Plogging     1     (refer) to the act of picking up trash while jogging. Ploggers collect trash, such as plastic bottles, waste paper and cans from parks, beaches, and other outdoor areas when they exercise.

The     2     (found) of plogging was Erik Ahlstrom. He used to live in a small town, but later he moved to Stockholm,     3     capital city of Sweden. He could hardly believe     4     he saw there—garbage filled every corner of the city. So, he decided to do something     5     (change) the situation. Every time he went jogging, he would invite some friends to pick up trash with him. This gradually became a habit and inspired more and more people to join in the activity. Some famous sports brands even began to provide     6     (run) shoes for plogging enthusiasts (爱好者). Since then, plogging     7     (become) increasingly popular around the world.

Now, plogging is widely recognized as an     8     (effect) and eco-friendly way to keep healthy and contribute to the environment. Whether you are a fitness enthusiast     9     simply want to do your part to protect the environment, plogging will be a great choice. So, why not give it a try? You might find a new way to stay connected to nature and make the Earth a     10     (good) place to live on.

Xixi, located less than five kilometers from the West Lake in the west of Hangzhou, is China’s first national wetland park. The area covers about 10 square kilometers and it     1     (be) around for more than 1,500 years, although it was only recently reopened     2     (offer) visitors a chance to escape from the concrete of the city. Despite its growing popularity,     3     wetland’s winding waterways, thick greenery and wide     4     (variety) of wildlife guarantee its peaceful spots in nature.

Wetlands themselves are one of the most biologically diverse ecosystems,     5     (act) as natural green lungs, water purification (净化) systems and flood control. But wetlands are     6     (serious) threatened by environmental pollution worldwide nowadays. More than 200square kilometers of wetland in the country have disappeared every year     7     average in the past decade, the China Institute for Marine Affairs warns. The wetlands of the Yellow and East China seas have lost up to 90 percent of their natural function, the institute reports,     8     makes the 226 plant species, 50 kinds of fish and aquatic (水生的) animals as well as 126 kinds of birds in Xixi even     9     (valuable).

Xixi’s native vegetation,     10     (water) by six crossing rivers, consists of subtropical mountainous swamp (沼泽) and evergreen forest.

Nature’s Lungs

We know that trees are nature’s purifier (净化器): They absorb carbon emissions (碳排放)and release oxygen. But their     1       (able) to do that changes as they age. According to Newsweek, trees     2       are at least 20 years old can absorb carbon better than younger ones and older ones. And a recent study by researchers from South Korea’s Forest Research Institute     3       (find) exactly how much carbon that each 25-year-old cherry tree can absorb: 20 pounds (9.1 kilograms) each year.

According to the study, there are     4       (current) about 1.5 million cherry trees in South Korea, which means they can take in as much as 13,650 tons of carbon each year.

This may sound like a lot,     5       it’s only the annual emissions of 6,000 cars. And it’s pretty     6       (shock) if you think about it: The annual emissions of a single-car requires 250 mature cherry trees to absorb     7       carbon.

Yet, planting trees is still considered the most effective way     8       (reduce) global warming, according to Professor Tom Crowther of the Swiss university ETH Zurich. “Forest restoration isn’t just one of our climate change     9       (solution), it’s the top one,” he told the Guardian. “What blows my mind is the scale. I thought restoration would be in the top 10, but it is much    10     (powerful) than all of the other climate change solutions proposed.”

With more and more scientists saying we no longer have a climate problem but a climate emergency, the call for all hands to be part     1     the solution is bringing people of all     2    (age) to be ready. Leslie Wharton, spokesperson for Elders Climate Action(ECA), is in the midst of organizing a     3    (grow) number of “old hands” into a nationwide network of people who, instead of just talking, are getting together     4     (close) and taking action.

In 2014, after attending one of Al Gore’s Climate Reality training workshops, Paul Severance, a member of Elders Action Network(EAN), started ECA, which     5     (hold)its first in-person conference in September 2015 in Washington, D. C., with other climate activist groups. “That’s how I got     6     (involve),” Wharton says. “I was there in 2015 and I just felt such a community, such energy and support and focus, that I was just overwhelmed. At the end, I was given a form that asked if I would be willing to be     7    volunteer. I said yes.” Although most ECA members are in     8    (they) 50s through 80s and even 90s, some are as young as 18.

ECA’s mission is to reach out to older individuals and let them join, so they can use their expertise, experience and knowledge     9     (help) build a sustainable future. Those things can provide the support, encouragement, initiative     10     energy to get more and more people out there doing whatever they can do, right where they are.

From “pocket parks” between communities to forest parks in the outer cities, local governments are     1     (ambition) to make China’s cities greener. That’s     2     there are more parks in cities these days.

From 2021 to 2022, Shanghai transformed 62 woodlands into leisure spaces. These leisure spaces open up forests,     3     allows visitors to enjoy natural beauty as well as wildlife. In urban     4     (area), more companies and universities are sharing their greenery. For instance, the Shanghai Research Institute of Sports Science opened its 1,000-square-meter green space to the public.     5     (join) by historical buildings in the area, the park can provide more space for tourists to rest.

Apart from meeting people’s needs, parks can also do good to the environment. Take Beijing’s Central Green Forest Park     6     an example. Since it was opened in 2020, the park     7     (reach)carbon neutrality (碳中和). It means although the park’s facilities produce carbon dioxide, more can be     8     (take) in by the plants there. The park also fully reuses rainwater and creates green energy     9     (supply) the park. As cities in China become greener, “park cities” are becoming a reality. The concept of a park city was     10     (initial) put forward in 2018. It is a concept that takes the form of an improved natural environment in all aspects, noted China Daily.

A new report suggests Canada’s Western Hudson Bay polar bear population     1    (drop) 27 percent during the past five years.

Every autumn, bears     2     (live) along the western edge of the Hudson Bay pass through the sub-Arctic town of Churchill, Manitoba. The yearly movement has helped make the area’s bears one of the most studied     3     (group) in the world. Bear watching adds about $5.3 million to the local economy each year.

But a report     4     (recent) issued by the government in Canada’s northern territory(地区) of Nunavut found that just 618 polar bears remained in     5     area. This represented a 50percent drop in the population from the 1980s.

Polar bears depend on frozen salt water called sea ice     6     (help) them hunt seals for food   But the Arctic is now warming about four times     7     (fast) than the rest of the world. Around Hudson Bay, seasonal sea ice is melting earlier in the spring and forming later in the fall. This is forcing bears to go longer periods     8     food.

John Whiteman,     9     is chief research scientist at the nonprofit conservation group. Polar Bears International, called the population drop “totally shocking”. He said, “Scientists fear that if continued sea ice loss cannot     10     (stop), it will one day lead to a total loss of the area’s polar bear population.”