The Covid-19 pandemic marked a very difficult time for the entire world economy, but one of the sectors that suffered the most was undoubtedly tourism. The mobility of people came to a standstill as governments worked to prevent the spread of the virus. The dramatic stoppage of tourism forced by the pandemic has highlighted the importance of this sector both for national economies and for the well-being of individuals, particularly the most vulnerable, who have been hardest hit by this crisis. Among these are, without a doubt, the native communities of the Amazon, who can benefit greatly from ecological tourism. Fortunately, the current regression of the pandemic is allowing a gradual return to the reality we knew before.
An important step for the communities of the Jauaperi National Park, in the heart of the Brazilian Amazon rainforest, is the reopening of the Xixuaú Amazon Ecolodge, after two years of total closure. It is a facility completely managed by the local population and certified by the Brazilian government’s Cadastur body with the ‘Turismo Responsável’ label. In Europe, the trip to Xixuaú is promoted by Amazônia Onlus, an organisation founded by biologist and environmentalist Emanuela Evangelista, who was awarded the title of Officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic by the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella in 2020 “for her constant commitment, on an international level, to environmental defence, the protection of indigenous populations and the fight against deforestation“.
The Xixuaú Amazon Ecolodge is located at the northernmost point of the Jauaperi National Park and can only be reached by river. It starts in Manaus and travels up the Rio Negro, a tributary of the Amazon, along the Anavilhanas archipelago, until it reaches the Rio Jauaperi and finally the Xixuaú village.
Nestled in the biodiversity-rich primary forest, the lodge offers an in-depth insight into local culture and traditions, providing concrete benefits to the native population and the forest itself. To fully immerse themselves in local life, visitors are given the opportunity to fish using traditional techniques, learn to make handicrafts from seeds or prepare manioc ‘farinha’. To discover all that surrounds the village, trekking and forest camps are organised, as well as canoe expeditions that, depending on the season, allow visitors to admire the flooded forest or the beautiful white sand beaches and dive into the river.
From time immemorial, the Earth has housed, nurtured and cared for us. Myth tells us about the relationship between Nature and the Divinity that governed the cycles of life-death-rebirth and how we wanted to break away from the rhythms of Gaia (also called Gaea), the primordial goddess who personified the Earth in Greek mythology.
The lust for power and the obsession with domination have produced lethal effects on Humanity and the supposed “corrections” produce even more serious imbalances. We cannot delude ourselves that our health, understood as psychophysical well-being, can be entrusted to manipulations that operate outside and against Nature. We must rediscover an understanding of the profound relationship we have with the Earth and tap into its vital energies through a new wisdom.
I am thinking of the Homeric hymn ‘To Gaea’ (XXX), dedicated to the primordial goddess of inexhaustible creative power, considered in Greek religion to be the very origin of life:
I will sing Gaea, the universal mother, with firm foundations, most ancient, who nourishes all beings […] Thanks to you men are fruitful with children, and rich in harvests Lady; it is in your power to give or take life of mortal men…
Despite the progression of the patriarchal view of the cosmos, what makes the Earth holy, its power to generate and preserve Life, continues to be recognised and revered among peoples of different cultures.
The cult of Mother Earth, a journey to the origins of the myth
Mother Nature is the personification of nature. Also known as Mother Earth, she is the common personification of nature focused around the life-giving and nurturing aspects, embodied in the mother figure.
In prehistoric times, goddesses were worshipped for their association with fertility, fecundity and agricultural abundance. Priestesses held sway over various religious aspects of the Incan, Assyrian, Babylonian, Slavic, Germanic, Roman, Greek and Indian civilisations for millennia before the onset of patriarchal religions.
The Great Mother, also Great Goddess, or Mother Goddess, is a primordial female deity, found in very diverse forms in a wide range of cultures, civilisations and populations in various areas of the world since prehistoric times.
Her figure, which refers to the maternal symbolism of birth, creativity and fertility, continued to be known, for example, to the Phoenicians as Ashtoreth, in Mesopotamia as Ishtar, to the Semites as Astarte, in Arabia as Atar, to the Egyptians as Hathor, to the Greeks and Romans as Cybele, and others.
Connected to the cult of Mother Earth, it expressed the endless cycle of birth-development-maturity-decline-death-regeneration that characterised both human lives and natural and cosmic cycles. In Andean mythology she is known as Pachamama, among Australian aborigines as Kunapipi.
Why it is important to dedicate a special day to our Mother Earth
World Earth Day is a day to celebrate the environment and the preservation of planet Earth. The United Nations celebrates this occasion every year, one month and one day after the spring equinox, on 22nd April. The celebration now involves 193 countries. Earth Day actually originated with the publication in 1962 of the environmentalist manifesto book ‘Silent Spring’ by US biologist Rachel Carson, a book that represented a watershed moment as it raised public awareness of the worrying environmental situations and the inextricable links between pollution and public health.
