I had a different topic in my head when I sat down to write this blog but as I was searching for an image related to that, this one popped up. Since we're fresh off the 54th Earth Day, I decided to go with this instead.
Contemplate with me, why aren't we changing? Why, despite what scientists have been telling us for decades, despite what we heard in yesterday's podcast with Dr. Sailesh Rao of Climate Healers, despite the videos we see of ice caps melting and starving polar bears, why aren't we changing?
Is it because it feels too big? Have we been told that our actions in our little corner of our world won't or maybe even can't make a difference to the larger population, to our planet?
Is it because we don't know where to start? Or, do we think we need to do something big and expensive like buy an electric car?
Is it even possible, in this capitalistic society to stop thinking of just ourselves or those people we personally know and/or benefit from? If we don't see an immediate benefit in our own lives, is it worth doing?
In yesterday's episode, Sailesh Rao mentioned one thing, one change we, as humans, could make and it could stop the destruction of our planet in its tracks. Why aren't we all doing that? Yesterday, two of my readers mentioned that they were having plant-based tacos for dinner to celebrate Earth Day, that's fantastic! What if we all started exploring how delicious and exciting plant foods are? Imagine what that would add to your own life and the lives of those around the world. With one simple change.
Thanks for contemplating these questions with me. Tell me your thoughts in the comments.
If you missed it, check out this past podcast episode with Jason Pooler - "Saving the world starts with you."
We have abused our earth for so long that I imagine that the problem sounds big for anyone to fix. However, we must continually educate, offer solutions, and even incentivize people to do the right thing. Government fixes cost millions and often don't work. - Angie
There is so much we could do. My daughter, an ASL interpreter, was working at the Jacob Javits Center for Climate Realty A leadership training program for us to learn more. She came home with so many suggestions and was blown away by the condition of our earth.
We have been recycling way before it was "cool". I remember back when I was young, we always had a container for cardboard and bottles and cans. Back then you could take them to the recycling center and get cash for your bottles and cans. All our appliances are environmentally friendly and I'm always looking for ways to reduce electricity. In my area it seems like people are trying to reduce waste in at least some small way.
Looking around our village and  circle of friends, I do feel a lot of people are making changes, small or big. Some reduce from two to one car, some install heat pumps for more environmentally friendly heating, others cover their roof with solar panels. Maybe it's a European thing, but I feel, a lot is being done around here. It is, however, frustrating to observe that other countries still do coal mining and promote deforestation, just to name a few examples.
Tamara