The Beijing 2008 Olympic Games are underway, and JGI-China (Beijing) is using the summer games as a reason for Roots & Shoots action. From designing greenhouses to speaking to athletes about Roots & Shoots, local members are letting the Olympic whirlwind take them to good places.

Members at Northeast Yucai School drew inspiration from the brand-new National Stadium, built for the Olympics and nicknamed "The Bird's Nest" for its unique design. As part of their school¿s plan to build an agricultural building, the Roots & Shoots group organized a competition challenging students to design a greenhouse. Their designs resembled rain drops, pyramids, honeycombs and other shapes found in nature.

Four female students—Zhong Yiming, Fu Shimo, Ma Yu and Liu Fangfei—even constructed a model for their design, which they called the "Bee Wind Pavilion."

"The last stage where we hand-made the model was particularly difficult, because we didn't have a lot of the materials," Liu Fangfei said. "We had to encourage a lot of people to eat a whole bunch of cookies, so we could use the boxes."

Meanwhile, Executive Director of JGI-China (Beijing) Erika Helms is planning what she'll say to the Olympic athletes and their families when she speaks to them at the Olympic Village on August 16.

She was invited to give a presentation on environmental education as part of a series of workshops offered at the games. She will explain Roots & Shoots to athletes from all over the world and let them know how they can get involved with Roots & Shootswhen they return to their home countries.

"We are looking forward to this opportunity to promote Roots & Shoots," Erika said.

Are you doing a project related to the Olympics? Submit a Project Report to share it with the Roots & Shoots network.