Celebrate Earth Day 2009

EARTH DAY 2009 IS COMING
Are Your Ready?

 

Turn Your Lights Out at 8:30PM EST March 28, 2009

 

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The Walt Disney Studios will celebrate Earth Day 2009 (April 22nd) with the debut of "Earth," the first feature-length nature documentary from its new production banner, Disneynature. This amazing new film is from award-winning British producer/director Alastair Fothergill, whose credits include the Emmy and Peabody award-winning "Planet Earth" series (BBC and The Discovery Channel) and "The Blue Planet."

The movie follows the epic migratory journeys of four animal families as well as the earth's journey around the sun and the massive influence it has on all life on the planet, from the Arctic spring to the Antarctic winter.

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Sayings of the Fathers Pirke Avot

MISHNA S. R. Jacob said:
"This world is, as it were,
the antechamber of the world hereafter;
therefore,
prepare thyself in the antechamber,
that thou mayest be admitted into the banqueting hall!"

♥

Harry Shade, SocialTrafficInc. [#STi] in so many words asks, "What's the point in even trying to repair the earth? What's the point in making the effort individually? Is it too late to heal the earth, our home? How can we clean up such a big mess?"

My answer is, "We have no other choice. We can't go out dying with out trying. It's the main plot of the story. We're each an individual hero in our own way, in our family, town, and village with our small voice. Some of us will resound on a larger scale, but it takes all of us to build up those that reach the top. This is a group effort to turn the ship around."

Again, I say, "We have no other choice. And we can't just nod and look the other way. The trash, disease, conflicts are staring us in the face."

So, again, I say, "Do give up the ship. Not yet, not now."

We are making strides and in-roads. Something has got to give. Push, push, push until we reach the top with all our effort and reach the tipping point of change. We saw it in the 2009 USA election, we can see it in other areas, as well.

Many people are heralding the messages of revitalization, purposeful living, lifestyle changes, creating new habits and becoming aware. Others are teaching, researching, supporting, managing, recycling and planting a home garden.

Think about what cause touches your heart. What stirs you to anger, joy, compassion? Choose one thing where you can make a difference and DO SOMETHING! Nothing happens without action.

♥

Sayings of the Fathers: Pirke Avot
Rabbi Tarphon: He also said:
"It is not incumbent on thee to complete the whole task,
but thou art not at liberty therefore to neglect it entirely.
If thou hast learned much Law thou wilt be given much reward;
and faithful is the Master of thy work,
who will pay thee the reward of thy work;
and know also that the gift of the recompense of the righteous
is for the world to come."

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TED: Willie Smits: A 20-year tale of hope:
How we re-grew a rainforest

Amazon Willie Smits Book  Thinkers of the Jungle

By piecing together a complex ecological puzzle, biologist Willie Smits has found a way to re-grow clear-cut rainforest in Borneo, saving local orangutans -- and creating an encouraging blueprint for restoring fragile ecosystems.

Sailing the Great Pacific Garbage Patch with Captain Charles Moore

 

Worldchanging.com founder Alex Steffen argues that reducing humanity's ecological footprint is incredibly vital now, as the western consumer lifestyle spreads to developing countries.

"There were shampoo caps and soap bottles and plastic bags and fishing floats as far as I could see. Here I was in the middle of the ocean, and there was nowhere I could go to avoid the plastic."- Moore

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Severin Suzuki

Here is one voice that broke through the stillness. One voice that made a difference and continues to build strength even though her demure stature spoke over a decade ago.  Link

"As she herself said, we are what we do, and not what we say."

Severin received the United Nations Environment Program 500 Award in 1993, has hosted many television programs and lectured around the world, and has been honoured and adopted by three British Columbia First Nations. Severin is 23 now, and she speaks at international conferences and meetings, encouraging young people to speak their mind and to act on a better future.

