Youth Ambassadors: Background

• Made several presentations to youth groups in our community about orangutans and the rainforest  including: 2 Girl Scout troops, our 6th grade, a Missionettes troop, and a 3rd grade class at a local elementary school
• Founded Greenhills’ School Roots and Shoots group, (Roots and Shoots is Jane Goodall’s association for young people), called Awesome Animal Awareness. Through out the year, we held many activities including: a drive for humane society supplies, holding bake sales for many causes including: the Huron Valley Humane Society, to symbolically adopt a snow leopard through the Snow Leopard Trust and to symbolically adopt an orangutan through World Wildlife Fund -Created a website (www.saveorangutan.bravehost.com) in the hopes of spreading the word outside of our local community
• We completed our Girl Scout Bronze Award
• In the summer between 6th and 7th grade, we attended a presentation by Dr. Mutbariq Ahmad, WWF Indonesia Executive director at the University of Michigan Campus in Ann Arbor. The presentation covered the challenges of conservation and sustainable development in Indonesia
  

• Held National Orangutan Week (NOW) at our school to raise more awareness and funds for orangutans. We made presentations to our entire 6th-12th grade school, posted facts about the orangutan and the rainforest on lunch tables and bulletin boards. We sponsored a letter writing campaign for our grade which generated over 100 letters to companies that use palm oil in their products. We held various fundraising events including a palm-oil free bake sale, sold customized “Save the Orangutan Wristbands” we had designed, and hosted a Middle School Dance 
• Outside of our school orangutan projects, we wrote letters to the editor, which were published in two local newspapers, the Ann Arbor News, and the Plymouth Observer.
• In the Spring of 2008, we attended a Great Lakes Regional Roots and Shoots Conference in Chicago, where Dr. Jane Goodall was speaking. We created a display table of our project, and
• presented it to Dr. Jane Goodall. Dr. Jane Goodall signed our petition to remove palm oil from Girl Scout cookies.
• As a result of this visit our local newspaper published an article about us and our project. This story was then picked up by 2 radio stations and Fox and Friends national television
• After all of the media interviews, we began working with an organization called Orangutan Outreach. Working with the head, Richard Zimmerman, we founded O.O’s kid’s program, “Forest School 101” for young orangutan supporters. One of the projects is a greeting card fundraiser. Members of Forest School 101 designed greeting cards with an orangutan and rainforest theme, and are now being sold as a fundraiser for Orangutan Outreach.
• After the press coverage, we had the opportunity to hold a conference call with a few people at the National Girl Scout HQ in New York City. While the Girl Scouts claimed that their palm oil source was sustainable, reports have shown that the Round Table on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) is not so sustainable after all. A recent Greenpeace study revealed that the RSPO has no set standards for palm oil manufacturers to meet in order for it to labeled as sustainable palm oil. The RSPO also does not follow up and inspect palm oil plantations to ensure that the palm oil is in fact, being made in a sustainable way.
  

• Held our 2nd National Orangutan Week at our school, making more educational presentations and raising another $800.00 which was donated to orangutan conservation through a palm oil free bake sale, root beer float sale, hot dog sale, and another Middle School dance 
• After deciding not to support palm oil in Girl Scout cookies, we started searching for alternatives. We came across one possible substitute, canola oil. Canola oil is healthy, sustainable, and grown in the USA.
• We attended a meeting at the Ann Arbor Girl Scout office, and made a presentation to Jan Barker (CEO of GS Heart of Michigan), Nancy Kern (Chief Advancement Executive GSHOM), Crystal Bell (Adult Recruitment and Education Executive GSHOM), Char Luttrell (Communications Specialist GSHOM), Shirley Marchand (Product Sales Specialist GSHOM), and Denise Mitchell and Brenda Smith from Little Brownie Bakers about our project and why we felt palm oil should be removed from Girl Scout Cookies.
• We launched various campaigns designed to raise awareness about palm oil in Girl Scout cookies, including a petition (which was signed by Dr. Goodall), a letter writing campaign to Girl Scout officials, and a puzzle piece campaign where past and present Girl Scout Community members decorate a blank puzzle piece with why palm oil should be removed from the cookies. In addition, we created a survey to generate market research, proving that consumers of Girl Scout Cookies would like palm oil to be removed
• Earned our Girl Scout Silver Award 
• In the spring of 2009, Madi attended the Roots&Shoots Great Lakes Regional Conference. She made a presentation called “Change Starts with a Passion” to Roots&Shoots members about our orangutan project and the importance of kids taking a stand for causes they believe in
  
• We designed a blog raising awareness about our project: http://projectorangs.wordpress.com/
  

In our 9th grade year at Greenhills, (2009-2010) Rhiannon moved to China for a year .

