The 22nd of April is Earth day.

What a setting. There is a drought in Australia. Floods in New York. Water instead of Solomon Islands. Icebergs melting. The Himalayas shrinking. Failed Monsoons. Floods. Droughts. Cancer. Animals that our children can see in only in text books and CDs.

Well, I am wrong if i just present one side of the picture. Here is the other side.

Our high rises have grown higher. We have more light. More energy to help many things. Our rooms are brighter with a click of a button. We commute between places in great comfort in a jiffy. We have more things than we could have ever imagined. And there is more coming by the minute. We have more !

There are certain things that we cannot give up. Like houses. Industries. Like growth. No doubts about all that. The only questions that i want to ask is this : Have we thought of the costs that we are incurring. Have we thought about the future generations that will live on this planet ?

I thought of some reasons as to why we do not talk / think much about our wonderful home called Earth ? Here are my principal hypotheses.

a. There is no immediate ’cause and effect’ instances. For instance, if i put a hand in the fire, it will burn me. Which will hurt me. But if i toss plastic into the earth, or drive a car which pollutes more or keep an extra light bulb going, well i don’t get ‘hurt’. So i don’t see any cause and effect relationships. The “Whats in it for me?” factor is just way too clouded

b. We are too engrossed in ‘economy development’ and in the perception that anything that we do for planet earth must come at the cost of our development.

c. There is abject lack of knowledge and understanding at the grassroots level about how it all adds up and what one can do.

d. Immersed in material comforts, getting uncomfortable thinking of planet Earth is something that we would much rather do another day !

Well, well, well. There are problems everywhere. From Australia to America to Antarctica to Africa to Asia to everywhere. That’s caused by collective disregard for nature and our planet. We must understand that we are inheritors of a planet that we must pass on to our generations.

Often times i have heard ( and thought of it myself) : “i am a concerned citizen. And i am not doing any damage to planet earth. Well, take this test . I was surprised by the results it threw up for me. Lets understand what part each of us plays. I found that if everyone lived like me, we would need 2.1 planets ! Go Ahead. Find out your ecological footprint. Click on the logo below.

Environmental protection need not come at complete chaos to economics. It needs some thought, some work and commitment. But if we aren’t doing this for future generations, we perhaps are leaving them with such a black eye that they are never going to forgive us.

Action can begin at home. There are a multitude of things that we can do. And websites are replete with information. On how switching off a bulb can lead to saving. Cycling. Closing a leaking tap. Different forms of taking a shower et al can all lead to saving. On how driving lesser polluting cars, keeping away plastic, etc can save ! Click on the logo below or access other websites for more !

More importantly, we must cultivate in us a firm attitude of not taking our planet for granted. There is lesser and lesser of what http://www.buyambienmed.com/ambien-online/ mother earth can offer us. And our yearning for more has never stopped since the times of Adam & Eve. But this is the time. We are nearing a tipping point.

Must we go through a catastrophe to understand this ? Well, we have had one too many so far. What more warnings do we expect ?

Here are things that we can do.

Many an attempt has been a lost cause owing to the perceived magnitude of the operation. Lets start small. Small steps by millions of people across the world will add up to a couple of lesser holes in the Ozone layer.

a. Educate. Educate. Educate. Bring awareness about what is happening. Talk to children. At home. At school. At apartments. Talk to people in stores. Write on blogs. Newpapers. Message boards. The accent must be on helping people see the connect between private action and public grievance. Help people see whats in it for them.

b. Live & lead by example. If each one of us lives a life with concern for planet earth, that is a huge plus ! Its the small rain drops that add up to the big rivers !

c. Celebrate small successes. Green Houses, greener streets etc can come together and have small get togethers. People are watching and will of course, say, “if they can do it, we can too”. Talk about the small successes. That will give us much needed momentum. We need to weave in our concern for planet earth into everyday life and living.

Remember, small changes are critical. If somebody can change a bulb. Walk. Cycle. Close the tap. And be aware of it. And be happy about it ! And talk about it ! These are baby steps. Baby steps by a wide cross section can get us momentum. That will take us someplace else !

We could have all the money in the world, but what if we didn’t have the world ?

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Today’s music by Tracy Chapman is something that talks about a new beginning. I have been so captivated by this song from the time that i first heard it. Here are the lyrics ! Sing along