Severin Suzuki is the daughter of David Suzuki; Canada's most prominent Environmental leader. Wikipedia

Severin Suzuki Speaks at Rio in 1992

Transcript: Hello, I'm Severin Suzuki, speaking for ECO, the Environmental Children's Organization. We are a group of four twelve and thirteen year-olds from Canada trying to make a difference... We raised all the money ourselves to come 6,000 miles to tell you adults you must change your ways.

Coming here today I have no hidden agenda. I'm fighting for my future. Losing my future is not like losing an election or a few points in the stock market. I am here to speak for all future generations yet to come. I am here to speak on behalf of the starving children around the world whose cries go unheard. I am here to speak for the countless animals dying across this planet because they have nowhere left to go.

I am afraid to go out in the sun now because of the holes in the ozone. I am afraid to breathe the air because I don't know what chemicals are in it. I used to go fishing in Vancouver, my hometown, with my dad, until just a few years ago we found the fish full of cancers. And now we hear about animals and plants going extinct every day--vanishing forever. In my life, I have dreamt of seeing the great herds of wild animals, jungles, and rain forests full of birds and butterflies, but now I wonder if they will even exist for my children to see.

Did you worry about these things when you were my age? All this is happening before our eyes, and yet we act as if we have all the time we want and all the solutions. I'm only a child and I don't have all the solutions, but I want you to realize, neither do you! You don't know how to fix the holes in our ozone layer. You don't know how to bring the salmon back up a dead stream. You don't know how to bring back an animal now extinct. And you can't bring back the forests that once grew where there is now a desert.

If you don't know how to fix it, please stop breaking it! Here you may be delegates of your governments, business people, organizers, reporters, or politicians. But really you are mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers, aunts and uncles. And all of you are somebody's child. I'm only a child, yet I know we are all a part of a family, five billion strong--in fact, 30 million species strong. And borders and governments will never change that. I'm only a child, yet I know we are all in this together and should act as one single world toward one single goal.

In my anger, I am not blind, and in my fear, I am not afraid to tell the world how I feel.
In my country, we make so much waste. We buy and throw away, buy and throw away. And yet northern countries will not share with the needy. Even when we have more than enough, we are afraid to lose some of our wealth, afraid to let go.

In Canada, we live the privileged life with plenty of food, water, and shelter. We have watches, bicycles, computers, and television sets. Two days ago here in Brazil, we were shocked when we spent time with some children living on the streets. And this is what one child told us:

"I wish I was rich. And if I were, I would give all the street children food, clothes, medicine, shelter, love, and affection." If this child on the street who has nothing is willing to share, why are we who have everything still so greedy?

I can't stop thinking that these children are my own age, that it makes a tremendous difference where you are born. I could be one of those children living in the favelas of Rio. I could be a child starving in Somalia, a victim of war in the Middle East, or a beggar in India. I'm only a child, yet I know if all the money spent on war was spent on ending poverty and finding environmental answers, what a wonderful place this Earth would be.

At school, even in kindergarten, you teach us how to behave in the world. You teach us not to fight with others, to work things out, to respect others, to clean up our mess, not to hurt other creatures, to share, not be greedy. Then why do you go out and do the things you tell us not to do?

Do not forget why you are attending these conferences, who you are doing this for--we are your children. You are deciding what kind of a world we will grow up in. Parents should be able to comfort their children by saying, "Everything's going to be all right." "We're doing the best we can." "It's not the end of the world." But I don't think you can say that to us anymore. Are we even on your list of priorities?

My dad always says, "You are what you do, not what you say." Well, what you do makes me cry at night. You grown-ups say you love us. I challenge you, please, make your actions reflect your words. Thank you for listening.

--In 1990, David Suzuki took his family to live with the Kaiapo people in
the Amazon rain forest of Brazil. They witnessed the devastation of the Kaiapo
land. Afterwards, Severn talked a group of 5th grade girls into forming a small
group she called the Environmental Children's Organization. To help spread
the word about environmental issues, the girls made ceramic brooches shaped
like geckos, they called eco-geckos. They received orders from students and teachers and soon raised $150 for ECO. Inspired by the plight of the Penan people the club bought a large water filter which they gave to two Penan representatives.

