Center for Accelerated Language Acquisition
Save Soil
Save Soil is the largest global non-profit organization seeking to prevent our planet’s rapidly advancing soil extinction. It brings together leaders, scientists, and citizens from around the world to support nations as they institute policies and actions to increase the organic content in farmable soil.
Save Soil Programs were noted in the Guinness Book of World records in 2006, adopted by the Prime Minister of India in 2017, and were presented at the recent 2022 COP 15 annual U.N. meeting on biodiversity and global prevention of desertification.
News and Updates
- “Waterfest” – Fall, Sept 13, 2024
- Owl’s Hill – April 15, 2024
- Earth Day – April 20, 2024
- Owl’s Hill – May 18, 2024
Recycle Rutherford Quarterly Newsletters
- Summer 2023
- Spring 2023
Dr. Shelley Thomas
After teaching French for 30 years and directing the Center for Accelerated Language Acquisition (CALA) at MTSU, Shelley is now on Save Soil’s educational outreach team.
Shelley (pictured right) was invited to India 20 years ago by Save Soil’s founder. There, she saw the movement’s energy and success firsthand.
Presentations
Shelley gives presentations to organizations like Master Gardeners and hosts booths for events like Earth Day.
She gives a 45-minute PowerPoint followed by 15 minutes of Q and A. It’s a simple presentation of the problem, what’s needed to solve it, and practical suggestions for acting locally to make a global impact.
“Shelley, you did a fantastic job presenting to the Master Gardener‘s last night, and I appreciate you so much! I’m hearing lots of great feedback from the association members. And I’m so happy you were able to share statistics that were new to some folks, and some very clear action steps for people who might feel overwhelmed by this topic. So grateful for your… volunteerism and educational spirit.”
–Autumn Shultz, Master Gardeners’ annual meeting, April 17, 2023
TO BOOK A LIVE OR ZOOM PRESENTATION FOR YOUR ORGANIZATION, WRITE TO
shthomas@mtsu.edu
Resources
- Practical things we can do right now (PDF)
- Colorful handout (PDF)
- Sample letter to leaders for Save Soil (.docx)
- Homegrown National Park
- “Worried about the Planet? Change starts in your backyard,” says Professor Douglas Tallamy, Dept. of Entomology at the University of Delaware. Click the link above to see what it’s all about!
- The Habitat Connection
- Want a homegrown national park in your backyard? The Habitat Connection in Franklin “empowers small property owners to adopt ecological lawn and garden practices that sustain birds and biodiversity.”
- The Murfreesboro “Wild Birds Unlimited” store had all the supplies needed for Shelley to help get her yard certified by the Habitat Connection as an official bird sanctuary.
Past Events
2024
- Owl’s Hill – April 15, 2024
- Earth Day – April 20, 2024
- Owl’s Hill – May 18, 2024
October 25, 2023
- Shelley was invited to present at the Oak Hill Garden Club in Brentwood.
October 22, 2023 – Murfreesboro Civic Plaza – “Love Your Neighbor” (Sponsored by Savesoil)
- Hosted yearly by the Murfreesboro Muslim Youth and Cold Patrol, this FREE event brings our Murfreesboro community together, regardless of faith, color, ethnicity, or anything else. We want to show everyone that love, unity, and peace are the faces of our Murfreesboro community.
September 15, 2023
- Save Soil has been invited back to present activities at the yearly Murfreesboro Waterfest at Old Fort Parkway.
September 10, 2023, 12:45-2:00pm CT
- Shelley will be the featured speaker for Save Soil at the monthly “MoreTreesBoro” meeting at the Oaklands Mansion.
- Read more on how MoreTreesBoro aims to make Murfreesboro greener
June 15, 2023
- Save Soil is the 2023 featured presentation at Recycle Rutherford, which will follow up with a showing of the documentary “Kiss the Ground” at Limbaugh Library (see Summer 2023 newsletter update).
Past Presentations and Booths
- MTSU Honors College – November 27, 2023
- Rotary Club of Murfreesboro – November 14, 2023
- “Murfreesboro Loves” – Fall 2023
- “Master Gardeners” – Spring 2023
- “Waterfest” – Spring 2022; Fall 2022
Contact Us
Center for Accelerated Language Acquisition (CALA)
c/o Shelley Thomas
Middle Tennessee State University
Honors Box 267
Murfreesboro, TN 37132
Shelley Thomas, Ph.D.
CALA Director
shelley.thomas@mtsu.edu
Brian Roberts, M.A.T.
CALA Associate Director
brian.roberts@mtsu.edu