Eradajere Oleita thinks she may have a partial solution for two of the country’s persistent problems: garbage and poverty. It’s called the Chip Bag Project. The 26-year-old student and environmentalist from Detroit is asking a favor of local snack lovers: Rather than throw your empty chip bags into the trash, donate them so she can turn them into sleeping bags for the homeless.
Chip eaters drop off their empty bags from Doritos, Lay’s, and other favorites at two locations in Detroit: a print shop and a clothing store, where Oleita and her volunteer helpers collect them. After they clean the chip bags in soapy hot water, they slice them open, lay them flat, and iron them together. They use liners (活衬里) from old coats to line the insides.
It takes about four hours to sew a sleeping bag, and each takes around 150 to 300 chip bags, depending on whether they’re single-serve or family size. The result is a sleeping bag that is “waterproof, lightweight, and portable,” Oleita told the Detroit News.
Since its start in 2020, the Chip Bag Project has collected more than 800,000 chip bags and it created 110 sleeping bags last December.
Sure, it would be simpler to raise the money to buy new sleeping bags. But that’s only half the goal for Oleita — whose family moved to the United States from Nigeria a decade ago with the hope of attaining a better life — and her fellow volunteers. “We are devoted to making an impact not only socially, but environmentally,” she says.
And, of course, there’s the symbolism of saving bags that would otherwise land in the trash and using them to help the homeless. It’s a powerful reminder that environmental injustice and poverty are often closely related. As Oleita told hourdetroit.com: “I think it’s time to show connections between all of these issues.”
1. What is paragraph 2 mainly about?| A．The final goal of Chip Bag Project. | B．The basic rules of Chip Bag Project. |
| C．The main work of Chip Bag Project. | D．The significance of Chip Bag Project. |
| A．Its size is adjustable. | B．It is easy to carry around. |
| C．It has the function of heating. | D．It is only made of old coats. |
| A．Making sleeping bags is easier than buying new ones. |
| B．Poverty and environmental problems go hand in hand. |
| C．Making sleeping bags is the best way to help the homeless. |
| D．Environmental problems have little impact on the homeless. |
| A．Caring and creative. | B．Brave and optimistic. | C．Honest and determined. | D．Talented and easy-going. |
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【推荐1】Old Problem, New Approaches
While clean energy is increasingly used in our daily life, global warming will continue for some decades after CO₂ emissions(排放) peak. So even if emissions were to begin to decrease today, we would still face climate change. Here I will stress some smarter and more creative examples of climate adaptation.
When it comes to adaptation, it is important to understand that climate change is a process. We are therefore not talking about adapting to a new standard, but to a constantly shifting set of conditions. This is why, in part at least, the US National Climate Assessment says that: “There is no ‘one-size fits all’ adaptation.” Nevertheless, there are some actions that offer much and carry little risk or cost.
Around the world, people are adapting in surprising ways, especially in some poor countries. Floods have become more damaging in Bangladesh in recent decades. Mohammed Rezwan saw opportunity where others saw only disaster. His not-for-profit organization runs 100 river boats that serve as floating libraries, schools and health clinics, and are equipped with solar panels and other communicating facilities. Rezwan is creating floating connectivity (连接) to replace flooded roads and highways. But he is also working at a far more fundamental level: his staff show people how to make floating gardens and fish ponds to prevent starvation during the wet season.
Elsewhere in Asia even more astonishing actions are being taken. Chewang Norphel lives in a mountainous region in India, where he is known as the Ice Man, The loss of glaciers there due to global warming represents an enormous threat to agriculture. Without the glaciers, water will arrive in the rivers at times when it can damage crops. Norphel’s inspiration came from seeing the waste of water over winter, when it was not needed. He directed the wasted water into shallow basins where it froze, and was stored until the spring. His fields of ice supply perfectly timed irrigation(灌溉) water. Having created nine such ice reserves, Norphel calculates that he has stored about 200,000 m³of water. Climate change is a continuing process, so Norphel’s ice reserves will not last forever. Warming will overtake them. But he is providing a few years during which the farmers will, perhaps, be able to find other means of adapting.
Increasing Earth’s reflectiveness can cool the planet. In southern Spain the sudden increase of greenhouses (which reflect light back to space) has changed the warming trend locally, and actually cooled the region. While Spain as a whole is heating up quickly, temperatures near the greenhouses have decreased. This example should act as an inspiration for all cities. By painting buildings white, cities may slow down the warming process.
