - interspersed with teachings of Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Contact Rita. . Ammas says, “God is in everything, not just in human beings. God is in the mountains, the rivers and the trees, in the birds and the animals, in the clouds, the sun, the moon and the stars.  Everything in Nature has a purpose to fulfill.  There are no mistakes in God’s Creation.  Every creature and every object that has been created by God is so utterly special.  How can anyone who understands this want to kill or destroy?”   . Los Angeles Green Friend's Contributions to the Environment: *Greening Amma's Tour through purchasing of Stainless Steel Cutlery to reduce waste, Composting throughout the Tour, Recycling Plastic, Glass and Cans *Holding Class on Greening Your Life *Greening Amma's events, satsangs, and community satsangs by purchasing reusable plates and cups for all hosts to be washed after the events. *Participating at World Fest - in honoring the Earth, Nature and Animals *Preparing a Greening Resource Book to have easy to use information for all to start implementing in caring for Mother Nature.  The books net profits all go to support Amma's Charitable activities *Initiating the Greening of Amma's tour nationally *Planting organic vegetables at a community garden to learn about gardening and selling the produce to satsang members to raise money to support Amma's charitable activities . WHAT HAPPENS TO EVERYTHING THROWN INTO THE TRASH: We often don’t think about where all our trash goes after having left it in the trash can, where the garage truck takes it and what happens to it once its gets there. ALL of the garbage put into garbage bins goes to landfills. Landfills are mountains and mountains of garbage piled on top of one another at various locations on our planet Earth and filling up even faster. They are not designed to degrade but just contain so the toxins produced by the garbage doesn’t leak out into the environment through the water system. . Even though our garbage is put into larger bags of garbage before being left at the landfill, as the garbage decomposes, a toxic liquid is created that can still leak out of it known as leachate. Modern landfills have systems to collect and treat the leachate before it goes out to the environment. However, two greenhouse gases are also produced by garbage – carbon dioxide and methane (invisible, odorless, highly flammable gas). Some landfills collect methane and burn it to produce energy. These toxins have the potential of going into our environment and polluting our streams and oceans, all that is alive in them and up the food chain to humans. Water and Oxygen are required to break down garbage, but deep in the pile of garbage, these two resources are not supplied, therefore very slow decomposition takes place. . WHAT YOU CAN DO: Reduce how much you consume, reduce your trash Reuse items whenever possible Recycle everything Eliminate junk mail Compost green waste Throw away your trash properly – sorting accordingly Set up recycling programs Don’t litter. Keep trash out of drains. Pick up trash at the beach, park, or school and on the sidewalk, street, or hiking trails Don’t pour oil into the gutter Cut all 6-pack soda rings (animals may get trapped in them – birds, fish) Eat less fast food – reduce trash Buy things with less packaging Use nylon/cloth bag when shopping . . AMMA'S GREEN FRIENDS . Amma’s Green Friends Mission is to create a loving bond between people and Nature and converse Nature and Her resources through appropriate activities. LA Satsang Green Friends is developing projects that support this mission. Conserving the Environment – If you have always wanted to help Mother Nature and didn’t know how or where to get the information about what to do, please contact Amma’s Green Friends.  We can guide you in recycling, disposal of batteries/electronic equipment, gasoline consumption, environmental home building, sewage systems, water pollution, composting, oil waste and more.  And we can give you information in general about do’s and don’ts that support or harm the environment. We also would love your input on any ideas and activities that would benefit Mother Nature. Please Contact Rita Tel: 818 424 5300   . GreenFriends – Caring for Mother Nature - An initiative of M.A. Center Ages ago, wise people in all cultures around the world recognized the power of Nature over their lives.  Humankind is affected by Nature and cannot exist without living in harmony with Her.  Nature, especially plants, provides not only food and medicine but also purifying vital energy (prana) that heals the human body and mind.  In gratitude the ancients worshipped plants as the giver of gifts to humankind. . Today we are abusing Nature – pollution and deforestation have destroyed the purity of air, water and soil and the survival of life on Earth is in question. All of us must effect a deep change in our attitude towards the destruction of Nature in order to save Her. We are all born from the same source – the womb of Nature is our common heritage.  All living things manifest from the same Supreme Consciousness. With this understanding, we can practice being a GreenFriend even in our home surroundings because Green Friends is based on the attitude of the heart that all of God’s creation is one family – by harming another, we harm ourselves. With love for Nature as God’s gift, a feeling of respect and duty to protect Her automatically follow.  This is the spiritual inspiration and vision behind GreenFriends. We invite you to register as a GreenFriend and take up five key activities.  . The Vision – To serve Nature with the attitude that we are Her children and it is our duty to care for Her. . How do Natural Resources help? Plants, animals, air, water and soil are vital for humanity’s survival.  We derive essentials for life such as food and medicines from them.  They maintain a balance in the Earth’s eco-system, without which life would be impossible. . Who can join GreenFriends? Those who love Nature and feel duty-bound to protect Her can join us irrespective of age, religion or class. . Personal Program of Activities for GreenFriends: . 1. Plant a Tulasi (Holy Basil) plant at the entrance of or in a pot at home.  Offer worship to it each day by watering it and going around it thrice as a mark of respect for Mother Nature.  If Tulasi is not available, any other plant can be used as it is basically a symbolic act of love and bonding. . 2. Plant at least 18 saplings in a year.  Fruit and flowering trees help conserve birds and insects.  If no space is available, potted plants can be grown. . 3. Resolve not to take more than what is necessary from Nature and not to unduly destroy Nature.  Know that all beings in creation have a right to enjoy Nature’s gifts and Nature’s bounty is not for human beings alone. . 4. Devote at least 15 minutes to eco-meditation daily.  In this, we enjoy all the sights and sounds of Nature, so it is not hard to do.  Guidelines can be obtained from the nearest MAM center or by mail. . 5. Share the vision of GreenFriends with as many people as possible.  . Suggested Activities for GreenFriends: . Conserve and clean lakes, ponds, etc Harvest rainwater to improve ground water levels, Prepare and use compost manure where possible, Create a herbarium for people to collect and store seeds for future projects, Create awareness about and cultivate medicinal plants in houses, Highlight ways to reduce paper consumption Preserve species like the Earthworm that is good for soil, Campaign against improper disposal of plastic bags, Protect and care for wildlife, Drive against cruelty to any living form, Promote vegetarianism Arrange seminars onNature conservation, Present video shows in schools on Nature study and conservation, Start GreenFriends groups in educational institutions , Plant seedlings/trees periodically, Follow up on earlier plantings, Arrange forest retreats, Participate in eco-meditation, yoga, nature walks, Hold training camps for GreenFriends activists, Organize forums on the latest issues concerning Nature.