Open your mind to new ideas and share your stories—that’s the message world renowned authors and illustrators conveyed to aspiring writers, artists, teachers and environmentalists during the annual Children’s and Young Adult Literature Festival at Salisbury University. Guests, including Gould, Jeca Taudte, two-time Grammy winner Bill Harley, Pamela Todd, Phillip Hoose, Caldecott honorees Ted and Betsy Lewin, and Spiderwick Chronicles author Holly Black, signed books and spoke to hundreds of students on campus and in local schools. The festival also featured screenings of The Spiderwick Chronicles and Varmints, an Oscar-commended short animation film based on a Green Earth picture book.

Since 2005, the Newton Marasco Foundation has partnered with SU to host the Green Earth Book Awards, the nation’s first and only prize to honor green-minded authors and illustrators for encouraging children and young adults to care for the planet. This year’s winners ranged from an eco-guide printed in vegetable-based inks on recycled paper to stories about teenagers’ relationships with each other—and the environment. NMF also honored SU President Janet Dudley-Eshbach with its inaugural award for Leading Environmental Stewardship.