We turn on our air conditioning and TV and plug in our chargers without an awareness of where the energy for our electricity comes from. We don't know that about half of our electricity comes from coal. We don't know that some of this coal comes from mountaintop removal coal mining that has devastated families and communities throughout the Appalachian Mountains. Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining: Why Mountains Are Going Missing and What We Can Do About Itis a resource for understanding and connecting the dots between flipping on the light switch and coal mining, flooding in Appalachia, air and water pollution, health problems, and global warming. Reader-friendly and hopeful, this book offers suggestions for how each of us can make our voices heard and make changes in our everyday lives to prevent further destruction of our country's majestic mountains and our magnificent planet. Jenifer Garlitz grew up in southwestern Pennsylvania, in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. She is refreshed spending time in the Appalachian Forest of southwestern Pennsylvania every summer. She received a bachelor's degree in elementary education and a master's degree in reading and literacy. She has worked for over ten years as a reading teacher and a reading specialist. Presently, she lives in Joliet, Illinois, with her husband and teenage son. In addition to working as a reading specialist at Creekside School in Plainfield, Illinois, she leads an Environment Club for fifth grade students at her school. Besides her work, she enjoys gardening, biking, reading, and visiting with her therapy dog.