Planet

Former NPS director sounds alarm on the 'systematic dismantling' of America's national parks

Photo by Aniket Deole on Unsplash

Jonathan B. Jarvis served for 40 years in the National Parks Service. He worked under presidents of both parties as a ranger, biologist, superintendent, and regional director, and ultimately became the agency's director from 2009–2017.

Jarvis's brother, Destry, has worked with the past 12 NPS directors in various capacities as a conservation advocate. These men know the beauty and wonder of our National Parks well, and their chilling warning about what's happening to these public lands is a must read for all Americans.

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Amazon is donating $690,000 to Australia's fire recovery. Does Jeff Bezos owe the world more?

Canva, Spice Latte/Twitter

Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos (a.k.a. The Wealthiest Man to Ever Walk the Earth) has announced that his company (a.k.a. the Most Valuable Company to Ever Exist) will contribute $1 million Australian dollars in aid to Australia to assist with the country's bushfire recovery efforts. In U.S. dollars, that's approximately $690,000.

For sure, $690,000 is not a small amount of money, and every donation counts. But the announcement from Bezos has people expressing their not-so-charitable feelings about the mega rich man and his mega valuable company. And when you calculate what kind of an effect $690,000 has on Amazon's bottom line, it's not hard to see why.

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Hermit crabs line up biggest to smallest to exchange shells, and it's mind-blowing to watch

BBC/YouTube

The other day, I came across this post on my Facebook page describing the way hermit crabs exchange shells. Never having given hermit crabs any thought, I almost passed it up, but the bold text "ALL EXCHANGE SHELLS IN SEQUENCE SO EVERYONE GETS A NEW HOME" caught my eye. Like, what?

I was astounded to find out that hermit crabs who need new, bigger shells will line up in a queue, biggest to smallest. When a crab that fits the largest empty shell shows up, the others all move up one shell, leaving the smallest shell empty at the end of the line.

Like, WHAT?!

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REI to close on Black Friday for its fifth year, takes 'Opt Outside' push one step further

REI

Since 2015, the outdoor gear giant REI has gone the opposite direction of most retailers on Black Friday. Instead of slashing prices and advertising sales on the biggest shopping day of the year, REI has closed its doors, shuttered its online sales, and encouraged would-be shoppers to go outside instead. Employees are still paid as if it were a work day.

For the past four years, the #OptOutside campaign has taken people from crowds and consumerism to the simple joys of nature. But this year, they're taking the idea one step further. Through more than 100 organized clean-up events, REI is asking people to "Opt to Act" for the environment.

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