Kevin's Cause

Date: July 23, 2001 Source: Just Within Reach

JWR's mission is to provide environmental education and promote personal responsibility and accountability with regard to the health of the Earth. Taking care of our home planet and its resources begins at home! Kevin wants JWR to serve as a resource that empowers people, particularly young people and families, with information and knowledge about environmental issues - information and knowledge that can be put into action at the local level.

We believe that today, more than ever, kids and parents alike are eager to do something substantial and want to use their skills and know-how to make the world better. Kevin feels that too often kids and young adults don't get the respect they deserve or the education they need to empower themselves. Too often young people are overlooked as though they have nothing to contribute to society and its issues. And much too often, kids say there is nothing that they, alone, can do to create positive change for the Earth. They are told time and time again that they are virtually powerless when it comes to improving the world they will one day inherit and oversee. Well, in a nutshell, Kevin and Just Within Reach believe the message that kids are powerless is bogus and wrong! Kids are the answer - kids are the future of everything we see, say and do - and we want to help them and adults take the first bold steps toward a new type of environmentalism.

Somewhere along the line, we lost touch with nature. Somewhere along the way we lost the connection to the air we breathe, the water we drink, the soil we grow our food in and the raw beauty that Earth shows us every day. In our busy, fast-paced lives with many distractions, it's sometimes difficult to stop and look at the world that surrounds us. But we must take time to experience and reconnect ourselves to nature… so we don't lose it.

Whether you live on a dairy farm or in the middle of a big city, you are always surrounded by nature. Kevin especially encourages fans who share his passion for music to take notice of the music you can find in nature. You can find notes, tones and rhythms in the wind, in water running through a stream, in the creaking of a tall tree, in the sounds made by animals and even your own heartbeat! Next time you go to a park, to the beach, to the country or the mountains, spend some time without your Walkman and just close your eyes and listen to nature. That is one of the best ways to use your love of music to reacquaint yourself with your environment.

Working together and with the proper tools, we will be the driving force behind progressive environmental change… changing unfriendly behaviors into actions and practices that will conserve and preserve. Kevin and JWR believe we can have both progress (business, jobs and profits) while also protecting resources, wildlife, our health and Earth's beauty. But in order to be motivated to solve environmental problems, we must first understand how those problems impact our daily lives. JWR will bring these daily life issues to the forefront and help point you, a JWR ambassador, in the right direction to learn more and inspire you to create a plan of your own.

Unlike some celebrity-founded organizations, Kevin Richardson strongly believes that JWR will be most successful if it is a self-sustaining organization funded not only by the founders' funds, but also by those who share a passion for protecting Earth. With enough financial support, JWR will fund environmental programs that will provide a sense of community and a sense of ownership for those who make donations. For this reason, Kevin himself has donated only a minimal amount of funding to get JWR started and is now asking for your help to build a strong foundation and successful programs.

A native Kentuckian, it is commonly known that Kevin wishes to give back to his own home state and improve the environmental health of Kentucky. At the same time, JWR's mission and programs will serve the nation, and hopefully, the world. The strength and success of Just Within Reach will depend on the activity and commitment of its friends and supporters.

Get in contact with JWR at: www.justwithinreach.org.

Other environmental sites to visit:

Natural Resources Defense Council www.NRDC.org

The Sierra Club www.SierraClub.org

National Geographic Society (The NGS has always been known for its work in exploration. Now it's moving more toward "preservation" of what they've explored!) www.NGS.org

US Environmental Protection Agency (You can read about the issues in your geographic region. This is one of the ways Kevin learned about the health of Kentucky's environment) www.EPA.gov

American Oceans Campaign www.americanoceans.org

Environmental News Services (Most provide free daily email subscriptions so you can get the latest news) www.enn.com www.planetark.org www.gristmagazine.com

Your help is greatly appreciated and you will receive a receipt for your donation. If you wish to make a contribution, please send check or money order to:

Just Within Reach Foundation 3940 Laurel Canyon Blvd., PMB 256 Studio City, CA 91604

Vicki Hanna Programming & Public Relations JWR Foundation

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