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Eco Green School Club Produces Philbert Audiobook
May 13, 2024
In 2023 the Eco Green School club published a children’s book called The Adventures of Philbert the Phoenix. They collaborated with elementary students to illustrate the book. Illustrations are not just artworks – visual storytelling carries messages too. The illustrations show elementary schoolers to demonstrate that anyone of any age can learn about issues as heavy as pollution and also reflect on the information in unique ways. “Our world needs to learn how to break past generational gaps,” says Kathy, “and unite to fight issues that endanger humans and our planet.”
Once published, the Eco Green School club was proud of their work – but not done! “One of the challenges that we faced after the creation of the book was: now what?” says Michael. The club wondered how to share the book. Publishing hard copies is expensive and not totally green. Someone suggested they make an audiobook version. Michael and fellow club member Jayden headed the project. An audiobook is easily distributed to different platforms for diverse audiences.
But first, the voice actors! “We wanted each voice to be unique, setting each voice apart,” says Jayden. He and Michael thought that listeners could easily follow the story if each part had a distinct voice. They found fellow students to be voice actors. The entire production was student-led, a special experience for all. Michael and Jayden plan to digitize future Eco Green School books too, hoping to create accessible and informative online resources.
This year the club also added a sequel in collaboration with the Nyaka and National Art Honor Society clubs as well as with students from the American School of London and the Marjala School in Finland. The Adventures of Philbert the Phoenix book series cohesively blends the intersection of culture, art, and environmental science and exemplifies global citizenship and adaptability. A few of the club members who worked on the Philbert book project from the beginning are graduating this spring. Layla and Yelim are glad to leave a physical manifestation of their impact that will continue to educate younger generations. Indeed, the Eco Green School club strives to create sustainable goals that cascade into a myriad of productive effects.
Thank you to Jayden, Layla, Kathy, and Michael for writing this story. Listen to the audiobook with video or audio only. And learn more about the Eco Green School initiative.