All K-12 students appear to have microplastics in their bodies.

All Americans who have been examined have been found to have microplastics in their bodies – including K-12 students.  The impact on human health is only beginning to be understood. Microplastics have been found in every placenta, umbilical cord, brain and hormone-producing body part.   And the amount consumed is rising dramatically.

Your family gets it from a variety of sources, including plastic drinking water bottles and food in micro-waved plastic packages.

Imagine an evening (pre-COVID-19) where you take your family out to dinner and order a family-sized meal of seafood gumbo full of clams, shrimp and other delights. You may get more than you bargained for.  Most of the plastic made in the world winds up in water, where it breaks down into invisible but long-lasting pieces which get eaten by wildlife. The bodies of fish, clams, crabs and other water critters contain the plastics they eat. Bigger fish eat the little fish; you eat the big fish and get a dose of their plastic. (No extra charge will appear on your bill.)

If you ordered hot tea with dinner, things could get worse, because some brands of tea have plastic in the tea bag, dissolving astounding amounts of invisible microplastics into the hot tea water which wind up in your tummy.

Back home, as you all prepare for bed, you brush your teeth and make sure your kids brush theirs. You thought you were practicing good healthcare hygiene, but some brands of toothpaste have tiny bits of plastic in them to carry color and other chemicals.

You not only consume plastic, you excrete it. One study involved volunteers who donated their human waste for examination. The scientists found 30 pieces of microplastic in every teaspoon of solid waste examined.

The bottom line is that we have an uncontrolled industrial process that is creating a health risk for every citizen on earth.

You can lower your students’ intake of plastics. Stop delivering water in plastic bottles or using plastic takeout drinking cups. Do not let your food service staff microwave food in plastic containers or place plastic-wrapped food in boiling water. Each of these adds plastic to food.

You can also download an app on your phone that will scan some products and tell you if they contain plastics. Go to Beat the Microbead.

Over the next few months we will be producing some 90-second videos that are designed to raise your eyebrows and empower you to reduce the risk to you, your families, and K-12 students.  You will find links to the videos in this newsletter.  Please forward them to folks who want to protect children.

Dr. Koster is a retired pediatric healthcare administrator who (as a volunteer) runs The Optimistic Futurist's partner organization, The Pollution Detectives, Inc., a not-for-profit that lends meters and gauges to folks who want to make sure their kids’ schools are safe and optimal for learning.

Learn more on the website or contact Dr. Francis P. Koster.

U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Awards $178 M in

Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants (EECBGs)

Your community could be next!

Cities and towns across the country are investing in projects that lower energy costs and climate pollution and advance local energy goals! The EECBG is a $550 M program funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to assist states, local governments, and Tribes in reducing energy use and fossil fuel emissions.

As of late September 2024, the EECBG Program's formula grant had allocated, but not yet released, dollars to more than 1,600 local governments in the U.S. (36 of which are in North Carolina). To receive funds, jurisdictions identified in the table below must apply by October 31, 2024 (Tribes by May 31, 2025) and indicate a project within one of 14 eligible-use categories.

Table of Local Governments with Allocations

Table of Tribal Governments with Allocations

Eligible Uses

Program Guidance offers details about each of the eligible use categories. Among many possible projects, awardees can electrify transportation fleets (e.g., school buses), make capital improvements to outdated buildings (e.g., school facilities), or contribute to energy efficiency in schools in other ways.

In addition, DOE has published shovel-ready, eligible projects known as Blueprints, with step-by-step instructions. Blueprints maximize benefits from energy planning (1), efficient buildings (4), renewable energy (4), transportation electrification (2), clean energy finance (1), and workforce development (1).

A Simpler Alternative

Jurisdictions with minimal resources to apply for and document grant funds can choose a voucher option. Voucher participants enjoy a streamlined application and reporting process but are limited to equipment purchase and installation or straight-forward analysis and planning. Voucher Program Basics outlines advantages, and the Voucher Program Handbook discusses further details.

Application Deadlines

The deadline for local governments to apply is October 31, 2024.

