The Future is Green

Yesterday, my day began with the BBC reporting on the Climate Change Conference in Bali and hearing parts of Al Gore's speech. I was filled with hope. A smile spread across my face as I listened to Gore.

A few excerpts from Gore's speech follow:

"I am not an official of the United States and I am not bound by diplomatic niceties. So, I am going to speak an inconvenient truth. My own country, the United States is principally responsible for obstructing progress here in Bali. We all know that. But my country is not the only one that can take steps to ensure that we move forward from Bali with progress and with hope."
Perhaps, the world can move along a path towards preservation without a commitment from the U.S. We probably don't have a choice, at least for a little while longer.

"Over the next two years the United States is going to BE somewhere it is not now. You must anticipate that."
I can only hope! The last 7 years have been tense to say the least. I remember the shock I felt when I heard that the U.S. had walked way from the Kyoto treaty in 2001. This sick feeling fell into the pit of my stomach had has loomed there since.

"These are not political problems. They are moral imperatives."
What will we choose? I know what I choose daily, but it's frustrating when I see people around me being so wasteful. My family and I make permanent changes in our lifestyle frequently to help preserve our beautiful world, but there is always more we can all do. My new favorite blog is Green as a Thistle. The blog is best described by the author herself. "I decided to take on a bit of a challenge: Spend each day, for an entire calendar year, doing one thing that betters the environment. The idea is that everything I do, I keep doing (so if I switch brands, it's a permanent switch; if I turn down my thermostat, I keep it down), so that by day 365, I'll be living as green a lifestyle as it gets. I hope, in the end, this proves that being an environmentalist doesn't necessarily have to require massive change, compromise or Greenpeace levels of dedication — it can be simple, and inspiring." This woman is an inspiration to me and has got me thinking of my own personal Green Attack. Waa...ha...ha...

"We are one people on one planet. We have one future."
Too bad we have one rotten government ruled by huge corporations standing in the way of doing something truly significant to protect our one planet, our one people, our one future!

Below is about 9 minutes of Al Gore's speech at the conference. It is definitely worth checking out!

Al Gore in Bali