A year of change

2009--A brand new year full of hope and promise. This will also be a year of great change. In keeping with this idea, the blog will be changing just a bit.

The focus this year will be on the interaction between humans and their physical/natural environment. How have we influenced changes in the natural world? What is our current impact? How are we (and nature) adapting to these changes?

Every day we are bombarded with conflicting statistics about the state of the environment. Numbers and "facts" fly at us from every direction from any number of "experts" and it has become difficult to know what information, if any, to trust. The term "global warming" is held in reverence in some circles, and held in contempt in others. New buzz words are added to our vocabulary at an alarming rate. But what does all of it mean?!

I invite all readers to take the information presented this year and use it as a platform for thoughtful, constructive discussion. Solutions to our environmental challenges are possible if we don't lose sight of the goal: Balance. We must somehow balance the needs of our species with the needs of our planet and all other species. If we fail to do this we doom all species to destruction. It is not just a change in behavior that is necessary, but also a change in attitude and the way we think of ourselves in relation to the world around us.

Until next time...become the change you imagine.

Evolution of a dream

Anatole France once said "To accomplish great things, we must dream as well as act."

As an adult my dream has been to see the world become a place of peace and beauty, but when I remember my dreams as a child, they always involved nature in some form or another. Sometimes we grow up and grow out of the simple ideals of our youth only to find that we are "missing something" in our lives. What is missing in many cases is the passion one feels when pursuing a dream. The passion of that pursuit is what makes us come alive.

I have come to understand that the greatest hindrance to peace is the lack of a stable environment. People all over the world suffer from famine, disease, poverty. They lack the basic necessities for survival. The earth, no longer in a state of balance, cannot support the organisms that inhabitat it. So what is the solution? Everyone has an opinion about that and no one answer exists. But if we look at the most common denominator it would be our planet.

Clean air, water, and land is necessary for the healthy survival of all organisms on the earth. It should be a common goal of all peoples to work toward healing the planet and creating a sustainable environment now and for the future.

In keeping with my original passion, beginning January 1st, 2008 my website and shop will focus on the environment and what is being done globally to heal our world.

Healthy planet + healthy, happy people = PEACE.

Until next time...become the change you imagine.