RESTON, VIRGINIA - (May 2, 2009) National Wildlife Federation and Roadside Attractions have teamed up to bring you Battle for Terra, an inspiring movie where characters fight for the survival of a special place.
Battle for Terra tells the story of Senn (Justin Long) and Mala (Evan Rachel Wood), two teens who live happily on the beautiful and peaceful planet Terra. Then Terra is invaded by human beings looking for a new home because Earth has been destroyed. Mala makes friends with an injured human pilot (Luke Wilson). Together, they learn that they are not so different from each other – but that their survival and their worlds’ natural resources are now in great danger. The film also features Amanda Peet, Chris Evans, Brian Cox, Dennis Quaid, and is the featured directorial debut of acclaimed short filmmaker Aristomenis Tsirbas. It is rated PG.
Enter the My Terra Contest! What's your favorite place in nature? Write a short advertisement to attract visitors to this place and you could win great prizes such as a digital camera and photography workshop, a two-week exploration trip with Adventures Cross-Country, and more. Contest is open to students in grades 3-8, and ends May 30, 2009. For complete contest details, visit
BattleForTerra.com.
Be Out There! A "daily dose" of the outdoors is essential to the physical, mental, and emotional health of America's children, yet the average child spends just 30 minutes per week in unstructured outdoor activities. National Wildlife Federation is mobilizing families, educators, healthcare practitioners, and others to encourage children to spend more time outdoors. Learn more at
nwf.org/beoutthere. Tell your family and friends to join in the fun!
About NWF Ambassador Leilani Münter
Leilani holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology specializing in Ecology, Behavior and Evolution from the University of California San Diego. While attending college she worked as a volunteer at a wildlife rescue and rehabilitation center. She started racing cars in 2001 and quickly began making a name for herself in the racing world. In 2006 she set the record for the highest finish for a female driver in the history of Texas Motor Speedway when she finished fourth. In 2007 Leilani became the fourth woman in history to race in the Indy Pro Series, the developmental league of IndyCar. She qualified 5th for her open wheel debut in August 2007 and earned praise from many in the IndyCar community including four time Indy 500 Champion Rick Mears.
Her racing accomplishments have landed her on the pages of USA Today, Glamour, Vogue, Vanity Fair, Men's Journal, the Washington Post and ESPN. Esquire Magazine has called her "A Woman We Love" and Sports Illustrated named her in their list of the top ten female race car drivers in the world.
Leilani adopts an acre of rainforest for every race she runs to offset her carbon footprint and has been a long time vegetarian and eco activist. She is also active politically in the legislative fight for the environment. She has twice made the journey to Capitol Hill to speak with members on Congress on behalf of the Climate Security Act. In June 2008 she spoke at a climate action rally in Washington DC alongside Senators Barbara Boxer, Joe Lieberman, and John Kerry.
In fall 2008, Leilani became an Ambassador for the National Wildlife Federation and landed a national ad campaign as a Lucky Jeans model, her caption read: "Leilani Münter, Race Car Driver and Environmentalist - Saving rainforests one race at a time." Her ads appeared in Vogue, Vanity Fair, In Style, W Magazine and Lucky Jeans stores across the country.
She is currently putting together a race program she calls her "Eco Dream Team" that will be a vehicle (pun intended) to reach out to millions of US race fans to make eco minded changes to their lives. "Changing out light bulbs, recycling, and using canvas grocery bags may seem like small things," says Münter, "but small changes, when multiplied by millions, can make a big difference."
"I realize that being a race car driver, I am not in an environmentally friendly sport. That is why I am doing everything I can to reduce my carbon footprint such as using renewable energy, recycling, and adopting tropical rainforest for every race I run. As citizens of Earth, we all need to work together to take care of our world. So far, we have not been doing a very good job of that. The situation is dire and requires our urgent attention. Now is the time to make a change. We need to reduce our use of fossil fuels, commit ourselves to renewable energy sources, and conserve the biodiversity that we have on Earth before it is lost forever. Together we can make enough noise to get the attention of the decision makers in our local and national governments. Let's all do our part to help save our Earth for future generations to enjoy as much as we have. It is our responsibility -- and our privilege -- to do so. "