But the breakthrough came only in 1969 following the environmental disaster caused by an oil spill from the Union Oi well off Santa Barbara, California. Senator Nelson pointed out at the time that:
“All people, regardless of their ethnicity, gender, income or geographical origin, have the right to a healthy, balanced and sustainable environment“.
So it was that on 22 April 1970, at the invitation of the senator himself, 20 million American citizens took to the streets to demonstrate in defence of the Earth.
This is how Earth Day was born, and just think that, even back then, it was called “a question of survival“. Today, 52 years later, we can only see that the situation has worsened and there is so much to do to save the planet and ourselves.
We at SmartGreen Post also work every day for the good of our Mother Earth, with the means we have, providing information and suggesting concrete actions to help the planet. One day is certainly not enough, but it’s a start, especially if every year on this very occasion we manage to make more people aware of the importance of changing course, adopting a change that must first of all start from our daily lives, through small choices that are only apparently small but that can actually make a difference.
This day should therefore be an incentive to remind ourselves of the ultimate goal, to be achieved gradually day by day: a world in which renewable sources replace fossil fuels, consumption is more sustainable, no more toxic pesticides are used, there is equity in the distribution of resources, animals are not exploited, and intensive farming does not destroy precious forests or indigenous lands.
Public and private educational institutions play a key role in educating children from an early age, and there are indeed many educational projects aimed at eco-sustainability. An equally important role is played by parents and families, who must take responsibility for educating them to love Mother Earth and her children.
We belong to the Earth, it is not the Earth that belongs to us. And like us, all humanity and every form of life belongs to the Earth: plants and forests, fruits and flowers, rivers, mountains, animals of all kinds. St Francis of Assisi called it sister and mother, who governs us and gives us sustenance.
Even Pope Francis in his encyclical “Laudato si’!” strongly invites all humanity to care for the common home that is sister and Mother Earth through the biblical mandate to “guard and cultivate” the garden of the world (LS67).
We forget that our own bodies are made up of the elements of the planet, its air is what gives us breath and its water vivifies and restores us.
In conclusion, harming our Mother Earth is tantamount to harming ourselves, or rather more than harming the Earth – which will somehow continue to exist without the human species – we harm humanity, we destroy human life on Earth. That is why if the Earth is our Mother, we are her Children. We must learn to respect Mother Earth as we respect our biological mothers.
For us at SmartGreen Post, World Earth Day is every day since, for the past three years, we have been contributing to change, convinced that the situation can be changed if each of us makes a personal commitment.
Man is the most insane species: he worships an invisible God and destroys a visible Nature. Without realising that the Nature he is destroying is the God he is worshipping. (Hubert Reeves)
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The Nature Classrooms are green areas where students can learn about and experience first-hand the biodiversity typical of their local areas. They add to the more than 2,000 square metres of green spaces made available to over 5,000 pupils at the 12 primary schools and Istituti Comprensivi in the cities of Udine, Venice, Codogno (LO), Novara, Genoa, La Spezia, Città Sant’Angelo (PE), Rome, Naples, Taranto and Catania.
For these cities, nature classrooms are already open spaces in which to do maths and grammar lessons or to carry out workshops and projects in a pleasant environment. A living place, rich in biodiversity, which grows in front of the students’ eyes: the bushes fill with leaves and clumps of wild herbs bloom. Animals are also increasing, attracted by the water point, the shelters provided and the availability of food: various invertebrates, insects, amphibians, birds.
The didactic garden, garden and pond lend themselves to a wide variety of educational activities, ranging from perceptual-sensory experiences to experiences based on socio-motor and exploratory activities, to school projects that combine openness to the natural world with technology, all of which are deeply multidisciplinary educational paths.
The aim is to promote pedagogical experiences with an active and engaging approach, using school outdoor spaces as learning rooms.
WWF and P&G have not stopped there, and in addition to the 20 new nature classrooms selected from institutes active in the field of environmental and sustainability education, and announced last December, to cover all Italian regions in proportion to the population and to meet the needs of the regions, they have added another 4.
Another 3,253 square metres of nature given to the schools will be added to those already built, and 10,260 pupils will join the 5,000 students who are already playing with mud, discovering earthworms and titmice, enjoying the scents and flowers to do school in a different and profoundly new way, for a total of over 5,250 square metres and 15,260 pupils involved.
These new nature classrooms will be delivered at two different times, a first group by June 2022 and a second in autumn 2022.
The Aula Natura project of WWF Italy and realised thanks to Procter & Gamble has also been very well received by the Ministry of Education.
