Janet Wilson, Catherine Gleave : personal experiences in Kenya. The personal experiences gave stark illustration of both positive and negative aspects of how our lives depend upon and in turn hugely influence how people in this far away country live. Our demands for cut flowers and fresh vegetables out of season fuel a huge industry, providing jobs, homes, clinics and schools. But the resulting produce does not provide food for those doing the work, and it is causing pollution of the local lake that is putting the wildlife and hundreds of local people who depend on it at great risk. In the Masai Mara they visited with people living truly sustainable lives, preserving their culture and the wildlife while deriving revenue from tourism. The true meaning of local sustainability and the economic value of wildlife was encapsulated in a sign at the Arabuko Sekoke Forest: 'Three years ago nobody around the forest ever dreamed they could earn money from its butterflies. Now they know they can. What else is there in the forest that can bring benefits to the people? We should not destroy things whose value we don't yet understand. Investing in biodiversity is investing in the future.' Schools have a role to play in supporting projects and building relationships with schools in developing countries, to the huge benefit of both. We all know that the world is a very small place and that we're all interconnected in so many ways; we must begin living our lives in a way that reflects this knowledge. Understanding our environment and caring for each other must become much stronger components of our curriculum. We have the opportunity to get this right, to make a difference for all of our children.