It's Earth Day...and I'm feeling grumpy and frustrated...
I get this way EVERY Earth Day, it's complicated and hard to get across.
I'll start with something happy. My video I made last year for Earth Day, of my flower photography and a John Denver song. That Colorado cowboy always makes smile.
(Edit: Apparently the copyright holders of John Denver's song, Celebrate Earthday Everyday, decided that I was infringing with this video. Which is a shame. I fully appreciate and respect copyrights, but this one song..well, there are other forms of domain available now, and they should release it for inspiration, not profit)
There, don't you feel better. I don't...
I think it is summed up in this quote from Aldo Leopold.
"One of the penalties of an ecological education is that one lives alone in a world of wounds. Much of the damage inflicted on land is quite invisible to laymen. An ecologist must either harden his shell and make believe that the consequences of science are none of his business, or he must be the doctor who sees the marks of death in a community that believes itself well and does not want to be told otherwise."
You see, myself and my family are green in our bones. It isn't something we do to feel better. It isn't something we do because we feel guilty. It is something we do. I have been this way since before I knew the ideas of Deep Ecology, Environmentalism, or The Land Ethic.
Before I had ever read the works of Deep Ecology, Gary Synder, or even Frank Herbert.
I spent the vast majority of my childhood alone, usually in the woods. Sometimes up a tree. Since I was very young, I would be frozen into immobility by nature and it's beauty. I dreamed even then, of living in a cabin, off grid (despite that I didn't know that term), lightly, in harmony.
Now, years later, here I am. Approaching middle age, a career as an artist and trying to be green every day. Our household Carbon Footprint is approximately 28027 lbs. Average that among the four members of the household and you get 3.50 tons a year. That is compared to the USA average of 22 tons a year. Of course, this isn't actually possible as the USA ground floor base line is 8.5 tons, according to this article. That is, due to our culture and basic systems of our society, our national base cannot be calculated below that average.
So, our household, despite living in a county that can't recycle anything but 1 & 2s, and despite that we make our career off of selling products that are an outgrowth of the leather industry, and that we can't buy the organic that we used to, etc. our footprint would be slightly less that the worldwide average...if...
I know so many, who claim eco-thinking, but still shop constantly. So many who only recycle when it's convenient...at home. So many who will burn a gallon of gas, just to pick a pack of cigarettes. So many who could do the simplest of things, but due to a lack of will, motivation, or maturity, they do not.
So I get a little grumpy on Earth Day. Happens every year. I don't plan on planting any trees. We do that through out the year. I raise maples, and oaks, and hope to plant a stand of evergreens, great carbon scrubbers, especially as organic Christmas Trees, which is what we will use them for. Yes, growing and cutting down trees in a cycle can actually be good for the environment. We won't be going to make crafts out of recycled paper and trash. We do this constantly and bring home recycled lumber and buy almost all of our clothing at thrift shops. I strip all my wire down to copper and will ultimately reduce our waste stream to less than a couple of bags a month.
Actually, Leah and the kids may go up the local college town, Frostburg to do exactly that. It is important for them, the children, to develop a deep fundamental land ethic at an early age. After all, it is them who will live in This World...
Me, I am afraid I will have to stay home. We are coming down to the wire with our spring festival season. We have lots of production to do, creating consumable art. It's a rainy and bluster day, which bares to mind the old adage, "God makes rainy days so gardeners will get house chores done." But staying home is the better thing. I might pop and gesture wildly at someone, and that wouldn't be fair. After all, their Americans too.
After all, I was just commenting to Leah the other night about how there is so much casual comments in pop culture right now that is Green Minded. Commercials, shows, radio, internet, all are shifting our thinking, moving our ideas, creating memes of thought, that Green is something you do because it's responsibility, it is something you do because it is sane, healthy and wise. I offer you my bumper sticker from my CafePress shop.
So we each do our part, we each make a little difference. And the Today show promotes green consumerism and feel good actions. Perhaps it raises that awareness, perhaps it helps shift that thinking. I am glad for. Some of us, have been wishing this for so long. But please, ask yourself...can you do more.
