World Environment Day Today

Today is World Environment Day. A day set aside by the United Nations to sway non existent emotions or just nudge plain reason to ponder on the state of the living planet.

The slogan this year – CO2, Kick the Habit! Towards a Low Carbon Economy. Apt almost to a fault. Its a no brainer that Carbon footprints have to be erased for creating a smoother pathway to an eco-friendly approach to life.

The way to a sustainable urban landscape will beckon only if there is not just thought awakened but also action taken. In little ways. By making simple changes in the way we live. Pledges have to be taken. Promises have to be kept.

An Red American Indian said long long ago

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.

This truly eptimozies the close relationship between man and nature in the olden days, yet a sad rarity now. We need to understand what it means for our children to be part of an environment that is abused in just about every way possible. Whether we do measure up or not, there are young leaders who are taking a stand. Like this envirschool school in New Zealand. Wonderful to see. Something similar to a pact that a school in coimbatore will be signing with treesouls during the last week of this month as part of a one day awareness camp. More on that in the announcements section soon.

More words of wisdom from yet another anyonymous Red Indian, in tune with nature and his own soul.

In early days we were close to nature. We judged time, weather conditions, and many things by the elements–the good earth, the blue sky, the flying of geese, and the changing winds. We looked to these for guidance and answers. Our prayers and thanksgiving were said to the four winds–to the East, from whence the new day was born; to the South, which sent the warm breeze which gave a feeling of comfort; to the West, which ended the day and brought rest; and to the North, the Mother of winter whose sharp air awakened a time of preparation for the long days ahead. We lived by God’s hand through nature and evaluated the changing winds to tell us or warn us of what was ahead. Today we are again evaluating the changing winds. May we be strong in spirit and equal to our Fathers of another day in reading the signs accurately and interpreting them wisely

Yes, the time has come for winds of change to blow, in the way we look at our planet, in the way we seek to live, in the way we search to succeed, in the priorities that we parade as real.

Man is a complex being:he makes deserts bloom – and lakes die.

When Gil Stern lamented that he must have been in a state of despair, Yet it hits the nail on the head. Albert Einstein was not far off the mark when he said

We shall require a substantially new manner of thinking if mankind is to survive

Man’s remorseless quest and blind ways have wrought enough and more on the environment. There is no place to hide. In an underdeveloped country, you cannot drink the water. In a developed country, you cannot breathe the air . To boot we kill good trees to put out bad newspapers.

One cannot but just agree with Alan Eddison when he bristles

Modern technology owes ecology an apology

Lets take a sincere pledge today to look at simple ways and means to sustain this earth. Lets stop tampering with nature and the environment. A french philosopher’s immortal words simply rings true for me.

Let us permit nature to have her way. She understands her business better than we do.