we all know tagore.this famous indian poet once said, “l(fā)ife is given to us, and we earn it by giving it.” as the saying goes, nature is given to us, and we earn it by contributing to it. however, most people nowadays just want to ask for more from the nature. in fact, they do very little contribution to the nature. therefore, the environment around us is becoming worse and worse.

　　do you often use batteries? then do you know it takes 50 times more energy to make them than they produce? and just one simple battery can pollute as much water as a person can drink in his whole life. the facts and figures are amazing. so would you please try to use batteries only when it is necessary? if possible, give the used ones to the recycling companies so that they will be made into new ones and won’t be able to pollute the environment any more. sometimes we become complacent when it comes to recycling, but when you speak in terms of actual facts and figures that everybody can understand, people become much clearer about the problem.

　　we, as school students, can also join in recycling activities to protect the environment. for example, our class set up a recycling center beside the back door, it is very useful. it is used to collect the waste paper and plastic bottles. in the past, our classmates used to throw all of these into the trashcan. at the very beginning of this collecting activity, it was not so warm-welcomed. later, more and more people were influenced by the others and joined this collecting activity. gradually, all the students in our class form a good habit to protect the environment. all of us will now put away the reusable things instead of throwing them into the trashcan.  we should always remember in our mind that protecting the environment is our duty that we can never neglect. finally would you please let me end this speech with a little poem, “be kind to the river. be good to the trees. smile at the sunshine, and bow to the breeze. be friendly to nature, and nature will be friendly to you!”