And I can't help feeling a little like my fellow deep ecologist at Grist Magazine...
I'll start with something happy. My video I made last year for Earth Day, of my flower photography and a John Denver song. That Colorado cowboy always makes smile.
(Edit: Apparently the copyright holders of John Denver's song, Celebrate Earthday Everyday, decided that I was infringing with this video. Which is a shame. I fully appreciate and respect copyrights, but this one song..well, there are other forms of domain available now, and they should release it for inspiration, not profit)
Click to viewThere, don't you feel better. I don't...
I think it is summed up in this quote from Aldo Leopold.
"One of the penalties of an ecological education is that one lives alone in a world of wounds. Much of the damage inflicted on land is quite invisible to laymen. An ecologist must either harden his shell and make believe that the consequences of science are none of his business, or he must be the doctor who sees the marks of death in a community that believes itself well and does not want to be told otherwise."
You see, myself and my family are green in our bones. It isn't something we do to feel better. It isn't something we do because we feel guilty. It is something we do. I have been this way since before I knew the ideas of Deep Ecology, Environmentalism, or The Land Ethic.
Before I had ever read the works of Deep Ecology, Gary Synder, or even Frank Herbert.
I spent the vast majority of my childhood alone, usually in the woods. Sometimes up a tree. Since I was very young, I would be frozen into immobility by nature and it's beauty. I dreamed even then, of living in a cabin, off grid (despite that I didn't know that term), lightly, in harmony.
Now, years later, here I am. Approaching middle age, a career as an artist and trying to be green every day. Our household Carbon Footprint is approximately 28027 lbs. Average that among the four members of the household and you get 3.50 tons a year. That is compared to the USA average of 22 tons a year. Of course, this isn't actually possible as the USA ground floor base line is 8.5 tons, according to this article. That is, due to our culture and basic systems of our society, our national base cannot be calculated below that average.
So, our household, despite living in a county that can't recycle anything but 1 & 2s, and despite that we make our career off of selling products that are an outgrowth of the leather industry, and that we can't buy the organic that we used to, etc. our footprint would be slightly less that the worldwide average...if...
I know so many, who claim eco-thinking, but still shop constantly. So many who only recycle when it's convenient...at home. So many who will burn a gallon of gas, just to pick a pack of cigarettes. So many who could do the simplest of things, but due to a lack of will, motivation, or maturity, they do not.
So I get a little grumpy on Earth Day. Happens every year. I don't plan on planting any trees. We do that through out the year. I raise maples, and oaks, and hope to plant a stand of evergreens, great carbon scrubbers, especially as organic Christmas Trees, which is what we will use them for. Yes, growing and cutting down trees in a cycle can actually be good for the environment. We won't be going to make crafts out of recycled paper and trash. We do this constantly and bring home recycled lumber and buy almost all of our clothing at thrift shops. I strip all my wire down to copper and will ultimately reduce our waste stream to less than a couple of bags a month.
Actually, Leah and the kids may go up the local college town, Frostburg to do exactly that. It is important for them, the children, to develop a deep fundamental land ethic at an early age. After all, it is them who will live in This World...
Me, I am afraid I will have to stay home. We are coming down to the wire with our spring festival season. We have lots of production to do, creating consumable art. It's a rainy and bluster day, which bares to mind the old adage, "God makes rainy days so gardeners will get house chores done." But staying home is the better thing. I might pop and gesture wildly at someone, and that wouldn't be fair. After all, their Americans too.
After all, I was just commenting to Leah the other night about how there is so much casual comments in pop culture right now that is Green Minded. Commercials, shows, radio, internet, all are shifting our thinking, moving our ideas, creating memes of thought, that Green is something you do because it's responsibility, it is something you do because it is sane, healthy and wise. I offer you my bumper sticker from my CafePress shop.
So we each do our part, we each make a little difference. And the Today show promotes green consumerism and feel good actions. Perhaps it raises that awareness, perhaps it helps shift that thinking. I am glad for. Some of us, have been wishing this for so long. But please, ask yourself...can you do more.
And I can't help feeling a little like my fellow deep ecologist at Grist Magazine...