We're celebrating Earth Day all week (April 18 - 23) and want you to join us! There will be events for adults, teens, tweens and children, including:

• Earth Week Mural Art Creation — Sunday, April 18, 1:00-3:00PM
• Recycled Crafts — Tuesday, April 20, 5:00-5:45PM
• How to Become a Master Gardener — Tuesday, April 20, 7:00-8:30PM
• A Michivore Life — Wednesday, April 21, 7:00-8:30PM
• Energy Alternatives — Thursday, April 22, 7:00-8:30PM
• Scrapbox Fun! — Friday, April 23, 10:00-11:00AM

Also, be sure to share your green tips and tricks with the community by posting on the Electronic Green Board.

In celebration of Earth Week we would like to encourage you to share your green tips with others by simply commenting on this blog post. We hope that this electronic form of the CPL Green Board will provide you with a helpful list of what others are doing in the community to green up their lives. Some ideas that came from last year's board include: use energy efficient light bulbs, teach your children to live green, use eco-friendly organic fertilizer (slow-release nitrogen, no-phosphorous), wash your clothes in cold water and hang to dry, and use your library instead of buying books! Also be sure to check out Canton Green Resources for local recycling and environmental resources.

It is no secret that novels can sometimes convey complex scientific subject matter in a way that many find compelling. In his review of Far North by Marcel Theroux, John Atcheson discusses this phenomenon in relation to climate change. According to Atcheson in his review entitled, "Will Novels Save the World?", climate change as the back drop to novels such as Theroux's may help in some small way to effect positive change. "At their best, they provide another way of viscerally experiencing a truth" he says. In the case of Far North, Atcheson concludes that the method works because the story and plot stand on their own while still "rendering climate change as a reality and a palpable force to be reckoned with and avoided".

State Representative Dian Slavens (D-Canton) will hold a Job Resource and Retraining Town Hall Meeting on Friday, February 19 at 11:00AM in the Community Room. The event will provide attendees with information on a variety of topics, including No Worker Left Behind and other worker retraining programs, job search and job placement services offered by Michigan Works!, and help with unemployment benefit claims. No registration is necessary.
[Note: This is not a library sponsored program.]

Inspired by the book No Impact Man by Colin Beaven, the No Impact Project brings you the No Impact Experiment — a one-week carbon cleanse. Register on their website and each day of the week you will be given an environmental challenge that will build on the previous day’s challenge. At the end of the week you will be asked to fill in an eco-lifestyle survey. The experiment is a chance for you to see what no-impact living is like, and hopefully help to improve your quality of life. Not a bad way to start off the new year.

Just a friendly reminder, that Canton Waste Recycling (CWR) will offer curb-side pick-up of natural Christmas trees from January 4-14, 2010. CWR asks that you place your tree at the curb by 6:30AM on your regular trash day with all stands and ornaments removed. After January 14, trees will no longer be accepted at the curb. For more information on Christmas tree pick-ups, call CWR at (734) 397-5801.