“It is 2050. Beyond the emissions reductions registered in 2015, no further efforts were made to control emissions. We are heading for a world that will be more than 3 degrees warmer by 2100. The first thing that hits you is the air.” ~ Christiana Figueres and Tom Rivett-Carnac The Earth is getting […]
I remember the photo on the front page of the Fort Worth newspaper. You’ve seen it. It depicts the first day of integrated school in Mississippi or Alabama in the late 1950’s or early 1960’s. Three small black girls in pristine white dresses walk with determination through a crowd of angry white people who were […]
I remember sack lunches from my school days. PB&J or tuna salad sandwiches wrapped up in wax paper (or those wax paper bags that came out later), or sometimes bologna with a slice of processed cheese. Always on plain white Wonder Bread — the “American way.” Potato chips or Fritos (when they came out, after […]
There’s a strange and undeniable draw towards abandoned places. Ghost towns, forsaken movie palaces, swank shipwrecks, crumbling castles and the like all lure in adventurers with their promise of poignancy and a special brand of voyeurism. ~ Melissa Breyer Every day it seems like I’m reliving some great disaster of history — a pandemic, […]
Neoliberalism, as a loosely defined set of political beliefs, calls for more individual freedom and autonomy, resulting in increased responsibility for each person to address major societal issues. ‘Individualization’ is the process by which responsibility for addressing major environmental issues such as climate change is placed on individuals. ~ Sydney A. Page-Hayes I take […]
“… the idea of a green awakening seems to be taking root … The concept appeals to a new generation of better-educated Pakistanis, and it has sparked excitement on social media.” ~ The Washington Post (2018) “The level of forest loss we saw in 2019 is unacceptable … 2020 was supposed to be the year […]
“When we have learned how to listen to trees, then the brevity and the quickness and the childlike hastiness of our thoughts achieve an incomparable joy.” ~ Herman Hesse It starts up sometime around 5:00 am, and continues through the morning. It’s most likely a robin — the shrill whistle/chirp that comes in sets of […]
“Mushrooms are one of our biggest allies if we hope to have any chance of healing the earth.” ~ Sarah Kuta Humans have changed the planet’s ecosystems, both intentionally and inadvertently. Our very presence requires competition with other species for resources and our successful proliferation compounds that issue. We also perform actions that damage […]
Out the window I see a flight of swallows, swirling around in a column hundreds of feet high. I suppose they are chasing some small flying bugs caught in the tornado-like updraft, but to me, it looks like they are having fun. Facebook and the internet are full of animal photos and videos, showing the […]
I grew up in Texas when segregation was the norm. In the 1950s, my town had discrete residential areas containing blacks or Hispanics (not what they were called then). Whites (“normal people”) were the majority and controlling population. Until 1964, when I was in junior high, segregation was legally and socially enforced. I remember being […]
