If you want to make a difference in your community, be a part of something bigger than yourself, or just need to earn some required volunteer hours, then this is the place to start. Here are a few organizations of Gen Z with volunteer opportunities for teens!
Habitat for Humanity
Everyone deserves to have a place they call home. By volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, you can play a role in building up your community. Their Habitat Youth Programmesaccept volunteers between the ages of 5 and 40 for everything from home construction to affordable housing advocacy.
Meals on Wheels
For those teens who just got their licenses and love any reason to get behind the wheel, here's a volunteer opportunity that'll make driving worthwhile. Meals on Wheels is on a mission to meet the nutritional and social needs of seniors. 225 million meals have been delivered so far-connect with your local provider to find out how you can get involved.
Key Club
As the oldest service programmefor high schoolers, the Key Club has quite a history of helping teens get involved in volunteering. Because clubs are student-led, you get a direct say in the kinds of service projects you want to do. Chances are, there' s already a chapter in your school, but if not, you can try taking the lead in one.
Best Buddies
Volunteer with Best Buddies to help end the social, physical, and economic isolation of 200 million people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and you'll make some new pals in the process! Join a school chapter (or start your own) to use friendship as a tool for inclusivity in your community.
And don't worry. Even if you can't volunteer physically, there are also tons of online volunteer opportunities available! Find out more about joining a worthwhile volunteer organizationsat www. Gen Z. org.
The South African town Hamburg is situated by one of the most beautiful estuaries (河口) in the Eastern Cape. It's known for its rich Xhosa culture. It is also home to a group of women who have produced a series of extraordinary artworks that have been exhibited around the world.
KeiskammaArt Project was created to teach local women embroidery (刺绣) skills to help them at a tough time economically and socially, but unexpectedly it has grown into something much bigger. Having been shown at international art galleries, many of their tapestries (挂毯) are now being displayed under one roof for the first time, at an exhibition in Johannesburg.
Their story began in 2000, when Dr. Carol Hofmeyrmoved from Johannesburg to Hamburg. She found that the town was struggling with high unemployment and that local women were desperate to find ways to feed their families. Having studied embroidery herself, she hoped that passing on that knowledge to local women would help empower them.
From humble beginnings more and more women heard about the project through word of mouth. Now, over 150 women are part of the project. Selling their works provides a source of income, but the project has also created a support system for the women.
Initially, the women started out simply creating cushions (坐垫) and small handbags to sell to tourists. Eventually, they started receiving tasks for larger pieces. They were given panels about a meter in size to work on at home. By joining the completed panels together, they created the first of their large works and one of their most celebrated, "The KeiskammaTapestry", which tells the history of the Xhosa people who were subjugated (征服) through colonization and the Xhosa British Frontier Wars from 1776 to 1876.
Another celebrated piece is "The KeiskammaAltarpiece", which was produced by 130 women. The four-meter-high, four-meter-wide piece reveals the struggles that elderly Xhosa women endured when the youth in their community were hit by HIV two decades ago, and they stepped in to care for children.
Recent artworks engage with contemporary issues. "COVID Resilience Tapestry" deals with the pandemic; "A New Earth and Our Sacred Ocean" is a call for environmental consciousness.
The impact of the man-made climate crisis on Antarctica is scientifically undeniable: stable ice shelves are retreating, air temperature increased by 3 degrees Celsius. krill(磷虾)numbers are declining, melting ice is contributing to sea level rise, and polar bears and seals are getting displaced. "Antarctic biodiversity could decline substantially by the end of the century if we continue with business as usual. "Jasmine Rachael Lee, lead author of the University of Queensland study says.
Published in the journal PLOS Biology, the study finds population declines are likely for 65% of the continent's plants and wildlife by the year
2100. The most vulnerable(脆弱
)species is the Emperor penguins. In October 2022, the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed Emperor penguins as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act(ESA), as experts predict the flightless seabird will see a 26% to 47% dip in its population by 2050. "This listing reflects the growing extinction crisis and highlights the importance of the ESA and efforts to conserve species before population declines become irreversible(不可逆转). " said Service Director Martha Williams at the time.
