Day 256 - Saturday 9/13/08

Today's Haul:

• 1 cardboard blintzes box - recycle
• 1 plastic tray from blintzes box - recycle
• 1 cardboard cereal box - recycle
• 1 plastic cereal bag - recycle
• 1 plastic salad bag - recycle
• 1 tuna can - recycle
• 1 green beans can - recycle
• 1 plastic orzo tub - repurpose
• 1 paper towel - worms
• 2 used q-tips - worms

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Day 255 - Friday 9/12/08

Today's Haul:

• 1 plastic yogurt tub PP5 - recycle
• 1 cardboard videocassette package backing - recycle
• 1 plastic video cassette package front - recycle
• 1 videocassete plastic wrap - recycle
• 1 piece tin foil - garbage

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Peace Jam 2008 - Global Call To Action

I had the incredible honor of being asked to teach my seminar Chasing Sustainability at PeaceJam 2008 today and I can't even begin to tell you how amazing it was.

Peace Jam is an organization started 12 years ago by two folks from Colorado, Dawn Engle and Ivan Suvanjieff who had a simple idea.  Why not get Nobel Laureates to get together and help inspire young people all over the world to fix the problems that they see in front of them.

While most people would have stopped right there, thinking the task too hard and the hurdles too big, Dawn and Ivan pushed ahead and contacted the Dalai Lama who loved the idea.  They then began to cold call Nobel Peace Prize winners and pretty soon, had an organization on their hands with the simple goal of changing the world by inspiring young people.

I taught my course in the morning to a small group of kids (a last minute venue change kind of messed things up) but had a great response from them and subsequently ran into a number of people who had wanted to attend but couldn't find the venue.  Such is life, you can only control what you can control, but it was a good seminar nonetheless.

The highlight of the day for me though was attending the press conference and being able to listen to the Laureates in attendance speak and answer questions.  It was truly inspiring. Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Rigoberta Menchu Tum, Betty Williams, Jody Williams, Shirin Ebadi, and Adolfo Perez Esquival, all spoke eloquently about their experiences and their excitement at being involved. 

 

What struck me most about these amazing folks was that they were just regular people. While they have all accomplished amazing things, they are just normal everyday people who would not tolerate injustice and stood up and said no. Their message was clear and simple - Do Something!  They were totally inspiring!  Imagine what the world could be like if everyone acted this way!

The Laureates and Dawn and Ivan (who may be Peace Prize winners themselves soon as they have been nominated) announced the start of what they are calling the Global Call to Action, a ten year intiative to enact 1 billion acts of peace throughout the world that attack the 10 core problems the group has decided are most problematic to the planets survival.

• Equal access to water and other natural resource
• Ending racism and hate
• Halting the spread of global disease
• Eliminating extreme poverty
• Social justice and human rights for all
• Rights for women and children and their role as leaders
• Restoring Earths environment
• Controlling the proliferation of weapons including nuclear weapons
• Investing in human security
• Breaking the cycle of violence

It's a really amazing campaign and one they have already had a lot of success with.  Any child can sign up by going to the site and you can read accounts of projects that the laureates have undertaken with the kids who have come up with them.

I could go on and on, but I won't.  It was an honor to be among such genuine leaders and be a miniscule part of what they are trying to accomplish. Pretty amazing stuff.  

I'll post the audio as soon as i have it cleaned up so you can hear for yourself.

Peace

Dave

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Day 254 - Thursday 9/11/08

Today's Haul:

• 1 paper bag from scone - worms
• 1 laminated press badge w/lanyard - repurposed/saved
• 1 press package folder - repurpose
• 1 paper parking pass - worms

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OK, So I'm A Hippy, So Sue Me

I just realized that today is Sept 11th. 

It's not that i didn't know it was coming up, moreso that i recognize that it's an arbitrary date even though it has extreme historical significance, in the realm of my lifetime at least. Now that I think about it, i remember vividly the thoughts of that day, the moment i heard, everything that was happening and I never want to feel those feelings again. 

So I'm sending this out and asking one small favor. Just take a moment today, close your eyes, and think deeply for 5 seconds, 10 seconds, a minute if you don't have kids, whatever works, about Peace. And i don't mean negotiations, or treaties, or anything political, I mean real Peace, a state that our children could grow up in and never have to hear the words war, hatred, enemy, or atrocity again. 

It may do nothing more than to give you a moments peace, but then again, it just might.

Thanks

Dave

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Day 253 - Wednesday 9/10/08

Today's Haul:

• 1 set wooden chop sticks - worms
• 1 paper wrapper from chopsticks - worms
• 1 plastic bag from face towel - recycle
• 1 cloth face towel - garbage
• 1 beer bottle w/top - recycle

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Wow, things are backwards

I was driving in the car yesterday listening to the radio and there was a story about obesity becoming a problem in Iraq.  It seems that as a result of the violence there, a large number of Iraqi citizens choose to leave their houses only when necessary and as a result have become quite sedentary.  Add to this the ability to have TV in there houses and the picture gets much worse.

The reporter at one point asked the local correspondent whether people would consider having a tread mill or exercise bike in their houses.  While I expected to hear the answer that this is not foremost on most Iraqis minds right now, what he said was that there are some who would like this, but since intermittent power is a problem, treadmills don't work most of the time.

Now i know there are bigger issues in Iraq right now, but how backwards is this?  You have a group of people who need, among other things, electricity and exercise right?  Why not reverse engineer some of those treadmills and have them charge batteries that can be used later when power is needed?  I know it's not that simple, but on the flip side, maybe it is.

Dave

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