1 . I’ve never been much of a jogger, but might I make a decent plogger? “Plogging” is a(n) ________ of “plocka upp” with “jogga”, the Swedish for “pick up” and “jog”. The idea is that you ________ litter while out running and the ________ has been growing in popularity in Sweden.

“It’s good for both the ________ and ourselves,” says Anna Christopherson, the 43-year-old Swede who runs Edinburgh’s first plogging group. “It’s very ________ for the body to combine running with squatting (蹲下) to lift rubbish.”

Seven of us ________ in the city for the run. We rush up Leith Walk, our rubbish bags ________ in the evening wind. “Quite competitive, isn’t it?” says Struan, an accountant. He ________ to a bin, muscles bulging (鼓起), to pick up a leaflet.

Within 10 minutes, our bags are filling up. It’s amazing — and ________— to see how much ________ is lying on the streets. A passing walking tour gives us some ________ looks, but we ploggers, lost in a world of plogging, carry on ________.

After an hour, I’m tired and ________, but feeling good. The city is a little ________ thanks to these ploggers. Anna is not satisfied, though. Our ________ have made no difference to her pet hate: chewing gum (口香糖) stuck to the paths. “You need a steamer to get that off,” she says. “And I’m not going to run with a steamer any time soon.”

2 . Following a sustainable diet, also known as a “planetary health diet”, includes whole grains, fruits, nuts, green vegetables, and olive oil, can be a win-win for your health and the planet, according to a new research.

The new research conducted by scientists from the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health has revealed that people who eat more environmentally sustainable food have a 25percent lower risk of mortality (死亡) compared to those with a less sustainable diet, like eggs, the red and processed meat. The findings show that the participants with a good planetary health diet had a reduced risk of all causes of death measured in the study.

The study involved over 100,000 participants in the USA, with a 30-year check-up period. According to Linh Bui, the PhD candidate at Harvard, the research team integrated data on the health outcomes of specific foods and their environment al impact, creating a Planetary Health Diet Index (指数), and gave the participants scores based on their diets. Using this, they assessed the relationship between the scores and the participants’ health outcomes. “The results confirmed our previous hypothesis (假设) that a higher Planetary Health Diet score was associated with a lower risk of death,” said Bui. The people with the highest Planetary Health Index scores had a 25per cent lower overall risk of death than those with the lowest scores.

The environmental impact of the foods was evaluated by factors such as water use, land use, package, pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions. The researchers hope that the eco-index can be used as a simple tool for policy makers and public health services to improve human health and tackle the climate crisis.

However, they acknowledge that the index does not take into account certain challenges that people may have in following a sustainable diet, such as health conditions of the subjects and what cultures they come from. They hope that further research will address these barriers,   as well as relationships between foods and diseases tailored to particular countries.

3 . There is widespread agreement that climate change threatens our existence. But in our rush to address this challenge, our efforts mustn’t heighten another, more immediate one: the global decline of biodiversity. We are losing species at 1,000 times the natural rate. If we stay on this track, we risk losing up to half of them by the middle of the century.

Sadly, the singular focus on solving climate change has led to people ignoring biodiversity. The alarming result is that many climate efforts unintentionally quicken nature’s destruction. Take the huge need for solar farms for an example. If not located properly, they’ll impact ecosystems and habitats. In Virginia, for example, more than half of solar facilities are being built on forested land rather than areas such as rooftops or parking lots. The state’s push for solar development could lead to the deforestation of nearly 30,000 acres annually.

There is a real risk that badly planned renewable infrastructure (基础设施) will have a greater impact on biodiversity than existing fossil fuel infrastructure. Thus, we need to chart a path that doesn’t address one environmental challenge by creating others.

Indeed, with practical choices, we can do the opposite, using nature to address climate change. Consider carbon removal. Research shows between 2001 and 2019, forests around the world seized more than twice the amount of carbon dioxide that they emitted (排放) — absorbing more than the combined annual emissions of the US and UK. Nature is also critical in setting the adaptation necessary to prepare for increasingly severe weather shocks, such as the role of mangroves (a kind of tree) in absorbing floods.

Governments must think differently, employing better infrastructure planning at all levels. A report from The Nature Conservancy shows careful siting can reduce the effects of the clean energy infrastructure by 70%compared with siting as usual practices. For instance, solar farms can be put on already degraded land.

It would be a tragic irony if, in our efforts to tackle climate change, we end upbringing a big and immediate crisis in the natural world.

4 . The environment has never been more in need of a helping hand from us. Schools, in particular, are in a great position to educate future generations and make sure that good environmental habits are learned and adopted from an early age. So, ranging from energy efficiency to recycling, here are our tips to make your school more eco-friendly and sustainable.

☆    1    

Sending waste to landfill to slowly rot away isn’t the best use of the world’s resources. Plus, the space available for landfill is rapidly running out. Instead, boost recycling by providing appropriate and appealing facilities with clear signage (标识).     2    .

☆Turn off the lights and fit energy-efficient light bulbs

Saving energy used for lighting is one of the easiest things that we can do.     3    . Turn off lights when they’re not needed. Signage asking people to turn off the lights can act as a useful reminder.

☆Go paperless

    4    , with paper now being seen as outdated in many cases. This is good news for the environment, but it sometimes needs people to change how they do things. Look into options for creating and using fewer paper-based administration systems at school and think twice before printing or photocopying all those A4 pages, for example.