In Peru, local farmers around a mountain with a glacier that has already fallen victim to climate change have begun painting the entire mountain peak white in the hope that the added reflectiveness will restore the life-giving ice. The outcome is still far from clear. But the World Bank has included the project on its list of “100 ideas to save the planet”.
More ordinary forms of adaptation arc happening everywhere. A friend of mine owns an area of land in western Victoria. Over five generations the land has been too wet for cropping. But during the past decade declining rainfall has allowed him to plant highly profitable crops. Farmers in many countries are also adapting like this—cither by growing new produce or by growing the same things differently. This is common sense. But some suggestions for adapting are not. When the polluting industries argue that we’ve lost the battle to control carbon pollution and have no choice but to adapt, it’s a nonsense designed to make the case for business as usual.
Human beings will continue to adapt to the changing climate in both ordinary and astonishing ways. But the most sensible form of adaptation is surely to adapt our energy systems to emit less carbon pollution. After all, if we adapt in that way, we may avoid the need to change in so many others.
1. What is special with regard to Rezwan’s project?| A．The project receives government support. |
| B．Different organizations work with each other. |
| C．His organization makes the best of a bad situation. |
| D．The project connects flooded roads and highways. |
| A．Storing ice for future use. | B．Protecting the glaciers from melting. |
| C．Changing the irrigation time. | D．Postponing the melting of the glaciers. |
| A．White paint is usually safe for buildings. |
| B．The global warming trend cannot be stopped. |
| C．This country is heating up too quickly. |
| D．Sunlight reflection may relieve global warming. |
| A．adapt to carbon pollution | B．plant highly profitable crops |
| C．leave carbon emission alone | D．fight against carbon pollution |
| A．Setting up a new standard. | B．Reducing carbon emission. |
| C．Adapting to climate change. | D．Monitoring polluting industries. |
【推荐2】Killer whales, or orcas, are known for their severe attacks on sea animals but they have never posed a threat to humans. However, since late July, the normally social animals have been intentionally attacking sailboats off the coasts of Spain and Portugal.
The strange behavior first surfaced on July 29, 2020, when a 46-foot boat was repeatedly attacked for almost an hour by nine orcas, causing the boat to rotate(旋转) 180 degrees and having its engine switched off. Since then, over 30 more similar incidents have been reported. On September 23, 2020, Spain's government banned boats of less than 50 feet in length from sailing in the 60-mile stretch of the Atlantic coastline between Ferrol and the Estaca de Bares Cape, where the attacks have been occurring.
Researchers across the world are trying to explain the orcas' behavior. Some believe it could be a result of the overfishing of the bluefish tuna - the orcas' primary food source -which has left the area's killer whales starving and unable to feed their babies. "I saw them look at boats carrying fish. I think they know humans are somehow related to food shortages, "says Ken Balcomb, senior scientist at the Center for Whale Research in Washington, USA. The environmentalists believe the sudden increase in boat traffic and fishing activities, after months of absence due to restrictions on human activity last spring, could also be contributing to the agitation.
However, Alfredo López, a biology professor in Galicia, Spain, thinks the attacks are defensive measures the orcas adopted to protect themselves against boat injuries. The researcher came to this conclusion after looking at the of the videos of a few incidents and noticing that two of the young killer whales involved had serious injuries. Hopefully, the experts will be able to find a way to restore the harmony between the animals and the humans soon.
1. What do we know about orcas in paragraph 1?| A．They are friendly to humans. | B．They have changed their behavior. |
| C．They are famous for hunting skills | D．They have met tough living conditions. |
| A．Ken Balcomb. | B．The environmentalists. |
| C．Alfredo López. | D．Spain's government. |
| A．The attacks. | B．Food shortages. | C．The overfishing. | D．Human activities. |
| A．How do killer whales attack humans? |
| B．Why Are Killer Whales attacking Boats? |
| C．How can we live in harmony with animals? |
| D．Why are boats banned from sailing on the sea? |
【推荐3】Off the coast of Formentera, an island, lives seagrass that stretches 15 km. The seagrass, covering several kilometers, is made up of a single organism. The grasses are also long-lived, for tens or hundreds of thousands of years. Along with two other kinds of coastal ecosystem—mangrove swamps and tidal marshes—seagrass fields are particularly good at taking carbon dioxide from the air.
