EarthKind, a plant-based pest-prevention brand, has been leading its ‘Year of the Monarch’ initiative throughout 2021. The initiative recently honored a North Texas teacher for the October Harmony Hero Award. Kim Aman was recognized for her eco-based education approach. She is known in North Texas for her outdoor, garden-centered curriculums.
According to North Texas e-News, Aman leads the organization Grow Garden Grow, which currently works with thirteen schools in North Texas to teach students to be eco-literate. Each month they work with around 3,000 students, teaching them to become advocates for the planet and helping them foster a connection with nature.
Aman said she puts a focus on the Monarch butterflies that migrate through North Texas.
“Monarchs are highlights of our program,” she said in her Harmony Hero video. “The twice a year migration of the Monarchs are spectacular events in our gardens that are prepared by planting milkweed and pollinators. Students track migrations, gather data, and tag them for Monarch Watch research every year. We celebrate them on every level and pause to enjoy them as they flutter through our gardens.”
Students learn about threats that Monarch butterflies face and hone gardening skills. According to Aman, creating a connection with nature is the most important thing kids get from the organization.
She said, “The biggest takeaway that students gain from our garden programs is the magical connections with nature. These days many students spend much of their days indoors and in front of screens. Connecting kids with the earth and all of the cycles and systems that happen are really quite fascinating and easily overlooked unless they are led to open their eyes to what is happening in their world around them. Our program provides these opportunities and works to create kids who care about the earth and all the beautiful creatures that are part of it. Creating healthier, happier, and smarter kids is what we aim to do.”
Aman’s organization also started the North Texas School Garden Network during the COVID-19 pandemic. The network teaches schools to build and maintain their own community gardens. The gardens are built to benefit Monarchs as they migrate through the state.
According to North Texas e-News, EarthKind recognizes Harmony Heroes each month during their Year of the Monarch Initiative. Eco-educators can be nominated online, with just one being selected after a rigorous decision process.
All Harmony Heroes will receive training in how to use eco-based pest prevention in their schools. At the end of the year, one teacher will win a paid trip to Mexico in March of 2022, where they will visit the Kingdom of Monarchs’ habitat.
“Teachers are our unsung heroes,” founder and CEO of EarthKind, Kari Warberg Block, said. “Day after day, they prove that getting kids into nature is the best thing we can do for them and for our own future. Instilling passion about protecting and living in harmony with nature is what EarthKind is all about, so seeing this flourish under our Year of the Monarch campaign is beyond rewarding.”