☆Reject plastic water bottles

Recent television programs and campaigns have raised the issue of waste plastic towards the top of the environmental agenda. In some ways, this isn’t surprising because, again, it is relatively easy for everyone to make a difference to the environment with minimal effort.     5    . Just stop buying brand-new water bottles that are used once and then recycled, and reuse existing bottles and containers instead.

5 . In the scenic coastal city of Cornwall, Lizzi Larbalestier has become a beacon of hope for marine (海洋的) wildlife. As a committed volunteer for British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR), her journey began with transforming her Airbnb, an online platform that allows people to rent out their homes or accommodations to travelers, into a temporary haven for injured seals. This effort came as the result of the increasing incidents of marine animals suffering from human-related injuries and the lack of specialized care facilities in the region.

Recognizing the urgent need for a more permanent solution, Lizzi, alongside her husband and a team of committed volunteers, established a fully equipped seal hospital. This facility, now in its third year of operation, has expanded its capacity to ten pens and is prepared to recover around 100 seals annually. The hospital caters to a variety of cases: seals injured by boats or caught in fishing gear (用具), young pups separated from their mothers, and young seals weakened by poor nutrition. Each animal receives personalized care, ranging from basic first aid to extensive recovery programs. After initial treatment, seals are often moved to larger recovery centers for further care before their release back into the wild.

Lizzi’s commitment to marine conservation extends beyond seal rescue. She is an active participant in environmental campaigns like Surfers Against Sewage and Ghostnetbuster. Her tireless efforts were recognized when she received the Animal Action Award from the International Fund for Animal Welfare. Lizzi owes the success of BDMLR’s operations to the collective effort of all volunteers, emphasizing the importance of teamwork in achieving their conservation goals.

The BDMLR team also responds to emergencies involving other marine wildlife, like whales and dolphins. Lizzi recalls several successful operations, including the rescue of stranded (搁浅的) dolphins and a turtle that required specialized care.

Lizzi’s story is not just about rescuing marine animals; it’s a proof of the power of community involvement and the impact of individuals on environmental conservation.

6 . Native plants planted by the State Botanical Garden of Georgia at the University of Georgia near the GA-10 Loop in Athens, Ga., are changing the area from being covered in kudzu back to a more natural state.

The project, funded by Keep Athens-Clarke County Beautiful, was planted in November 2021. Volunteers and students from the UGA College of Environment and Design all participated to plant the area along the entrance ramp (斜坡) next to the GA-10 Loop at Milledge Avenue.

Zach Wood, the grasslands coordinator (协调人) at the State Botanical Garden, said all the plants chosen for the project are native to Georgia. He said that they selected hardy species of plants they felt pretty confident would survive. In total, 22 native plant species are planted at the site.

“Native plants function to support their ecosystem, and that’s important because our roadsides are turning into monocultures of non-native species that don’t support our native wildlife,” Wood said.

He added that non-native species don’t filter (过滤) water as well as native species, which is significant on roadsides to handle stormwater runoff.

When they’ve checked on the plants, all the species planted were established and growing. Wood said there was concern the plants would succumb to drought, but the value of native plants is their ability to survive in stressful conditions.

The team doesn’t water the area at all.

“It would go against the spirit of doing it, “Wood said. “We’re trying to figure out the least effort to put native plants back into a place that’s been kind of beat up.”

“This project is so important because it’s so visible,” Wood said. “It’s going to demonstrate an alternative way of managing roadsides.”

“We’re always looking for ways to make things sustainable,” said Richard Littleton, state agronomist (农学家) manager at GDOT. “The more we can do that’s natural, it helps everything. It’s the right thing to do to be a good caretaker of our lands.”

Haze（雾霾）is a kind of air pollution in which the air is filled with dust and smoke. Haze stops people from breathing and seeing things clearly.     1     它对人们的健康很有害.

This kind of pollution comes from all kinds of sources, especially natural and man-made sources.     2     Many factories produce the smoke that seriously influences the air.

Haze has done great harm to our daily life. For example,     3     many traffic accidents happen because of the haze weather.

People have realized the great harm caused by the smoke and the importance of protecting the environment.     4     People all over the world are taking actions to keep the air clean. The government advises people to use public transportation to go to school or work.

Besides, we should pull together to plant more trees to improve the environment.     5     不要忘记我们仅仅只有一个地球。

China has been working quietly to address air pollution. In addition to observing, I also communicated with locals and foreigners     1     (learn) about China’s efforts.

According to Cui Xiaoyi, a resident of Beijing, due to serious air pollution the local administration (行政部门) sometimes warned     2     elderly not to go out in the past . But Beijing     3     (see) a great improvement in air quality over the last few years. They no longer need such emergency measures.

Muhammad Asghar, a representative of the Associated Press of Pakistan in China     4     has been living in Beijing for the past few years, said that the green transportation and energy industries that China has developed over the years have largely replaced fuel-powered (燃料驱动的) cars,     5     that the Chinese people are willing to use electric cars and public transportation.

Asghar added that China has not only done good work to address air pollution, but has also made contributions     6     promoting greener practices. The living environment has been     7     (significant) improved with the greening coverage of urban built-up areas nationwide     8     (increase) from 39.22 percent to 42.06 percent between 2012 and 2021.

The ideas     9     (share) by China in international conferences are impressive. Chinese netizens (网民) believe that rather than just talking about it, it would be     10     (effect) if we put our efforts into planting trees.