The mural you are looking at was made by 13 Upper School students at Hearthstone School in Sperryville, Virginia as part of their study of government and geography. Hearthstone is a Waldorf-inspired, parent- cooperative where the arts are used to bring academics to life. The 8th - 11th graders built the 8' x 16' mural from scratch and drew the map of the world onto the 1/2" plywood surface using a grid. They read "Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens" by Steven Covey's son to examine the issues of self-governance and read Thom Hartman's "Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight" to understand the energy and environmental issues facing our world. Hartman's book lead to each continent having a large tree painted on it, as the class focused on how essential trees are for the sustainability of life on earth as we know it. Research papers examining current international problems and solutions were used also used as inspiration for the mural. The students gathered images from National Geographic, the Washington Post, the Fauquier Democrat and Internet. They chose images that they thought were important for people to see. The mural was exhibited at National Geographic's Explorer's Hall in Wash., D.C. during 2000. It is a follow-up to "How in the World" mural made in 1990.