This role was highlighted in a report published on March 2nd by UNESCO, on “blue carbon” —the carbon stored by Earth’s oceanic and coastal ecosystems. In total around 3,300 million tons of carbon dioxide (about three-quarters of the world’s emissions in 2019) are locked away in the planet’s blue-carbon sinks. Research by Carlos Duarte, the report’s author and an ecologist, has shown that one hectare of seagrass can suck as much carbon dioxide each year as 15 hectares of rainforest.
One reason that blue-carbon ecosystems make such effective sinks is that underwater forests are thicker than the land-based woods. They can also trap floating pieces and organic matter, which settles on the sea floor and can double the amount of carbon stored away. They possess another advantage, too. Climate change is leading to more wildfires around the world. As forests burn, their carbon stocks are sent back into the atmosphere. Unlike forests on land, blue-carbon ecosystems do not burn.
Blue-carbon ecosystems may not be fired, but they remain affected by other sorts of disasters. In May 2020 cyclone Amphan destroyed 1,200 square kilometers of mangrove forests. A marine heatwave in Australian waters in 2010 and 2011 damaged around one third of the world’s largest seagrass field in Shark Bay. Mangrove forests can weaken or control waves and provide natural barriers to storm surges. Protecting and expanding them, then, appears to be a must.
1. What do the blue-carbon ecosystems consist of?| A．The carbon stored in coastal ecosystems. |
| B．Seagrass living off the coast of Formentera. |
| C．A single organism, seagrass fields and forests on land. |
| D．Seagrass fields, mangrove swamps and tidal marshes. |
| A．The concrete role of “blue carbon”. | B．The special features of the seagrass. |
| C．The storage ability of the blue-carbon sinks. | D．The findings about the blue-carbon ecosystems. |
| A．Because they aren’t influenced by disasters. | B．Because there is more carbon in water than on land. |
| C．Because their carbon stocks are released back. | D．Because they have greater absorbing ability. |
| A．To add background information. | B．To give suggestions. |
| C．To list influential examples. | D．To offer scientific data. |
【推荐1】Would you like to stay at a beach home in Australia, a home on Egypt’s Red Sea, or a castle in France, all without spending a dollar? People swap (交换) their homes for a few days, a few weeks or longer. You move into someone else’s home, and they move into yours.
Many travelers say it’s a fantastic way to travel. In the movie The Holiday, Kate Winslet is very happy to find a wonderful Southern California home through a home exchange website.
At HomeExchange.com, paying $60 a year allows members to list their homes and swap them with other members for free. The website lists some 15, 000 homes around the world and includes pictures and detailed (详细的) descriptions, dates the owners are available (有空的) for an exchange, and the places members would like to travel.
“It’s a great way to travel—basically you stay at my house, I stay at yours, so there are no hotel bills—you save a lot of money on vacation,” said Ed Kushins.
That’s why Susana Parks is a big fan of home exchanges. She and her husband live in a beautiful Rodeo Drive home just a few blocks from Beverly Hills. And the couple is willing to let home exchangers, who they’ve never met, move in and have free use of their kitchen, library, swimming pool, even their new car.
“If we swap our home, we’re in their home too. So there is trust between us that we treat their home like our home and they treat our home like theirs.”
1. What is home exchange?| A．People sell their homes for money or other things. |
| B．People swap their homes that they are not satisfied with. |
| C．People swap their homes when they are on vacation. |
| D．People take care of others’ homes when they are out. |
| A．she can make money from it | B．she believes in other people |
| C．the website makes a promise to her | D．she wants people to know Beverly Hills |
| A．persuade us to trust others | B．introduce a new way to travel |
| C．tell us some tips on traveling | D．advertise for HomeExchange.com |
【推荐2】The causes and effects of plastic pollution are truly everywhere.
Several million tons of rubbish end up in the world’s ocean every year, and much of it is improperly dropped plastic litter.
In the ocean, plastic pollution can kill the ocean animals directly through entanglement (缠住) in objects, and it can also kill them because of being mistaken for food. Studies have found that all kinds of species, both small and large, easily take plastic bits. Sunlight and seawater crack plastic, and the final breakdown of larger objects into microplastic makes plastic available to the small ocean animals. Such small pieces of plastic, which are less than 5 mm in length, make up a sizable part of plastic waste in the ocean by the movement of deep-sea currents (水流), which is creating microplastic “hot spots” in parts of the ocean.
