On Thursday, April 22nd 2010, each participating author will generously donate their full-day school visit fee to a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit conservation organization. The donation recipient will be decided by a student vote at the author’s scheduled school. This special one-day event is designed to empower kids to find their "voice" as writers and as voters, and to use that voice to help care for our blue planet.
The A4ED effort launches with a special donation by Jerry and Eileen Spinelli
Newbery author Jerry Spinelli seldom does school visits these days, yet he and his wife, award-winning author & poet Eileen Spinelli wanted to support our unique endeavor. After some reflection, the couple made a generous contribution to Bat Conservation International. I do have a soft spot for bats these days. We spend summers in Chautauqua, NY, where there are lots of bats and no mosquito bites. Bats are honored as the community “bird,” wrote Jerry. All of us at Authors for Earth Day are grateful for the Spinellis’ environmental spirit—we hope their early support will inspire other eco-minded authors and illustrators to join the A4ED team! Jerry won the Newbery Medal for his teen novel Maniac Magee and later earned a Newbery Honor for Wringer. Eileen has written dozens of children’s books, garnering an extensive list of awards. Our sincere thanks to these stewards of literacy and landscape!
If you are a traditionally published author or illustrator, we hope you will join us in this unique effort. If you are a librarian, media specialist, teacher or principal, please browse our schools page for more details and consider scheduling one of the talented professionals on our growing list of Available Authors & Illustrators. Together we can make Authors for Earth Day 2010 a great success!
See photos from the 2009 grassroots Earth Day event.