The deadline for Tribes to apply is May 31, 2025.

To apply, visit Formula Grant Application Hub.

Next Steps

Please take the following steps for more information:

Read Answers to FAQs.

Sign up for EECBG Office Hours.

Email EECBG@hq.doe.gov. 

Funding Opportunities

1. Environmental and Climate Justice Community Change Grant (Rolling Applications through November 21, 2024)
2. Information Resource Grants to Reduce Health Disparities and Promote Health Equity (Exp. December 13, 2025)
3. Community Power Accelerator Prize (Exp. December 17, 2024)
4. Reducing Lead in Drinking Water Grant (Exp. December 30, 2024 Eastern Time)
5. Clean Classrooms for Carolina Kids Program (Exp. December 31, 2024)
6. Waste Management Environmental Education Grant (Year-round)
7. North Carolina Foundation for Public Schools Children’s Fund (No Expiration)
8. Inflation Reduction Act Tax Credits for School Facility Upgrades (Tax Years 2023 and 2024)
9. Public School Building Capital Fund (Exp. 1 year from date of expenditure)

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Technical Assistance to Apply for Funding

EPA Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Centers Program

The Environment Protection Agency has developed 16 Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Centers (EJ TCTACs) to help underserved and overburdened communities across the country. EJ TCTACs builds nonprofit capacity to address Environmental Justice (EJ) issues, including the following:

•        Air quality,
•        Water quality,
•        Soil quality,
•        Personal exposure to environmental hazards,
•        Climate change resilience, and
•        Clean energy transitions.

By connecting with experts, other EJ partners, and local and state agencies for technical assistance, organizations can develop strong grant proposals, navigate the federal grant application process, and effectively manage grant funding.

Submit a request for assistance to the EJ TCTAC for your region, shown on the Table!

Borrow Monitors Without Charge

from Our Sister Organization.

The Pollution Detectives, Inc. has the expertise and the equipment to contribute to a successful indoor air management plan. The 501(c)3 nonprofit provides indoor air monitors to schools without charge to survey for particulate matter, volatile organic compounds, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, and temperature and humidity. Regulating these components of the indoor environment are critical to improving learning.

If you are interested in borrowing monitors and/or in understanding more about the benefits for your school, visit the website or contact Dr. Francis P. Koster at fkoster@thepollutiondetectives.org.

You are a Stakeholder in the Quest

for Healthy Schools!

Join us in supporting a $100M annual appropriation for US Environmental Protection Agency's Indoor Air Program. If enacted, the bipartisan Indoor Air Quality and Healthy Schools Act of 2024 would expand the resources EPA dedicates to developing and publicizing guidelines that reduce health hazards from indoor environments in schools. Poor indoor air quality is known to exacerbate chronic conditions already prevalent in schools (such as asthma), increase absenteeism, disrupt focus and concentration, and ultimately, reduce learning. As such, the legislation would impact a wide variety of concerned stakeholders--among them parents, superintendents, school boards, teachers, staff, and other community leaders.

Cosponsored by U.S. Representatives Paul Tonko (D-NY) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), it is endorsed by a diverse array of respected experts and interested organizations, including the following:

Allergy and Asthma Network, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Federation of Teachers (AFT), American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA), ASHRAE, American Lung Association, Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, Austin Air Systems, Ltd., Climate Code Blue, First Focus Campaign for Children, Healthy Schools Network, International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART), International WELL Building Institute, Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, Moms Clean Air Force, RMI, National Education Association, Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors' National Association (SMACNA), U.S. Green Building Council, and WE ACT for Environmental Justice.

Read testimonials written by the leaders of these institutions.

Read the Indoor Air Quality and Healthy Schools Act of 2024.

To include yourself or your organization among the supporters, submit this simple form provided by Healthy Schools Network, a nonprofit organization that advocates for healthy and safe school environments.

Benefit from

Research Assistance for Funding.

Looking forward to a project but still lack the funding?

Tell us about your project in an email to

info@theoptimisticfuturist.org.

We will use our resources to search for potential funding sources and contact you with our findings.