There is also plastic pollution on land. Drainage systems become blocked with plastic bags and other items. Land birds have been found with plastic in their stomachs, and animals that normally feed in dumps—for example, the sacred cows of India—have had intestinal (肠的) blockages from plastic packaging. In addition, wind-transported microplastic has been found in many parts of the world, including the snow on high mountains, on Aretic beaches, sea ice and in Antarctica.
Given the global scale of plastic pollution, using more money on removing plastic items from the environment would not be considered. Most solutions to the problem of plastic pollution, therefore, focus on preventing improper disposal (处理) or even on limiting the use of certain plastic items in the first place. Fines for littering have proved difficult to be carried out, but various fees on plastic shopping bags are common, as is exchanging for new things by taking bottles to recycling centers. Awareness of the serious results of plastic pollution is increasing, and new solutions, including the increasing use of biodegradable plastics and a “zero waste” idea, are being accepted by governments and the public.
1. What do the underlined words “hot spots” in paragraph 3 mean?| A．Popular materials. | B．Rising temperatures. |
| C．Strange objects. | D．Heavily-polluted places. |
| A．The harm of plastic pollution to animals. |
| B．The way to deal with plastic pollution. |
| C．The process of microplastic being formed. |
| D．The effect of wind on the spread of plastic pollution. |
| A．They advise a fine on littering. |
| B．They give up using plastic items. |
| C．They take action with a “zero waste” idea. |
| D．They agree to increase the cost of removing plastic items. |
| A．Plastic Pollution to the Ocean |
| B．Environmental Protection on the Way |
| C．Plastic Pollution in the Ocean and on Land |
| D．Tasks on Keeping Plastic Pollution Away From Land |
【推荐3】On a sunny, spring day, a group of children, four to seven years old, sit on their bicycles. They wear helmets to protect their heads and gloves to protect their hands. Their mothers, standing nearby, watch them closely. The children are ready to learn how to ride. Rachel Varn still remembers how she felt riding a bicycle for the first time. She says, “It is probably the biggest confidence booster (提升). It gives kids such a sense of independence and self-guidance.” Now, her job is helping children experience that moment.
Rachel Varn left her job of selling bicycles to become a trainer for bicycle riding last year. She founded Pedal Power Kids to teach bicycle education. Before starting a ride, she teaches the children how to make sure the bicycles are in good condition for safe use. She calls it “ the ABC quick check.” “A” is for air. she explains, “We have to check out tires before we ride. “B” is for brakes. We want to make sure our brakes work before we find ourselves at the top of a hill about to go down. And “ C ” is for chain.” She says the chain must be clean.
The rest of the training is more fun. The children learn riding skills, from balance and pedaling to turning, starting and stopping. And they learn to keep their eyes up and look ahead while riding. Varn says many children struggle to do this. They look down at the pedals insteađ. She adds, “ Obviously that doesn’t allow them to see what’s going on around them, and it doesn ’t allow them to turn properly either.” Varn says watching where you are going helps you turn easier.
Learning to ride a bicycle can open a whole new world to children. It gives them a sense of accomplishment and freedom. They become more sensitive to their surroundings and better able to make safe, smart decisions going from one place to another. Varn’s goal is to get more children on two wheels. She says, “ That’s really a great way for kids to be active and develop healthy habits. It helps reduce pollution and just keep families and communities connected. ”
1. Racher Varn’s Current job is ______.| A．Looking after preschool children | B．selling bicycles on the Internet |
| C．teaching children how to ride bicycles | D．providing consulting service of riding bicycles |
| A．Basic skills of driving a vehicle. | B．Exams to take after the bicycle course. |
| C．Some useful tips before riding a bicycle. | D．Things to check before buying a bicycle. |
| A．makes the rider forget to brake | B．makes turning more challenging |
| C．helps increase the speed of riding | D．helps the rider be aware of the ground condition |
| A．what Varn ’s goal is |
| B．what being a trainer means to Varn |
| C．what the benefits of learning at an early stage are |
| D．what learning to ride a bicycle means to children |
| A．She is very strict about teaching. |
| B．She is enthusiastic about what she is doing. |
| C．She doesn’t care about her income. |
| D．She wants to become a successful business woman. |