“The Nature Classrooms are special spaces and are part of the wide-ranging national project of WWF and P&G Italia, which aims to re-evaluate schoolyards as places for outdoor education. The children thus have the opportunity to experience an environment rich in stimuli that allows them to gain an immediate and direct relationship with nature, while also providing spaces for training and promoting a new way of learning,”says the Undersecretary for Education, Barbara Floridia. I would like to stress the value of these projects, which go precisely in the direction outlined by the School Re-Generation Plan. Moreover, the collaborations between the school world and private, social and institutional actors represent a virtuous example to be imitated in order to reach as many students as possible. I look forward to visiting some of the nature classrooms soon and congratulate them on this project”.
Giving the gift of a nature classroom does not only mean upgrading a school garden, but it also allows you to take part in an educational project, to access dedicated training materials, training sessions for teachers on One Planet School, WWF’s e-learning platform, and to get in touch with other schools in the circuit.
The tulip grows in a wide geographical area from the Iberian Peninsula to North Africa, from Greece to the Balkans, Turkey, Syria, Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan, Iran, Ukraine, South Siberia, Mongolia and as far as Northwest China. It was brought to Europe for the first time in 1554 and the botanist Carolus Clusius was responsible for the development of many varieties in a wide variety of colours and shapes that found their way into the Dutch royal gardens. Its cultivation in the Netherlands started around 1593. It is used to decorate parks, gardens, flowerbeds, lawns and is grown in pots on terraces or in flats.
The name tulip comes from the Turkish ‘tullband’, which means turban, probably because of its characteristic shape. It is a flower that is very present in Turkish culture and also in many fairy tales, the most famous of which is ‘The Thousand and One Nights’. In Persian tradition, the red tulip was given by the lover to his beloved. This symbolism stems from the legend of an unhappy love affair. The legend of the Tulips tells of a young prince of Persia, named Farhad, who was deeply in love with one of his maidens named Shirin. One day the prince was given the false news that his beloved had been murdered, so he ran to his horse and galloped off to the highest mountain in the entire empire. Blinded by grief, he let himself fall into the void. His blood spilled all over the ground and many red tulips sprang up. This is why the red tulip is associated with love and passion.
Symbology The meaning of the tulip is true love. In the Ottoman Empire, it was synonymous with wealth and power as the sultans organised sumptuous feasts in their royal courts to celebrate the first blossoming of the tulip. Emotional meanings are attributed to the tulip according to the colour of each flower. In the case of yellow tulips, they represent the positive, i.e. everything that has to do with joy and happiness. White tulips are used in religious rituals, as they are closely linked to peace, innocence and purity. Red tulips represent fire, passion and eroticism. Purple is associated with economic prosperity, elegance and refinement. Black tulips are associated with mourning, death and sadness. Pink tulips are pure love and femininity. Blue tulips are used to show loyalty, friendship, trust.
The tulip in cooking Tulip petals are edible and have a taste reminiscent of peppered lettuce, more or less intense. The use of these flowers in cooking seems to date back to the 16th century. The coloured tulip petals alone can be used in salads or stews with vegetables to make a tasty floral side dish.
The tulip in medicine The tulip is said to have laxative, emollient and analgesic effects. Its leaves can be used to treat fever. In some places its leaves can replace spinach and the bulb can also be consumed for the amount of fibre it contains. Research is currently underway to find out more about its contributions to fighting cancer cells. The tulip is also thought to have aphrodisiac properties, which is why in many civilisations it is consumed as an infusion to increase sexual desire.
The tulip in cosmetics This beautiful and exuberant flower has a large number of properties not only related to medicine but also to beauty and care treatments. It is used to treat scalp conditions, as it strengthens the scalp and prevents hair follicles from falling out. Its chemical compounds also help with skin care, keeping the skin moisturised, relieving acne, sunburn and wounds. In ancient times, it would also appear that tulip flower petals were used as a soothing compress for insect bites, burns and rashes. In the 18th century, girls were also said to use the petals of red tulips to create a paste which they spread on their cheeks as a beauty treatment.
Art could not feign a simpler grace, nor nature a more beautiful line. (James Montgomery, on tulips)
1 – Do-it-yourself decorations There is no need to buy too many decorations, we can create some with painted eggs, ribbons, paper flowers and other recycled materials. If we don’t have the colours to paint our eggs, remember that you can also make them with food and spices: turmeric for yellow, paprika for orange, red turnips for fuchsia, coffee for brown, spinach for green, red wine for purple. And above all, let’s not forget to use the insides of eggs to prepare our traditional recipes with local products.
