Planting Hope: A Portrait Of Photographer Sebastião Salgado

As a young boy, Sebastiao Salgado loved exploring his parents’ farm in the forests of Brazil, always dreaming of what might lie beyond his view. When he went away to school, he met Lelia, who showed him how to use a camera. As he looked through the lens, Sebastiao realized he could use photography to capture how the world fits together.

Sebastiao used his pictures to tell the stories of people who might not otherwise be seen. But after witnessing too much destruction, he put away his camera and returned to his childhood home. The land was in ruins.

So Sebastiao and Lelia decided to rebuild the rainforest and photograph the beauty of the world to save it. Through art and activism, they would show that everyone was responsible for caring for the planet and that hope endures if we take action.

This book is part of the Worlds of Words Global Reading List for 2023/24.

The Girl Who Heard the Music: How One Pianist and 85,000 Bottles of Cans Brought New Hope to an Island

The amazing true story of Mahani Teave, an award-winning pianist and environmental activist. After becoming an internationally acclaimed concert pianist, with tours around the world, Mahani never forgot the tiny island where she grew up, Rapa Nui, also known as Easter Island, and one of the most remote. Aware of the islands environmental struggles and sustainability issues with pollution from tourism, Mahani was inspired to help save its environment and culture by creating a music school. The school was built using thousands of bottles, cans and tires in its walls, incorporating rain barrels, solar panels, and a food garden. Not only does Mahani help build a sustainable future for Rapa Nui, she also ensures the music will play on.

The Girl Who Heard the Music is the WOW Recommends book for October 2023.

This book is part of the Worlds of Words Global Reading List for 2023/24.

Global: One Fragile World. An Epic Fight For Survival.

Time is running out for Sami and Yuki. Sami and his grandfather live in a village along the Indian Ocean. They earn their living by fishing. But the ocean is rising and each day they bring back fewer and fewer fish. Yuki lives in the far north of Canada where warming temperature are melting the ice. Polar bears have less food to hunt and are wandering into town looking for something to eat. Yuki is determined to do something to help the bears.

Mother Of Sharks

At la Playita del Condado in Puerto Rico, Meli meets a crab, Jaiba, who takes her on a dreamlike underwater adventure, teaches her about the importance of shark conservation, and reveals Meli’s ultimate destiny to become the Mother of Sharks.

Autumn Peltier, Water Warrior

Indigenous women have long cared for the land and water, which in turn sustains all life on Earth, honoring their ancestors and providing for generations to come. Yet there was a time when their voices and teachings were nearly drowned out, leaving entire communities and environments in danger and without clean water. But then came Grandma Josephine and her great-niece, Autumn Peltier.

Stand As Tall As The Trees: How An Amazonian Community Protected The Rain Forest

One activist’s story shows how indigenous communities can fight to protect their sacred lands-and win.

Spanish edition.

Zero Waste: How One Community Is Leading A World Recycling Revolution (Green Power)

In this fifth installment in Allan Drummond’s picture book series about green living, a town in Japan takes a stand against its throwaway past and shows that it really does take a village.

Featured in WOW Review Volume XVI, Issue 4.

Girl Who Heard The Music

Mahani Teave grew up on Rapa Nui, also known as Easter Island, one of the most remote islands in the world, where moai statues stand and music is everywhere. When she began taking lessons on the island’s only piano, she proved to be a great talent. She left Rapa Nui when she was just nine to continue her music education, wishing she didn’t have to leave such a beautiful place to pursue her dreams. She became an internationally acclaimed classical pianist, playing around the world for all kinds of audiences. But her island home kept calling her back.

Years later, she returned to Rapa Nui to stay, and with a new dream: to save its environment and culture. She helped create a music and arts school, so that children there could learn music in ways that kept the island’s unique traditions alive. Mahani also saw the island’s struggles with sustainability issues and pollution from tourism and ocean plastics, so the school was built using of thousands of tires, bottles, and cans in its walls, and incorporates rain barrels, solar panels, and a food garden. Mahani and her team have created an inspiring place that celebrates the land of Rapa Nui and its people.

Forest Keeper

Indian Jadav Payeng has proven that each and every one of us can make a difference. As a boy, he began planting trees on a sandbank in the state of Assam. Nobody believed that he would succeed in doing so. But since 1979, a forest the size of Central Park has emerged, offering a home to countless animals and plants. It was not until 2007 that a photographer accidentally discovered the forest and made Payeng known to the world beyond India.

Con La Cabeza En Alto: Cómo Una Comunidad Amazónica Protegió La Selva