In the summer of 1991, Severn heard of a big environmental meeting in
Rio and was surprised to find out that her father did not plan to attend. She told
her father, "I want to raise money to send ECO. I think children should be
there to act as a conscience for the grown-ups."

Her dad scoffed at the idea and forgot about it. Two months later, Severn
announced, "Dad, I just got a check for $1,000 from the Ira-hiti Foundation in
San Francisco." In the end, the club raised $13,000, which Severn's dad
matched allowing the five girls and three parents to go to Rio for the Earth Summit.

Severn worked on her own speech rejecting her dad's suggestion of help.
She delivered the speech at a plenary session on June 11, 1992, after which Al
Gore told her, "That was the best speech given at Rio." The official UN video of
the Earth Summit concludes with her speech.

Severn's speech had an amazing impact and she was deluged by the
media, received many honors, and wrote a best-selling book, Tell the World.
She was elected to a committee to draft the Earth Charter.

In 2000, she bicycled across Canada for clean air. She graduated from
Yale in 2002 after majoring in Ecology and Evolution and formed an
environmental think tank called the Skyfish Project. As a member of Kofi
Annan's committee of eminent persons, she helped outline the objectives of the
Earth Summit in Johannesburg in 2002. (The David Suzuki Reader, 345-350) 

 TV.CA : The Green Barade Tips from Suzuki

Motivational speaker and Co-creator of the Skyfish Project

Severin encouraged environmental and social action as creator of the Skyfish Project in 2002. As a part of Kofi Annan's Special Advisory Panel the Skyfish Project brought the Recognition of Responsibility, a pledge was signed by over 2700 youth, to the United Nations summit in Johannesburg.

Severin received the United Nations Environment Program 500 Award in 1993, has hosted many television programs and lectured around the world, and has been honoured and adopted by three British Columbia First Nations. Severin is 23 now, and she speaks at international conferences and meetings, encouraging young people to speak their mind and to act on a better future. the skyfish project ended its run back in 2004.The Skyfish domain was dismantled when Severin went back to school for a master's degree. The ownership expired and was re-registered by someone else who did not keep true to the same goals. Severin and her partners received no profits page advertising.

ETHICAL CO-OP Online Marketing

CNN SUNDAY MORNING
U.N. Summit of World Leaders Gets Under Way in South Africa
Aired September 1, 2002 - 11:31   ET

Dirty Culture At Its Best: Two sides of the same coin

Motivational speaker Severin Suzuki said that the current global economic crisis is indicative of an old-world capitalist mentality that reflects its own failings, and that the reality of climate change is an impetus for both environmental and economic action.

"This crisis is an opportunity to understand how our economic system of deregulation and globalization is unsustainable. This economic system has evolved in a way that has resulted in the exploitation and destruction of the environment," she said.

Suzuki says that we must think of new ways to create an environmentally-friendly economic system that favors the sustainability niche in the 21st century. "The environmental momentum should not be broken by an economic crisis," she said. 

The Green Brigade: Tips from the Suzuki family

Two years ago: Fri. Jul. 6 2007 1:22 PM ET

Going for a green lifestyle is the goal for global citizens with an eco conscience. But for the "Average Joe" who lacks the means of a Hollywood celeb or the influence of a hot politico-turned-activist like Al Gore, implementing an effective day-to-day green strategy can seem too daunting. Not so, say Dr. David Suzuki and his activist daughter (pictured, left), Severn Suzuki, who offered some tips on eTalk this week.

"My generation has got used to thinking, 'I need to have a car to drive five blocks," says Dr. Suzuki, the environmentalist who dubbed climate change "a slow motion catastrophe."

"And that's why we have fat asses and a problem with obesity," adds Dr. Suzuki. Severn avoids buying chocolate bars since much of the raw chocolate comes from the Ivory Coast where there is slavery and child labour abuse.