Aside from Emperor penguins, other Antarctic specialists, like the Adéliepenguin and dry soil nematodes, were also highly vulnerable. We urgently need a combination of global and local conservation action to best conserve Antarctic species. Global action and global voices to help relieve climate change—because the biggest threat to Antarctica is coming from outside of it. And then we need local actions to help protect biodiversity against local threats and give them the best chance of adapting to climate changes. This will help to save our iconic(代表性的)species like the Emperor penguins and all of Antarctica's unique and highly adapted inhabitants. It will also help humankind, as we rely heavily on the priceless services the Antarctic provides in regulating our climate and capturing sea level in its ice sheets.
Technology is developing by leaps and bounds. A device as small as a smartphone now has more processing power than rockets to the Moon once had. New tech brings many advantages, making our lives easier and opening up new opportunities. One piece of kit that's been really taking off recently is the drone. This pilotless mini aircraft, originally developed for photography from above and warfare, is now bringing us benefits closer to home. In the last few years, tech companies such as Amazon, Alphabet and Uber have promised us delivery drones—bringing goods to our doorsteps in a matter of minutes. Progress in developing them has, however, been slow.
Drones are helping to connect with and enhance the lives of people in remote locations. In the UK, the Royal Mail wants a fleet of 500 drones to help deliver the mail to far-flung communities. Windracers, the company developing the drones, say they can fly in fog and produce 30% fewer emissions than comparable piloted aircraft. And in Coventry in the UK, construction has started on an air hub, which will act as a base for police and delivery drones. Urban-Air Port Limited is working with car-maker Hyundai on the mini一airport, known as a skyport.
Drones could also play a part in improving the health of millions of people. In Zanzibar, for example, they're being used to spray wetlands against malaria(疟疾). And writing for BBC Future website, Harriet Constable describes an incredible development project by the University of South Australia. The plan is for drones to eventually be able to survey populations for disease by reading the blood oxygen levels of humans from the air. They'll also be able to scan for other vital signs, like coughing and a high temperature.
It seems that the sky's the limit for what drone technology can achieve. The only thing that sometimes keeps it grounded is regulation. Writing for the BBC, Jessica Brown says, "If our skies are to become as crowded as our streets, airspace rules need updating to prevent accidents. "There are also related problems，such as noise pollution.
Desertification, the process by which fertile (肥沃的) land becomes desert, has severe impacts on food production and is worsened by climate change.
Africa's Great Green Wall is a project to build an 8,000- kilometre-long forest across 11 of the continent s countries. The project is meant to contain the growing Sahara Desert and fight climate change. They include limited political support, lack of money, weak organizational structures, and not enough consideration for the environment. Just 4 million hectares (公顷)of land have been turned into forest since work on the Green Wall began 15 years ago.
First proposed in 2005 the project aims to plant a forest from Senegal on the Atlantic Ocean in western Africa to Eritrea, Ethiopia and Djibouti in the east. It could also reduce levels of climate-related migration in the area and capture hundreds of millions of tons of carbon dioxide from the air. Several countries have struggled to keep up with the demands of the project.
Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Sudan have all expanded their efforts. Ethiopia is producing 5.5billion seedlings leading to thousands of hectares of restored land. Efforts in Eritrea and Sudan have also resulted in nearly 140,000 hectares of newly planted forest. The U. N. desertification agency says the project will need to plant an average of 8. 2 million hectares yearly to reach its goal of 100 million hectares by 2030.
A. But the project faces many problems.
B. That is only 4 percent of the programme'sgoal.
C. However, it is difficult to work on the Great Green Wall.
D. A quarter of Africa is under threat of food shortage.
E. Some progress has been made in recent years in the east of the continent.
F. Supporters hope that the project will create millions of green jobs in rural Africa.
G. The U. N. says up to 45 percent of Africa's land is impacted by desertification, worse than any other continent.
I teach economics at UNLV three times per week. Last Monday，at the beginning of class, I cheerfully asked my students how their 1 had been. One young man said that his weekend had not been so good. He had his wisdom teeth 2 .The young man then proceeded to ask me why I always seemed to be so 3 .
