Six months ago I joined the Finger Lakes Bioneers team as a volunteer, and this weekend it became reality. All weekend we heard lectures and stories, watched stunning images of life on our planet, talked, discussed and danced. It was really something to see complete strangers, some of them from Vermont or Maryland sporting their Bioneers name-tag, and consulting the program we spent so many months putting together. I was proud to have been part of the team.
Last night as I drove away from the conference I was sad, and grew sadder as time passed. I remembered driving away from the conference center in San Rafael in past years when I attended the headwaters conference in California and a sadness there too. This sadness comes in part just from being separated from that lovely energy and synergy of so many caring talented people committed to creating regenerative life for all of us. It also comes as the images and numbers and ideas and stories start to get sorted by the mind and heart.
"We should no longer use the word 'common' in the common names of animals. We take the presence of the "common" water snake for granted - which we cannot do any more," said one presenter as the amazing wildlife photography of his career flowed before our eyes, and he explained how much harder it is to find those images today.
A flicker of the graph showing the amount of Nitrogen run-off into our ocean from our farms that would kill all the coral reefs in the oceanic eco-system into which it flows, and how close that number is to the trajectory of our immediate future.
Lake Onondaga is a Superfund site. The whole lake. Mostly from the toxins used during coal mining operations dating back 100 years. And now the Hydrofracking of the Shale that underlies that same watershed.
All that gave me hope and joy during the conference- stunning slow motion photography of bats drinking from a flower, or those ever adorable tree frogs, the stories of Community art restoring the spirits of survivors in post-genocide Rwanda, American small towns rising up to claim legal standing for their local eco-systems, giving the rights under the law. All these hopeful, wondrous things weigh my heart this morning with how high the stakes really are.
Joanna Macy asked the question "do we have hope?" and answered, "it's not about hope or lack of hope, but about the work before us in the present moment... We are in our being a verb" she said "that verb is whatever we choose to do"
So before I clean off all that has piled up on my desk throughout these conference days, I have to take a moment to sit still with all of that, the awe, hope, joy, sadness and fear, and let it all change me. People took part in the conference from various disciplines and walks of life, but I think all of us would agree: the future is not yet written, and the verb that is at the heart of our being must be one that participates in a great turning towards regeneration of life, the life of this eco-system we all share.
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4 comments:
I go to the Finger Lakes in my dream life, having grown up in Watkins Glen and attending church in Dundee. I attended a couple of functions at the Ithaca UU Church in 2006 and have a brother in San Raphael so it is a small world.
For many species there may be no hope left. I look forward to new species being discovered and also a return to a more pastoral life out of necessity. The lack of clean water is a presssing issue for many people.
Well I am rambling. I enjoy reading your blog.
Are you taking long commutes to work? How about those cross-country trips to grandma’s for the holidays? How much energy are you using to keep your home a balmy 70 degrees during a cold northern winter, or a hot southern summer?
The Northwest Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Atlanta has come up with a unique way to assuage some of your “carbon guilt” and raise funds for a solar project.
The Northwest Earth Ministry has recently begun installing solar panels on their church roof, in the hopes of eliminating their use of coal-generated electricity, and eventually becoming “carbon neutral.” See video for more details.
Most individuals can’t afford to put solar panels or wind-turbines on their own homes, but still want to find ways to offset their own “carbon footprint.” To that end the church's Earth Ministry has created the website www.carbonindulgence.org. To save your from the unbearable fire and brimstone of global warming, the Earth Ministry offers what it calls “Carbon Indulgences.”
To receive NWUUC’s “carbon indulgences” you start by calculating your carbon footprint (the amount of carbon, in metric tons, produced in the form of greenhouse gases by your particular lifestyle). You then use that amount to indicate how many “carbon indulgences” you want to purchase and complete your purchase online. Indulgences include both the purchase of a certified CO2 offset as well as a tax deductible contribution to NWUUC’s Solar Panel Fund, with the money going directly toward the purchase of more solar panels (so far the church has installed 20 of a planned array of 108 panels). Shortly thereafter, you will receive a certificate documenting your purchase, along with an email receipt for your tax-deductible contribution.
The Congregation undertook this project under the leadership of its Earth Ministry Team and in reverence of Unitarian Universalists seventh principle, respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part. Upon completion the array will generate 2,540kWh/month of clean electricity from solar PV offsetting the same amount of electricity generated by coal-fired utility power plants will have the equivalent of one these annual positive effects on the environment:
• 47,905 pounds of carbon dioxide not released into the atmosphere
• 50 barrels of foreign oil not imported
• 2,466 gallons of gasoline not consumed
Clearing your carbon conscience is not only good for the environment, but it’s easy, requiring only a credit card and a few mouse clicks. Get started
The project affirms the power of one individual, one family and one group to reverse global warming and take steps toward sustainable living. As part of the outreach and education component of this effort, Northwest invites other individuals, organizations and religious communities to become active supporters of this endeavor by sharing this information with their friends and fellow congregants.
About Northwest Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Atlanta
We are a dynamic and diverse religious community. We encourage, support, and inspire each other to live as compassionate spiritual and ethical people. We affirm, promote, celebrate, and live our shared Unitarian Universalist principles through worship, religious education, social action, and an open exchange of ideas.
Northwest Unitarian Universalist Congregation
1025 Mt. Vernon Highway, N.W., Sandy Springs, GA 30327
Phone: 770-955-1408
E-mail: Office@NWUUC.org On the Web: www.NWUUC.org
I always feel let down/sad after a big event. It's good to dwell in that for a while. Glad it was an amazing experience though! (Still feel bad about your veg, come get a cabbage!)
I enjoyed this entry, too. Thanks!
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