I live in a bizarre “in-between” world. In July, I saw and heard the world’s top climate, marine and atmospheric scientists say that unequivocally, we are heading over a cliff. They called for dramatic and immediate changes in Americans’ lifestyles and consumption patterns if we are to maintain any semblance of an environment that can support human life.
Then I came home, and it’s as if I’m in a different world. There is no urgency, no passion, and no attention even to this small detail.
So it drives me to ask, which is it?
If we’re indeed headed for a cliff, shouldn’t all the citizens be informed and shouldn’t we all put the brakes on our consumption patterns that are at the root of the problem? At a time when the environmental protection and conservation movement should be surging, there seems instead to be a huge drag. I see no coherent national leadership, although there are many laudable efforts underway.
Having ties in both grassroots and white environmental organizations, I know from experience that they are mainly segregated, un connected, and the latter overwhelmingly cater to whites. On the opposite end, “grassroots” environmental organizations are deeply connected to the communities in which they work, and some date back 20 years and more. White organizations focus on the preservation of large scale ecosystems and top predators, and are unconcerned with challenges of inequitable access, health and stewardship benefits that grassroots groups face.
At this rate, never the twain shall meet.
More than anything I’ve experienced recently, The Children and Nature Network’s Grassroots Gathering in Princeton, NJ, August 11 -13 gives me hope that we will be able to bridge that chasm. The 200 or so people from across the country are not principally career environmentalists. Many work with children, and some are connected to a growing “food security” movement, which promotes backyard and community gardens, reduced pesticide use and supporting local farmers.
Realizing that, for the first time in history, the average American child today is having almost no contact with nature, they are determined to wake us up to the reality of what that means: High rates of obesity. High rates of ADD, ADHD and depression.
“The antidote to what ails us is right here with us,” says Richard Louv, whose book, “Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature Deficit Disorder” started this revolution. “The woods were my Ritalin. Nature calmed me, focused me, and yet excited my senses.”
The passion I saw at the C&NN Gathering restored my faith that we can make the changes that Mohan Munasinghe, deputy chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, (IPCC) called for in Aspen: A radical change in American lifestyles. (We’re less than 5% of the world’s population, yet we consume more than 25% of its resources!) I can visualize people all over our country driven by something so personal — our children and our food – taking the lead.
“In wildness is the preservation of the world,” pronounced Henry David Thoreau in 1851. Enabling our children to play in nature, to explore, to feel free, to discover new things – we will also derive incalculable benefits, remembering our place in the world.
I am optimistic that the experience will awaken the part of us that affirms, “I am a child of the universe. I have a right to be here. I will carry out my responsibility to be part of the solution.”
Then we’ll give up the artificial distinctions of black and white and join together as one species, response-able.
Or, we could just continue to ignore the warnings of our most brilliant and accomplished scientists, and hope for the best.
Young leaders for hire!
One of the most striking developments I noticed over the three days of interaction at the C&NN meeting was the primacy given to the Natural Leaders Network, (NLN) comprising young people from across the country. It gave me a thrill of pride and deep appreciation to see own Juan Martinez and James King II, at the helm, and evidently Richard Louv was just as impressed as he wrote here. I am already recommending to the mainstream environmental groups whose boards I serve on that Juan and the other young leaders should be retained as paid consultants to create similar networks around the country. It’s not rocket science – young people are better able to inspire their peers than the average demographic of mainstream ‘green’ groups, which is a white person, over age 60.
Several young people expressed to me their goals of pursuing advanced degrees with a focus on the environment, and the financial challenges associated. I think they represent a huge opportunity for mainstream groups that have influence and resources to engage them on a paid basis and help facilitate their education.
‘Breaking the Color Barrier’ reunion!
The seminal “Breaking the Color Barrier” conference was well represented with Juan, Rue Mapp, James, Ginny, Manav Thapar and Bill Vandenberg, who kindly picked me up from Newark Airport. Happily, I learned that as a result of meeting at BCB, Manav recruited Rue to work for his organization, The Stewardship Council, and the announcement was made Monday (PDF here) It was awesome to reconnect with Brother Yusuf whose youth programs in upstate New York could be a model for the nation, and Brigitte Griswold, our longtime colleague from the Nature Conservancy. I see our network getting stronger, more diverse and more connected around the country.
