"Treat The Earth Well. It Was Not Given To You By Your Parents, It Was Loaned To You By Your Children. We Do Not Inherit The Earth From Our Ancestors, We Borrow It From Our Children." ~ Ancient Indian Proverb
My friend Brian in the UK is one of my favorite environmentalist and blog authors,…. recently I asked him if I could share his wisdom with my readers and he granted me this interview.
I asked Brian what he thought was the future of ‘green’ and sustainability and how he felt about the way things are going around the world. In correspondence Brian stated, …. "If green is done right, it helps everyone. Of course it improves the environment, which means that it improves the quality of life that we share with everyone and everything that lives on this planet."
With the economy being hit from every direction I feel Brian’s next statement merits special attention….."A focus on sustainability will create jobs and investment opportunities in many new industries, both low-tech and high-tech. It reduces our dependence on other countries for essential energy supplies. Happily, the new President of the USA gets all this. The best effect in the long run, from my point of view, is children who grow up in a ‘green environment’ instead of in a concrete environment are much more likely to have happy childhoods and grow into happier adults. It’s as true for children as for animals in a zoo. And happy children are the long-term solution to much of the misery in this world." Then, he stated further, …."It’s encouraging to see the world starting to turn away from concrete boxes and straight, featureless rows of houses, and replacing them with communities centered around green communal spaces. Just doing that helps a lot for the human spirit and happiness. If you add in green housing, local farming, a reduced need to get in a car in order to shop or to meet your neighbors, and other "green" things - in other words, green eco-communities - then we are winning all around!"
Yes, individually we can play a part in ‘A Bright Sustainable Future’ for our planet and for our children’s future. Begin at home, within our community and then by reaching out to the world around us……
Brian’s website provides interesting information with many links relating to all these themes.
http://www.tooby.demon.co.uk/Log/EnvironmentTechnology.html
"You must teach your children that the ground beneath their feet is the ashes of your grandfathers. So that they will respect the land, tell your children that the earth is rich with the lives of our kin. Teach your children what we have taught our children, that the earth is our mother. Whatever befalls the earth befalls the sons of the earth. If men spit upon the ground, they spit upon themselves." ~ Native American Wisdom
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February 9th, 2009 at 5:36 pm
Two ideas here that appeal to me.
First, “green” as economically efficient. Creating jobs and investment opportunities is more desirable than guilt or fear.
Second, the call to teach children responsibility for their environment. People are much more willing to act responsibly when they understand the reasons. Laws and government programs have their place but persuasion trumps coercion.
February 9th, 2009 at 9:48 pm
I love this quote: “It’s encouraging to see the world starting to turn away from concrete boxes and straight, featureless rows of houses, and replacing them with communities centered around green communal spaces.” I sit outside right now, watching my kids ride bicycles and enjoying the natural beauty of the park.
It is about the future - our children and our green legacy.
February 10th, 2009 at 2:58 am
Very true how we must keep the Earth as clean as it was when it was borrowed to us before we handed back to our children. Thank you Sandy for the great post!
February 10th, 2009 at 9:01 pm
Care for and all her creatures, its all we need to do.
February 13th, 2009 at 2:44 am
Very inspiring …I read this yesterday and I’m in the middle of midst of moving and started thinking about “greening” my move for lack of better words. I bought my boxes from usedcardboardboxes.com and bypassed new boxes and bubblewrap. I guess you do get inspired by other people words???
February 27th, 2009 at 1:40 pm
Great post! It all starts with us! We are in re-purposing and downsizing mode, with a new mindset set about the cost to our planet of every “thing” we buy. Thanks for this!
March 1st, 2009 at 12:39 pm
Thank you for your support and encouraging words.
Truly, we stand at the doorway of a new era and a ’sustainable’ future lies within our grasp. Let’s reach out individually to play a part in ‘A Bright Sustainable Future’ for our planet and our children’s future.
Rememeber, this new beginning starts at home, within our community and eventually will embrace the world around us……
March 3rd, 2009 at 2:18 am
Thanks for an excellent post.
Im a strong advocate for building communities online and offline around strong, selfless and deep rooted values focussed on sustainability.
If we all provide and share our wisdoms pertaining to growing the collective consciousness of others to believe in adding to the world for it’s long term survival which is our own, this will go a long way to making a positive difference.
Everything starts with you. It’s starts in the home in how we act day to day. It starts by who we support ie businesses that we as consumers allow to stay in business by purchasing their goods and services.
Every day lets make one single change, grow a habit that will eventually spread throughout our communities then the world.
March 10th, 2009 at 6:45 pm
I’ve never thought of it as borrowing the Earth from our children, but that’s the way we should look at it. Thanks for the wise words; I agree that going green provides job growth opportunities.
March 31st, 2009 at 11:36 am
GM failed today, and the CEO walked away to a “Golden Parachute” retirement richer than anything common folk can even imagine! A sign of the times, and a reason to make your findings about hydroponics, aquaculture, no-till gardening public on the web. The large, Multi-National owned food supply chains in America are one step short of moving their capital to Asia, one step short of lucrative (for them) bankruptcies, and chaos for average folks - we will need bug proof GMO’ed super growing veggies for our gardens just to survive, and at present we don’t even have garden plots! Incredible as it may seem, people still spread yards with high-persistence, veggie killing chemicals to grow lawns they cannot eat! Dark days ahead for the American dreamers! Dark days for certain!
June 9th, 2009 at 6:57 pm
A great way to look at this. I’ve heard that “green” was just a fad that will soon pass once its commercial potential is reached, but I believe that anything we do to help your children and keep the Earth clean is a benefit to every living thing.
August 24th, 2009 at 6:40 pm
Thanks for this wise perspective that looks beyond green to sustainable. There is a difference.