What will it take for the leaders, political and corporate, to stop killing the very environment they use to make their profits?
From IC Publications, News from Africa: West Africa’s coastline redrawn by climate change: experts
From the Canberra Times: Adjusting for climate change a shared task
From Agence France-Presse: ‘Clock ticking’ on global warming: UN climate chief
One barrier to resolving this crisis is the highly fractured nature of our world community. There are, taking an opinionated survey, a few leaders of countries, some members of legislative bodies, a larger group of leaders and lobbyists for corporations, a number of representatives to global institutions, many leaders of religious communities, a few very rich people, and The Rest of Us . . .
Most of those groups are at-odds with each other.
Most people are struggling to just get along—making ends meet—dealing with depressive tendencies . . .
Many of our fellow family members in the world community are being treated like expendable non-entities!
Here are some personal responses, from Orion Magazine, to this crisis:
Recently Orion asked six authors to describe what the changing climate is doing to them personally–how it is affecting their hearts and souls. Here’s what they had to say:
A Quartet by Gretel Ehrlich
Anticipating Our Future by Jared Duval
Seeing Paradise by Jay Griffiths
The Source of Hope by Peter Sawtell
The Inner Climate by Pico Iyer
The Moral Climate by Carl Safina
The solution is not easy. The resolution of disunity is The major challenge facing humanity.
Today’s Spiritual Quote:
“Our efforts now and in the future to safeguard our common habitat and to promote the well-being and development of all peoples must be characterized by a unified approach within an effective universal framework. The unity we envision is more than an academic matter of geography, climatology or oceanography. It is based on the concept of the fundamental unity of mankind living as one world community, in which the problems of economic relations and the use of natural resources must be addressed from a global perspective with due regard for the wide diversity of climates and cultures. The universal framework proposed by Bahá’u’lláh over one hundred years ago calls for universally agreed-upon and enforceable laws, the equitable sharing of resources, fundamental adjustments to present institutional and economic relations, and world-wide changes in the values, behavior, and consumption patterns of individuals and communities.”
Bahá’í International Community, 1990 Aug 06, Environment Development
Let’s have a conversation !
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Our Evolution 
Give up the idea of what life should be,
and celebrate what life is.
Catherine, you remind me of an old support-group saying:
“Don’t should on me!”
Celebration is Divine!!
As what is happening now on our Mother Earth, still politicians and other people thinking about how to make money without thinking its effects on our environment. In the end, we are the sufferers of their consequences.
On topic, I had just had the chance to watch a fantastic new documentary movie this weekend called THE GARBAGE WARRIOR – it is an inspiring and heroic tale of one man who tries to build fully sustainable housing out of the garbage we produce. It is truly moving what the mind and will of one human being can do. However then we see the other side of it as you also elude to in your post…the leaders, the politics which do nothing but stand in the way of progressive minds who want to and can make a change.
Indeed Mother Earth is crying and too few hear her cries…
I, too, have seen that video! Wonderful man!!
There are, as you intimate, many solutions available and many people willing to implement them. The one thing lacking is the Will To Action on the part of the leaders and the people with the money to spread solutions over the face of the globe.
Rather like watching your house going up in flames while you have a hose in your hands and the fire chief saying he won’t do anything to help you.
Gary,
You are right and it is very sad to be in these circumstances…
I do see a light at the end of the tunnel but it is very far away……
One thing I decided some time ago when I would read about environmental horrors and stats, etc. and felt so down from it……was to make a commitment to support, back and help those groups that I believed could visibly bring about some positive change in our environment. It helped me to feel that I was putting out good as opposed to drowning in the overwhelming horror of it all.
I think we can make a huge difference if each of us gets involved in even one organization where we can see that our petition signing, donation, or other support brings about results in stopping…hmmm….say arctic drilling, pollution, wolf slaughter or so forth. It’s amazing how much difference it makes if each of us pick something we believe in and get behind it in whatever capacity we can. The internet has made this much more possible through petitions that thousands sign and end up stopping destructive acts. And yes the problem is much bigger than one organization, but there are a LOT of people and only a few get involved. I know it can be overwhelming when our lives are so full and the stress and demands are high and we often feel like we are just surviving, but I still know that collective voice and action can bring about positive change…through pressure from “the people”.
Robin,
Yes!!! Group action… Yet, that takes a unity of group thought and feeling… Your action of being a caring and impassioned blogger can help bring more unity of thought and feeling!!!