Participation is open to any traditionally published author and/or illustrator who does professional school visits, AND who is interested in promoting Earth Day and the event’s conservation message, AND who is willing/able to donate at least 30% of their fee for the event.
The A4ED school visit must take place during the month of April. Each participant is expected to charge their normal fee and donate 30%-100% of the amount to the conservation organization selected by the student vote.
Each participant will be responsible for scheduling and coordinating their own Authors for Earth Day school visit, as well as overseeing the vote to decide their school’s donation recipient; however, Authors for Earth Day will provide support materials.
Picking the nominees. The author chooses five 501(c)(3), not-for-profit organization “nominees” that strive in some area of conservation, and which they are passionate about supporting. The list should include a brief synopsis about each organization with its web address, so the kids can research them. There is a Nominees Template with a list of conservation organizations on our downloads page.
The author/illustrator chooses the content of their presentation(s). They may offer their normal school program or develop a special Earth Day program, in order that they may visit that school again in the same year.
The rewards are amazing! Above the rewards of serving as a community leader and the tax write-off for their donation, each Authors for Earth Day participant will benefit in three ways:
1. Once their event has been confirmed, they will be listed on the Authors for Earth Day website and given a Participant's Page. See meet our participants.
2. They (and the school that hires them) will be part of a larger effort, driven by dedicated authors/illustrators and enthusiastic students nationwide. The total amount of raised funds will be promoted on the website and in any Authors for Earth Day marketing materials.
3. They will enjoy recognition for their efforts through potential media opportunities for Authors for Earth Day.
The the team!If you are interested in participating, we can assist you in securing a school for your event. You may send or email this A4ED Sample Information Letter to any school contacts you already have—it briefly explains the event and encourages interested schools to contact you for more details.
You may also be listed on our Available Authors & Illustrators page. This page allows interested schools to email you directly if they are considering an event. Simply email us your name, state, website address, public email address and up to three book titles (with publisher) to infoATAuthorsForEarthDayDOTorg. Of course feel free to contact us with any questions!
Once you have your Earth Day school visit booked, we will include you on our Authors for Earth Day meet our participants page and provide you a Participant's Page with photos, video, a link to your website/email, brief bio and sampling of your book titles.
We hope you will share in the power of our mission and we look forward to working with you!