Everyone needs clean water, but not all of us think about what it takes to have that access. Rylan Carruth, 12, does, and he’s active in sharing ways to get involved and ensure Baton Rouge’s drinking water stays as great as it is.
When he first learned about the Louisiana Environmental Action Network and the Save Our Water campaign, he took action and got involved. His advocacy has led him to speak with Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome and her Youth Advisory Council, present at a meeting of the Metro Council, and meet with Robert Kennedy as part of Riverkeepers Alliance.
“I don’t consider myself an activist,” Rylan says. “I think we should have clean air and water, and I think corporations should be good neighbors.” Along with older brothers Liam and Adam, Rylan says their environmentally conscious family has always reduced, reused and recycled as much as possible.
A seventh grader at University Laboratory School, Rylan is applying his mindset to improving his school. “This summer, what I’m planning to work on is trying to make my school an environmentally conscious, zero-waste school, he says. “There have been things around the country I’d like to see catch on here.” Rylan also won his school’s social studies fair with a project based on his advocacy.
“Basically, I’m a normal kid,” Rylan says. “Any kid could get involved.”
Dad Tyler Carruth says, “What’s special about Rylan is he’s very smart, but he has a really big heart. He’s really bright but really compassionate.”
