Travel theme: Environment

Today is International Polar Bear Day and Polar Bears International are marking the day with a petition urging world leaders to take decisive action at the UN climate change summit in Paris this December. You can read more about the petition here.

To help spread the word, I’m taking a look through my travel photos for shots that suggest environment in some way. I’m starting with a tree, because trees really are the lungs of our planet. This is not just any old tree; this is a gorgeous, moss-cloaked tree in the depths of a foggy Hoh Rain Forest on the Olympic Peninsula.

foggy rain forest hoh olympic penninsula washington hall mosses america us usa

Foggy day in the Hall of Mosses

Water is one of our most precious resources and with drought on the rise and big business contaminating groundwater, it is also one of our most endangered. I have long been enchanted with photographing the tiniest of freshly fallen droplets of rain; water in one if its purest stages. This little droplet was photographed on the volcanic slopes of Mount St. Helens.

Clean air is another resource we need to protect; for me, air always smells cleanest and freshest when a crisp layer of snow cloaks the earth. Snow is also a ridiculous amount of fun and I don’t understand people who complain about how inconvenient it is. Every single snowflake that has ever fallen on our planet is entirely unique. I find that pretty magical and would happily be inconvenienced for something that magical. This squirrel in Central Park agrees with me.

So what does the environment mean to you? Get your greenest, cleanest, eco-friendly shots at the ready. If you would like to join in (everyone’s welcome!) here’s what to do:

Create your own post and title it Travel theme: Environment
Include a link to this page in your post so others can find it too
Get your post in by next Thursday, as the new travel theme comes out on Friday
Don’t forget to subscribe to keep up to date on the latest weekly travel themes. Sign up via the email subscription link in the sidebar or RSS!

In addition, if you like, include in your post the link I gave at the top of the page – to the petition – in your post to help spread the word. This one’s for the polar bears.

xxx Ailsa

It seems to me that the natural world is the greatest source of excitement; the greatest source of visual beauty; the greatest source of intellectual interest. It is the greatest source of so much in life that makes life worth living. – David Attenborough

It is horrifying that we have to fight our own government to save the environment. – Ansel Adams

About ailsapm

Hi there! I’m Ailsa Prideaux-Mooney. I’ve lived in many places, and travelled to many more. I had a lot of fun getting there and being there, wherever there happened to be at the time. I climbed a castle wall in Czesky Krumlov, abseiled down cliffs to go caving in the west of Ireland, slept on the beach in Paros, got chased by a swarm of bees in Vourvourou (ok that wasn’t fun, but it was exciting), learned flower arranging in Tokyo, found myself in the middle of a riot in Seoul, learned to snowboard in Salzburg, got lost in a labyrinth in Budapest and had my ice cream stolen by a gull in Cornwall. And I’m just getting started. If you’ve enjoyed what you’ve read so far, I’d love you to follow my travelogue - wheresmybackpack.com - and remember, anyone who tries to tell you it’s a small world hasn’t tried to see it all.

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