THE ice caps are melting. The sea levels are rising. The climate is changing. Our animals are endangered. Global warming is having an effect on our planet. If you are thinking this is a only a problem for adults and there's nothing you can do then you are wrong. Not only can you do something, you must do something or face the consequences in our future.

We, P7a pupils at King's Park Primary School, felt appalled that people on Earth do not take care of the planet.

Our class topic was conservation and recycling. We decided to act and save the planet, one tree at a time.

Working in small action groups we organised a variety of events including ordering recycling bins, field trips to gather information, local campaigns to raise awareness of conservation issues and a question time with our local MP, Tom Harris, quizzing him on what is being done to help the local environment.

One of our courses of action was to become involved in the Glasgow Children's Orchard. We were introduced to John Hancox at Glasgow's Botanic Gardens who told us about the mission to plant 1000 trees in community sites across the city. Trees breathe for us, brighten the city and provide tasty fruit.

By thinking about the trees, people think about their environment.

We offered to help plant trees in our local area, King's Park. John taught us about different species of apple trees ­ how to plant them, look after them and how grafting is done. We also had some fun making and drinking apple juice.

Our first site was at Hampden School, where we worked with pupils who have complex learning difficulties. Digging in the rain, having walked miles to get there, was made worthwhile when the children from Hampden came out and worked with us. This was a great day even though we were soaked and covered in mud.Some of us were invited back to participate in a radio broadcast from Glasgow Botanic Gardens. We met children from Dowanhill Primary involved in the same project.

We feel we achieved something good and we made a difference to the Earth.

We also learned alongside children who have more complex needs than us.

Planting the trees helped us build relationships with other young people, and building communities helps the environment as more people become involved in saving the planet.

Glasgow used to be full of fruit trees that were cut down. We are helping turn the clock back and helping reverse environmental damage. We hope children for years to come will look after and eat the fruit from our trees. We hope these trees will grow with us.

By Andrew Cowan, Lauren Currie, Amy Kousourou, Campbell Mills, and the pupils of P7a King's Park Primary School If you want to help plant trees in Glasgow or want to start your own branch of the Children's Orchard elsewhere in Scotland, contact John Hancox, Director, The Children's Orchard, 0778 606 3918, john@weegarden. co. uk

THE PLANTED

FORESTS are as vital to the world as our lungs and backbone are to our bodies. They create the air we breathe and provide the raw material to build so much of what we use in everyday life.

For William Mackenzie, 15, from Kingussie, forests are also his classroom. He is studying a unique vocational subject: rural skills studies, designed to introduce young people to land-based industries.

He says: "Once we went into rural skills I wanted to get into forestry. You help the environment and get to see where the timber comes from before it goes into production." Forests cover 17-per cent of Scotland, but the government is hoping to increase that to 25-per cent in the future. As well as this growth spurt, the Forestry Commission Scotland has also launched an Active Woods campaign to engage with young people through activities including mountain biking, den building, wildlife walks and woodland challenges.

William and his fellow classmates build fences in the woods, construct boardwalks over sensitive areas (they've just built a walkway for wheelchair access), plant saplings and remove nonnative species. His friend and fellow budding forester, Matthew Donnelly, 15, says: "We shouldn't take forests for granted. We should look after them."

For more information about Scotland's Active Woods campaign, log on to
www.forestry.gov.uk/activewoods or telephone 0845 367 3787

THE POWERFUL

THE future lies on a driveway on a residential street in Edinburgh. It doesn't draw attention to itself. People walk by without giving it a second look. The future is called the Powerpod. It looks, to the uneducated eye, like a minicaravan or a brightly coloured touring chip van. But with the flick of a few switches it transforms into a vision of how we may one day receive all our energy. And it was developed and designed by a group of local teenagers.

"The Powerpod is about promoting sustainable sources of energy and showing that the way we get our energy isn't the only way, there's plenty of other ways, " says 16-year-old Andrew Ellis. "Something like this is evidence that young people are starting to care. This box might not save the world but it's going to teach them and inspire them." Andrew is part of the Woodcraft Folk, an organisation for young people which campaigns on environmental issues. He is here with eight other members of the group, aged 14 to 17, all of whom wanted to create a way to educate others about how practical renewable energy. And lo, the Powerpod was born, creating electricity from the most environmentally friendly and nonpolluting sources imaginable: the sun and the wind.

Four solar panels lap up sunlight on the Powerpod's roof, as does a large panel hinged to the side. A detachable wind turbine spins on the roof, creating enough electricity to heat water for showers and enough power to charge mobile phones and laptops. When the Woodcraft Folk take the Powerpod to festivals, they are the cleanest and most connected revellers around.

"When we're showing people how it works, people are surprised how much energy it creates, " says Sophie Suominen, 17.

"It's exciting for people because they can actually see the electricity being made and then used, " adds Ali Wollaston, 17.

The group received GBP26,000 of funding from the Scottish Executive to create the Powerpod, a larger sum than they were expecting, which meant they could really indulge their renewable dreams. Some features had to be left out, however. "It was a bit more outlandish when we started, " says Andrew Ellis. "We planned to include a back-projected cinema screen. But it would have used too much power." For Gordon Bruce, 17, working on the Powerpod has not just taught him how viable renewable energy is, it has also shown him that even he can make a difference. "I learned that as a teenager you can have a lot more influence that you think, " he says. He also dreams of when the glimpse of the future that the Powerpod shows becomes a firm part of the present. "It should be normal that this is where power comes from."

www.woodcraftfolk.com

For more on protecting Scotland's environment visit www.infoscotland.com/ourfuture

THE PLAN

YOUNG people don't have much say in where the electricity comes from in their house, but you do have a very big say in how much is used. The small acts of individuals add up to make a big difference. Here are some simple tips:

Are you switching devices off or just leaving them on stand-by? If everyone in the UK switched off all those TVs and videos that are sitting on stand-by overnight, we could turn off a whole power station because we'd save so much energy.

A house that once had just one TV now has two, three or four. So just make sure they are all turned off, and don't do things like watching the same programme on different TVs.

Most mobile phones will charge in a couple of hours. If you leave it on overnight you are wasting a whole lot of energy. Charge the phone when you get into the house and turn it off when you go to bed. The same goes for iPods.

If you are driven to school you are using lots of energy and producing lots of carbon dioxide compared with kids who are walking, cycling or going by bus. Walking and cycling are healthy too.

Think about how energy efficient a product is. If you buy an mp3 player that turns itself off when charged, you'll make a difference. If you make the right choices as a consumer, manufacturers will make the things you want to buy, which will be greener and more efficient.

By Richard Dixon, WWF Scotland

THE ACTION

THE Woodland Trust Scotland has again teamed up with Waste Aware Scotland to help recycle your Christmas cards.

Backed by WH Smith, Tesco and TK Maxx, the scheme runs until the end of January. Take your cards to participating stores and dispose of them in special recycling bins. The scheme aims to collect 90 million cards across the UK.

Last year 6.2 million cards (almost 123 tonnes) were collected across Scotland, with 82 million collected across the UK as a whole (around 1633 tonnes).

www.woodland-trust.org.uk/cards
www.wasteawarescotland.org.uk