Ashmore Carey was fortunate to catch up with one of the inspiring co-founders of One More Generation — nine-year-old Olivia Ries. As you know, this wonderful organization is dedicated to the protection of endangered wildlife and the environment, and its founders work tirelessly on the behalf of the cause. Here is that interview.
Ashmore Carey: How did you first get interested in helping animals?
One More Generation: We have always loved animals and as we learned that some of them are in trouble, we decided to help. All my life we have had animals around the house. We currently have 6-cats, 3-dogs, and a Guinee Pig named Rapunzel (a.k.a. Punzzy). We also have 2-Cheetah’s (Talala and Diputsu), a Whake Shark named Wally, 2 Fruit Bats named Kurri and Tyrant. We have had up to 20-fish, two lizards and a Hairless Rat named Brownie as well.
Ashmore Carey: Wow, that’s a lot of pets! How did you decide to adopt Cheetahs? And how did you go about it? How can other kids do the same thing?
One More Generation: Well my Aunt was visiting South Africa about 5 years ago and as a present, she brought us our first adoption certificate. She always knew we loved animals. Carter and I decided to continue the adoptions each year. We have been adopting the same two Cheetah’s ever since. If anyone else wants to help save an animal, it is very easy. You just have to get online and search for your favorite species and find an organization which offers adoptions. It’s really easy and I have done it many times.
Ashmore Carey: What has been the most rewarding part of One More Generation?
One More Generation: Wow… that is a hard question. Since starting OMG we got to go and help save all the animals during the Gulf oil spill. We went to South Africa where we delivered a big donation check to the Cheetah Center. We also collected soccer balls and toys for the poor kids in the townships over there. We recently were successful getting the Claxton GA Rattlesnake Roundup to officially be changed to a Wildlife Festival were no snakes will be caught and killed anymore. We have had great meetings with the O’Charley’s restaurant chain in an attempt to get them to help their customers stop using so many plastic bags by encouraging them to bring their own as they come to pick up their To-Go order. We are also working with the GameStop Corporation on a science project that will ask every customer to consider carrying out their purchase as opposed to accepting a plastic bag. We are hoping to run the experiment all summer and then the students at GA State University will help us conduct an environmental impact study. I also love watching the looks on all the kids faces as we teach our Plastic Awareness Week program and they learn how easy it is for them to also make a difference.
Ashmore Carey: What has been the hardest part about starting a non-profit? Does it take a lot of time to run a non-profit? Kids are so busy these days, how do you make it happen?
One More Generation: Well my parents help us with all the hard stuff. They make most of the phone calls and help set up most of the meetings and events for us. My brother and I usually come up with the ideas of what we want to do and then ask them to help us and show us how to make it happen. Having OMG does take a lot of time but it is always fun. My brother and I play soccer, have piano lessons, in the summer we are on a swim team and we are trying to learn racquetball as well. We could not do this without our parents help.
Ashmore Carey: What advice would you give to other kids who want to do something similar?
One More Generation: The first thing we tell kids and adults alike at every event we do is that “Anybody Can Make A Difference… If We Can They Can Too”.
Ashmore Carey: Can you tell us a little more about you’re your Plastic Awareness Coalition? What do you think is the worst thing about plastic? Was it hard to develop a curriculum to take to schools? How do you reach kids?
One More Generation: Well we wanted to get communities involved with trying to stop plastic pollution. Our parents told us we needed to build a team of companies who also wanted to do the same so we could show everyone we were not alone. Since starting the coalition, we have now over 50 organizations supporting our efforts. The worst thing about plastic pollution is that not all types of plastics are easily recycled. Some plastics can not be recycled at all. The other thing bad about plastic trash is that it never goes away. The plastic itself is not necessarily the problem, but what we are doing with the plastic is more the problem. We need everyone to recycle and to avoid plastics that are not recyclable. The school program was written by a great teacher in Boston who helped us create a program that would be fun for kids and their parents to learn about the problem. Getting schools interested in our program is easy, helping them find the funding for the program is harder.
Ashmore Carey: What can we all do to encourage recycling plastic?
One More Generation: I think everyone should have a sticker on their cars and books and homes reminding them to Recycle. Everyone needs to also learn about the harms of plastic pollution and to understand what the recycle numbers mean.
Ashmore Carey: Is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
One More Generation: Not really, I do want everyone to know that ”Anybody Can Make A Difference… If We Can They Can Too”. I am nine (my birthday is on Aug 30th) and my brother is ten (his birthday is coming up on Feb 22nd) and we are proof that if you really care about something, you can make a big difference. Oh, one more thing. My Grandfather gave me a small greenhouse for Christmas and I am going to start a new division in our OMG organization called GreenWell. GreenWell will grow organic fruits and vegetables which we plan to sell to our local zoo and aquarium to help make sure all their animals have healthy food. We already have a reptile company interested in our first crop. I am so excited.
Ashmore Carey: Awesome. Thank you so much, Olivia, for taking time for this interview!











