I have a new book that looks really interesting. It is titled Pedal Power: How One Community Became the Bicycle Capital of the World by Allan Drummond. I recognized the artwork and pulled out another book by Allan Drummond that I believe I mentioned a few years ago. It is titled Energy Island: How One Community Harnessed the Wind and Changed their World by Allan Drummond. Since I wanted to share Pedal Power with you and remind you of Energy Island, I wondered if Drummond wrote any other books. A quick search on Amazon brought Green City: How One Community Survived a Tornado and Rebuilt for a Sustainable Future. It looked familiar to me and I realized that I had that book in my library, as well.
Allan Drummond wrote and illustrated these three books about communities that had problems and solved them sustainably. In the author’s note of Green City, he tells that while he was writing Green City, his own family lost their home due to a fire. They questioned if they should move or rebuild. They chose to rebuild and to include as much as possible to make their home ‘green’. He says that he found himself living through many of the same challenges that the community that he was writing and illustrating at the time. Everything became real as they built their home for the future.
Pedal Power is about the city of Amsterdam and how they became the bicycle capital of the world. The traffic was so dangerous for cyclists. Many people, including children going to school, were killed while riding their bikes. Some people decided that there needed to be a change and did something about it. Laws were changed, bike lanes were established, and now although cars and trucks are allowed on the streets, bikes rule the road.
Green City is about a community in Greensburg, Kansas and the tornado that struck in 2007. The small town was nearly destroyed. Citizens of the town decided that they would rebuild and rebuild better this time. They decided to go green. They used reclaimed and recycled materials; the school has a wind turbine to generate electricity and a special heat-pump system which keeps the school warm without having to use fuel for heating. The classrooms are positioned so they get light and warmth from the sun. Rain is collected on the roof and is used to water the landscape. There is a lot more, but you get the idea. They are now really “Greens”burg!
Energy Island tells about SamsØ, an island in the middle of Denmark. It is a very windy place. The book describes how people used to use energy without thinking about saving it. The Danish Ministry of Environment and Energy chose SamsØ to be a place where they could be independent of nonrenewable energy. One of the teachers tried to get people excited about the project. He talked to everyone. People liked the idea, but still nothing happened. Finally one businessman decided to put up a small second-hand wind turbine for his family and one farmer decided to put up a huge one. The project had begun, but few people were ready to make such a change until one night when the island went dark from a storm that cut out all the electricity. Well, all, but the two men who put up wind turbines! After that, then everyone began to ask about how they could be more energy efficient. Some put up wind turbines, some put up solar panels, one built a biomass furnace, one makes tractor fuel oil from his canola crop, some use electric cars or bicycles. The island is so energy efficient that some days they actually supply electricity for other parts of Denmark.
I hope you like these books. The information is great for students in all grades. I am currently using Energy Island and Pedal Power for the fifth and sixth grade classes as they study Europe in their Social Studies classes.
Have a great week.
Audrey
