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The Word On The Street has been renowned for the quality and diversity of its event programming and our 2026 festival promises to offer the best so far. Check out our schedule for Saturday, September 19, 2026!
Did you know that space exploration is good for life here on Earth?
Living in space has led to many breakthroughs that can improve our lives. Research done on the International Space Station has led to new discoveries that have saved lives on Earth. Satellites in space let us communicate easily on our phones and power the GPS devices we use. And space exploration has even helped us learn how to purify water more easily and harness solar power, so we can take care of Earth’s ecosystems and resources.
Still, space exploration requires a lot of resources like money and fuel. Can we justify using fossil fuels to fly rockets during a climate crisis? And how do we make sure we’re not messing up the rest of the solar system? Is exploring the cosmos really worth the cost? To answer those questions, Beyond Earth dives into space exploration and its impact. Because it’s not about finding planet B, it’s about preserving planet A―and using space exploration to get us there.
Yolanda Ridge is the author of three books in the Orca Footprints series, What Poo Can Do, Microbes to the Rescue and Beyond Earth, as well as two other juvenile nonfiction titles from Annick Press. She’s also written several middle-grade novels, including two environment-themed titles for Orca Young Readers. She has a master of science degree and is adept at making complex concepts understandable—a skill she uses in her science writing and teaching. She lives in Rossland, British Columbia.
Did you know that space exploration is good for life here on Earth?
Living in space has led to many breakthroughs that can improve our lives. Research done on the International Space Station has led to new discoveries that have saved lives on Earth. Satellites in space let us communicate easily on our phones and power the GPS devices we use. And space exploration has even helped us learn how to purify water more easily and harness solar power, so we can take care of Earth’s ecosystems and resources.
Still, space exploration requires a lot of resources like money and fuel. Can we justify using fossil fuels to fly rockets during a climate crisis? And how do we make sure we’re not messing up the rest of the solar system? Is exploring the cosmos really worth the cost? To answer those questions, Beyond Earth dives into space exploration and its impact. Because it’s not about finding planet B, it’s about preserving planet A―and using space exploration to get us there.
Oliver Ridge is a Schulich Leader scholar at the University of Western Ontario. He’s been inspired by the beauty of space for as long as he can remember and hopes to pursue a career in astrophysics. This is his first published book.