With just these five simple, budget-friendly tips, anyone can embrace today's eco revolution and make a "real life" move in the right direction.

They may not be as visually impressive to your neighbours as cruising up your driveway in a new hybrid car or basking in the glory of your new solar panelled "smart" home. Yet these small steps can change your world and benefit the entire planet, according to this dynamic duo.

Step 1: Tomorrow morning, bring a coffee mug to work.

"I never use disposable cups," says Severn. "Just because I can't really justify using a resource that was once a tree or a plant for just 15 minutes and then throwing it in a landfill." According to the Say No to Trash website, Canadians throw away 25 billion styrofoam cups each year, and they will still be sitting in landfill sites 500 years from now.

And according to Statistics Canada, each Canadian uses up to four trees per year in paper products, a lot of that going into paper cups.

Step 2: Conserve energy at home--and that means more than just energy-efficient lightbulbs.

"If you're buying a new appliance, look at the energy guide and go for the most energy efficient," explains Dr. Suzuki. "You'll save money and it's good for the earth." Check filters on air conditioners to maximize efficiency. Also check your bulbs, and look for coupons offering deals for first-time buyers.The lighting world's young upstarts leave the incandescent in the dust for efficiency: Halogens use up to 15 per cent less energy and last two to four times longer; compact fluorescents use up to 75 per cent less electricity and last 10 times longer -- seven to 10 years depending on use.

Step 3: Take a page from stars like Avril Lavigne and Pamela Anderson and go vegetarian one day a week.

It may not sound like much, says Dr. Suzuki, but this easy dietary change can make a huge difference to our world and for one very simple reason. "Meat is right at the top of the food chain. It takes a lot of grain to make a pound of meat. It takes a lot of water to make a pound of meat."

To make your diet more eco-friendly, try eating Kraft Dinner for breakfast or replace a whopping big burger with Tofurkey.

Step 4: Take the bus or break out the BMX for an emission-free ride around town.

This strategy, by far, can make the most dramatic impact in our gas-guzzling world says Dr. Suzuki. And as daughter Severn adds, "Get your bike in working order. Get it oiled and get a nice helmet so that you don't feel like a dork wearing." If you can't buy a bike, consider renting one -- but make sure to get a lock and store it properly.

Step 5: If you must drive remember the less gas you use the less pollution you release.

"If you're going to get a car, for heaven's sake use fuel efficiency as one of the criteria," says Dr. Suzuki. Also, try weaning yourself off your wheels. "If you use a car on a regular basis, leave it at home one day a week."

Finally: "Get involved and learn about what you care about. Do a little research," says Severn. "If you don't understand why you're doing this it won't stick." That's the bottom line. It all begins with "Average Joe's" around the world making a commitment, remembering that nature, not the economy allows all of us to live, and just doing it every day.

CTV.CA Green Brigade: Tips from the Suzuki family

 

YouTube Earthday 2009 party is planned 
Who will be participating?

EArthday is providing solutions, we all must get on board and participate, even if its recycling everyone can make a difference. Our very own Evangelist Anthony Hoskings, produced the music for this video. Come & join our Celebration & Education for Planet earth and provide some of your skills, heart tallents, and passions too.

Facebook: How Can We Help The Earth?

Renewable Energy: No Such Thing as Clean Coal

David Freeman shares wisdom about renewables--what works well and what doesn't--for you, me, and a new generation of general managers at power companies who must choose renewable energy now.

David Suzuki Foundation and What You Can Do

David Suzuki Digs My Garden: Contest

What if every place you turned you received this message? A unified message that everyone became involved in spreading. That if we all work together and do our part we can make a difference.

For a day, show the effect of turning your lights out. For a lifetime get involved with local community social action. In your home, practice 'safe' environment. In your neighborhood find ways to have less waste and pollution. Change landscapes from heavily sprayed lawns to natural plants. Put in an organic garden and mulch. Catch your rainwater for dispersing in the garden.

Every little bit helps.

Rachel Carlson 1907 - 1964: The Life and Legacy

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