Nurturing "desert-smart" dwellers
More than half of the Pima County libraries, six community centers and a few additional County facilities have special little spaces called EcoNooks for Desert Dwellers (for teens and adults) and Eco Kids Corners (for 12 years and younger).
Several Pima County departments, the City of Tucson, the Pima Association of Governments and local community nonprofits are collaborating with Pima County Department of Environmental Quality to provide free educational materials for the public about conserving desert resources. Practical "desert-smart" information is provided, along with money-saving tips to conserve water and energy at home, with literature also highlighting public health issues related to air and water quality.
Deputy County Administrator John Bernal has described Pima County as an "environmentally-sensitive local government with a sincere emphasis on sustainability." The EcoNook for Desert Dwellers and the Eco Kids Corner community outreach project extends the spirit of the Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan and Pima County's on-going commitment to wise use of desert resources.
Volunteers are invited to help these little eco-spaces become vibrant spots to engage patrons by:
- assisting the librarians by making sure the supplies are stocked and neatly displayed;
- giving little mini-talks of 5-10 minutes about different environmental topics that could be tied into already scheduled storytime or presentation themes;
- providing advice about how to visually improve the displays;
- identifying which pieces of literature are the winners and which ones need to be re-written and/or re-designed to keep patrons of all ages entertained in a self-serve style.
