In Jersey City backyards, it’s unlikely you’d find any frogs, but it’s wonderful to know that frog lovers all over DO!
1st Place: Wes Deyton, (Wesrule2601, Flickr) with this peeper.
2nd Place: Olivia Brand
3rd Place: Koover Schmidt
Honorable Mention: Wes Deyton, (Wesrule2601, Flickr)
Thank you to all the frog lovers out there, who celebrate amphibians by photographing them so we can all share your discoveries.
1st Place: Sara Viernum, The Wandering Herpetologist with this Gray Treefrog (Hyla versicolor) from near Montello, Wisconsin.
2nd Place: Paul, with his “resting frog” image.
3rd Place: Geoffrey Giller with his “wood frog.”
Honorable Mention: Angie Schwartz
Guest blog by Eric Suen and Kevin Liang, Aqua Design Innovations
We could all use a piece of nature that we can enjoy or escape to everyday.
The problem is that most aquariums that we put in our homes are not sustainable ecosystems. They need maintenance like water changes, filter replacements, and the occasional algae scrub.
Aqua Design Innovations, an undergraduate UCSD startup has designed the EcoQube, a compact aquarium that uses plants like basil to keep the water clean.
How does it work? The EcoQube is a recirculating system where the fish produce nutrients for the plants that grow above it. This concept is called aquaponics, a method of sustainable food production that the founders of Aqua Design Innovations, Kevin Liang and Eric Suen, see as the future of organic farming.
The EcoQube comes with a K-12 curriculum about the science behind aquaponics and self sustaining ecosystems. Help Kevin and Eric deliver the EcoQube to homes and classrooms across the country. You can support their Kickstarter campaign here: http://kck.st/1b6GV4m
Our names are Eric and Kevin. We’re UC San Diego students and aquarium geeks who met in high school and instantly became intrigued by planted aquatic ecosystems. As we got older, we realized the bigger challenges humanity as a whole faces in terms of food and water shortages so we decided to use our knowledge of aquariums to deliver the concept of aquaponics and the impact it can have to as many people as possible.
We started out working in various stores. Kevin actually served as a biologist assistant at the Steinhart Aquarium (California Academy of Sciences) where he managed and maintained 100,000 gallon systems as well as serve as the operations manager at Aquatic Central, the largest aquarium specific store in San Francisco. Eric was one of the first employees at Archaea International Corporation (DBA Aqua Forest Aquarium) also based in San Francisco where he focused on sales, customer relations and product user interface development.
(read and see many more pictures and video at their Kickstarter page) http://kck.st/1b6GV4m
On this day before Thanksgiving, I just wanted to say thank you to all the fans that help me spread the awareness. May you all have a safe, happy and healthy holiday season.
On Friday, please think Green and not Black! My latest collaboration is with The Wandering Herpetologist and photographer, Sara Viernum with this beautiful 2014 calendar, which you can pick up in the store, right here on this website. 13 beautiful frogs from across North America.
Two weeks ago I was asked to talk about environmental issues on the Techno Granny’s radio show along with Tamar Cerafici, an environmental attorney based in New Hampshire. This show covered many topics under the title “10 Plus Technologies that will help you go green and conserve the environment.”
Some things we discussed:
11/4/2013 – Link to Techno Granny Radio Show – Environmental Attorney, 1 Activist, 10 Green Technologies
Tomorrow morning (11.18.2013) we will meet for round 2! Tamar and I will join the broadcast again at 10 am EST, after the Techno Granny (Joanne Quinn-Smith) received so many comments asking us to talk about additional topics.
Some of the topics to be discussed:
Resources for more information:
http://www.fws.gov/contaminants/Issues/Pesticides.cfm
Last year we received over 260 entries from kids around the world, and the year before over 500! As always, we are so impressed by kids’ creativity and imagination and the variety of ways they express themselves: in crayon, watercolor, colored pencil, clay, 3D sculptures, dioramas, murals, mosaics, and mixed media.
We will award winners based on age in these age groups: 3-6, 7-9, 10-12. We also added a few new categories last year, Best 3D, Most Unusual Artwork, best Environmental, and this may expand depending on what we receive. The 1st place winners will receive a Frogs Are Green Poster of their choice from our store. All kids receive a certificate via download on our site.
Our 2013 campaign to help frogs! As part of the campaign we’re excited to announce the 4th FROGS ARE GREEN art contest for kids.
Contest theme:
Your artwork can be about frogs/amphibians and how you (or all of us) can help them.
Deadline for submissions is December 15, 2013 and the winners will be announced January 21, 2014. The winners will be featured in a post.
We’re looking for drawings, paintings, sculpture, collage, or whatever format helps you express yourself.
This year we have a new contest area using Flickr, where you can enter yourself.
There are three different group pools, so be sure to enter your photo/artwork into the right group pool.
Frogs Are Green 2013 Kids Art Contest
For the Kids’ Art Contest, you must add a caption, with your Name, Age, and Country (and a caption if you like) or your submission will not be added.
Please print out the attached flyer to post in your neighborhood schools.
We can’t wait to see your artwork!