His question 4 me of something I'd read somewhere before: "Every morning when you get up, you have a choice about how you want to 5 life that day. "I said, "I choose to be cheerful. "
"Let me give you an example," I continued, addressing all sixty students in the class. "In addition to teaching here at UNLV, I also teach out at the community college in Henderson, 17 miles down the 6 from where I live. One day a few weeks ago, I drove those 17 miles to Henderson. I exited the freeway and turned onto College Drive. I only had to drive 7 quarter mile down the road to the college. But just then my car died. I tried to start it again, but the engine wouldn't 8 .So I put my flashers on, 9 my books, and marched down the road to the college.
"As soon as I got there I called AAA and arranged for a tow truck to meet me at my car after class. The 10 in the Provost's office asked me what had happened. "This is my lucky day," I smiled. She was puzzled.
"My car broke down in the perfect place: off the freeway, within walking distance of here. If my car was 11 to break down today, it couldn't have been arranged in a more 12 fashion," I added. The secretary's eyes opened wide, and then she smiled. I smiled back and 13 for class. So ended my story.
I scanned the sixty faces in my economics class at UNLV. Despite the early hour, no one seemed to be 14 .Somehow, my story had touched them. Or maybe it wasn't the story at all. In fact, it had all started with a student's 15 that I was cheerful.
A resort (度假胜地) in Vietnam has opened a glass-bottomed foot bridge, the third such bridge in the Southeast Asian country,(connect) two mountains. The 150-metre-tall bridge crosses a deep, narrow valley,aimis to bring in thrill-seeking tourists.
The bridge (call) the Bach Long suspension bridge. It means "White Dragon" in Vietnamese. A dragon is a huge,(imagine) flying animal that can breathe out fire and looks a reptile (爬行动物). The bridge is founded in the Son La area. Son La is northwest of the capital, Hanoi, and borders Laos.
The reinforced glass (use) for the bridge can hold up to 450 people at a time. Each glass piece is 40 millimeters thick. The bridge is 290 metreslong and runs between two mountain tops on either side of a valley. It also has 342-metre pathway on the side of a mountain.
Guinness World Records keeps a list of world (record). It lists a 562-metre glass-bottomed bridge in Qingyuan, in China's Guangdong area, as the No. 1 position in the world.
The World Record Association is another (organize) that keeps the world's records. It listed the two-part Vietnamese bridge as the world's (long), at 632 metres.
注意：
1. 写作词数应为80左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Dear Patrick,
Yours,
Li Hua
Twins Katie and Sarah Monahan arrived at Pennsylvania's Gettysburg College. They are determined to strike out on independent paths. Although the 18-year-old sisters had requested rooms in different dormitory, the housing office placed them on the eighth floor of the same building, across the hall from each other.
Katie was a very lovely and kind-hearted girl. She always did her best to prevent others from any problem. Once the dormitory was out of electricity and her roommate, Windy was studying in the classroom only leaving Katie alone in the dormitory at that time. Katie had just finished her favouritehorrible American TV series. She felt very scared. But she didn't want to disturb Windy, so she just stayed in the dark dormitory alone till Windy got back to the dormitory. Windy was a nice girl too. She gave Katie a lot of comfort and care. She would like to make Katie relax after stressful study. She often shared her happiness with Katie. They lived a very happy life together.
While Katie got along with her roommate, Sarah was having difficulty in dealing with the relationship with her roommate.
Sarah liked quiet, while her roommate, Lily spent two hours a day practisingthe guitar, or turned up her sound system to the point where the whole room vibrates (颤动). Sarah was always cold. but Lily never wanted to turn on the heat, even though it was snowing heavily outside. Sarah liked wearing fur in winter and she also enjoyed cutting up frogs in biology class. But Lily is an vegetarian (素食主义者) and believed all living things are holy (神圣的), even ants and mosquitoes. She and her roommate silently warred over matters ranging from when the lights should be turned off to how the furniture should be arranged. Finally, they gave up communicating.
One day. there was a dormitory contest, which needed roommates to join hands to decorate their dormitory. Sarah wanted to win in the contest but she thought it was impossible for her to finish it because she didn't talk with Lily.
注意： 1. 续写词数应为150 左右:
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Depressed and hopeless. Sarah ran across the hall to seek help from Katie.
Hearing what Katie said, both Sarah and Lily lowered their heads.