• In China, Rhiannon made presentations to her biology, drama and english classes about orangutans and palm oil. She also presented to the 4th grade class at her school about her and Madi’s project and how they too could become youth advocates.
• Madi held the third National Orangutan Week at her school as a freshman in high school. She worked with the Middle School Service learning club, and made presentations to her younger peers in the 6th, 7th and 8th grade. She also gave a speech in front of the whole middle school and faculty about her and Rhiannon’s journey through middle school, and the importance of youth leadership in the community. The week was concluded with a dance to raise funds for orangutan conservation, at the dance there was also a palm oil free bake sale, both activities raised over $900.00
• On the weekend of National Orangutan Week, Madi attended the Brookfield Zoo’s Orangutan Awareness Weekend, outside of Chicago. She spent the day working with the two head zookeepers and zoo visitors raising awareness about the plight of the orangutan. Zoo visitors participated in different education activities like seeing an orangutan’s diet, how big their arm span is, how big their hands are. Madi participated in a zoo chat with the visitors where they had an opportunity to ask her questions along with one of the zoo keepers.
• Madi applied and was accepted onto Dr. Jane Goodall’s Roots&Shoots, Great Lakes Region, Youth Leadership Council. When Dr. Jane visited Chicago, Madi worked alongside her at various events and venues.
• We designed our Facebook profile, Palmoil Free, and Facebook page Project ORANGS
• Madi attended a speech at the Chicago Field Museum by Dr. Willie Smits, a biologist and conservationist who was working at the time very closely with Richard Zimmerman, head of Orangutan Outreach. [After the disappearance of a baby orangutan under questionable circumstances from the rescue center where she was being cared for , Orangutan Outreach cut all ties to Smits. Learn more: http://redapes.org/sintang/jaan & http://redapes.org/luna & http://redapes.org/sintang]
  

In our 10th grade year at Greenhills, (2010-2011) we:

• Attended and spoke at Roots&Shoots Peace Day events in Chicago in September
• Worked to have nonprofit organizations write letters to the National Girl Scouts regarding palm oil in Girl Scout Cookies, including: The Center For Biological Diversity, Union of Concerned Scientists, Cultural Survival, Orangutan Foundation International and Rainforest Action Network
• Held our 4th National Orangutan at Greenhills School in the Middle School in mid-March. During this week, we partnered with the Middle School Service Learning Club, and held a root beer float sale, bake sale and a middle school dance. We raised a total of $550.00 which was sent to Orangutan Outreach. We also made a presentation to the entire Middle School about our project and the importance of youth leadership.
• Rhiannon joined the Great Lakes Roots&Shoots Youth Leadership Council, and Madi became a member of the National Roots&Shoots Youth Leadership Council
• Both Madi and Rhiannon are members of Roots&Shoots National Campaign Committee
• Mid-March, our campaign with Rainforest Action Network was launched. To kick off our campaign, we filmed a video to raise awareness about our cause.
• We designed a campaign so RAN supporters can send a letter to the CEO of the Girl Scouts: http://act.ran.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=3666
• We also designed a “Rainforest Action Hero” Badge with Rainforest Action Network that Girl Scouts can earn by learning about the palm oil Girl Scout Cookie connection. http://rainforestheroes.com/help-save-rainforests/girl-scouts-steppin-up/
• In April we launched a public petition asking 1st Lady Michelle Obama (Honorary President of GSUSA) to use her influence to ensure Girl Scout Cookies become rainforest-safe
• In April we attended and presented on a panel in front of a few hundred people at the 2011 Powershift Conference in Washington D.C.
• In May, while completing media in New York City, we had the opportunity to meet with Girl Scout cookie executives at their headquarters. At this meeting, GSUSA committed to working with us to research and identify a solution to this issue. Since then, we have held follow-up conference calls and have another in-person meeting scheduled for the fall.
  

Plans for the 2011-2012 year :

• We will be speaking at TedxRedmond in early September
• Will be meeting with the Girl Scouts in September to determine the best plan for moving forward
• Will be traveling to San Francisco in October to participate in activities relating to the Brower Youth Award
• Have been invited to travel to Colombia with Witness for Peace to learn about palm oil grown in South America and the human rights issues surrounding palm plantations
  

Awards:
Girl Scout Bronze Award
Girl Scout Silver Award
Brower Youth Award

Youth Ambassadors: A History in Photos

Youth Ambassadors: Media Coverage

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