2 – Zero km and seasonal products Choosing zero-kilometre, local and seasonal products not only helps the local economy, which has been put to the test by the current situation, but also the environment, because it helps reduce the impact of out-of-season production and transport, which is often a burden on the wallet. Alongside this is the importance from a nutritional point of view. Nature grows food at specific times to make up for the deficiencies we face month after month. At Easter, for example, give asparagus, rich in vitamins and antioxidants, agretti and broad beans a go. For any doubts, just consult the Seasonal Calendar on the WWF’s Ecotips page.
3 – Conscious shopping Nowadays it is more important than ever to shop consciously, not only avoiding unnecessary packaging and excessive purchases, but also with a list in hand to buy only what is necessary, reducing waste and trips to the supermarket. Finally, it is important to pay close attention to expiry dates, so as not to buy food that will perish before it is actually used, but above all, let’s bring lots of loose and fresh produce to the Easter table, from fruit and vegetables to dairy products and eggs.
4 – What about Easter eggs? For Easter, it is important to buy chocolate with a guarantee that it does not come from crops linked to deforestation practices: if possible, choose organic certification for chocolate or certifications that attest to compliance with environmental and social sustainability criteria such as Rainforest Alliance, or Fairtrade. To make good chocolate, you need good cocoa. And cocoa is really good if it is produced with respect for nature, biodiversity, workers and the health of all.
5 – Freezing or creatively reusing leftover food Freezing food in the freezer is a convenient and easy way to keep a lot of food in good condition for longer, avoiding waste. Freezing is essential when, for example, we want to preserve seasonal products (such as mushrooms) to have them available even in the months when they are not in season, or when we want to stock up. When freezing we use reusable containers (suitable for food contact and use in the freezer) as much as possible instead of disposable bags, sheets and film. Remember to write down the date and contents of our containers so that we have an overview of our stock. If we have lots of leftovers and the freezer is full, then give free rein to creativity: a savoury pie such as the classic pasqualina, for example, can be cut into cubes, reheated and served as an aperitif during Easter Monday lunch.
6 – Learn to read labels to avoid waste As well as being environmentally unsustainable, food waste represents an economic loss for families. Yet all this waste can be drastically reduced by learning to recognise the difference between the ‘best before’ date – ‘best before’ and therefore not beyond that date because it can be hazardous to health – and ‘best before’, which means that the food will be safe to eat even after the date on the label (provided the packaging is intact), but may not be in the best condition. For example, the taste and texture may not be the best. In addition to expiry dates, it is also important to remember how important it is to store food well: if we store it well it will give us plenty of time to eat it.
7- Where do I throw it away? Often the disposal of typical festive objects and products can be complicated or unknown. For example: not everyone knows that for dove packaging, the outer box is disposed of in paper, the inner transparent plastic bag in plastic, while the baking mould, if it has food residues and is compostable, is disposed of in organic waste. If it has food residues and is not compostable, it goes in the general waste bin. Also go there: used candles, mussel and clam shells (unless your municipality indicates otherwise), shiny or silver Easter egg wrappers, coloured paper napkins and imitation corks from wine and sparkling wine. WWF’s advice tends both to reduce the consumption of disposable materials as much as possible, proposing reusable alternatives (for example, off-the-shelf tableware is in fashion), and to encourage the purchase of items in bulk or with reduced packaging, avoiding overpackaging. A general rule that applies to plastic, glass and metal is that only packaging should be recycled. Plastic, glass and metal objects that are not packaging should be recycled, e.g. toys, a glass or a metal plate. Another important rule is to “reduce the volume” of waste, i.e. to crush the packaging before putting it in the recycling bin. For bottles, for example, the side surface of the bottle should be flattened rather than crushed from the cap to the bottom, to facilitate identification during recycling.
Dementia is a heterogeneous syndrome characterised by a progressive deterioration of cognition and the ability to perform activities of daily living. Dementia also has a huge emotional, economic, and psychological impact on families and society. The last report of dementia prevention, intervention, and care (published at the end of 2020) highlighted the 12 major risk factors that are responsible for ~40% of dementia cases: diabetes, hypertension, head injury, smoking, air pollution, midlife obesity, depression, alcohol consumption, hearing impairment, no social contact, low education levels and lack of exercise.
Physical activity is widely acknowledged as associatedwith several health benefits and reduces the risk of adverse health outcomes throughout the life cycle. As a result, the World Health Organisation has highlighted that ‘each step counts’, encouraging people to increase their physical activity levels. Unfortunately, according to the latest PA report, 27,5% of the worldwide population is physically inactive, and these numbers are likely higher considering how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the people worldwide.
Regarding the association between physical activity and dementia risk, a recent study identified a dose-response relationship between device-measured physical activity and risk of incident dementia, independent of sociodemographic, lifestyle and health-related confounding factors; in other words, higher physical activity levels were associated with a lower risk of dementia incidence. Moreover, compared to individuals physically inactive, performing physical activity could decrease the onset of dementia up to 12 years.
