If you ever give any thought to the massive ecological devastation happening all around us in the form of species extinction, deforestation, ocean acidification, soil degradation. fresh water depletion and climate disruption, on this glorious living blue planet suspended in the vastness of the cosmos, and think something along the lines of:
"There has to be more I can do...beyond recycling, changing light bulbs, and waiting for our so-called 'leaders,' to act!"
Then, you're in the right place, there is.
If you, like me, just want to roll up your sleeves and go to work, keep reading. That's what this project, this calling, is all about. Mother Earth is hiring, lace up your boots, it's time to go to work.
Conversely, if you don't ever give any thought to the aforementioned ecological devastation, please take a look at the be called to action section below, for a timeline of scientific warnings and maybe a gentle kick in the ass.
The past decade has been one heck of a personal journey, for me (Lee - founder of this project). To see just exactly what it was that I was 'supposed' to be doing, and how I could make the most difference along the way.
Halfway through that decade long journey the picture above was taken in Scotland, during our 6 month 'Roadskooling Adventure' around Britain, where we unplugged from the mainstream narrative, instead deeply connecting with the land, the water, and the places that lie dotted around the rugged coastline of that ancient isle.
Later that year, having moved our family three thousand five hundred miles across an ocean, to Virginia, I found myself in a library, being compelled to walk from one side of the building to the other, towards a brand new shiny white book with a picture of Planet Earth sitting inside a nest, on the cover. That book, along with connecting with the work of The Pachamama Alliance led to a decision to make it my life's work to do my part to help create a viable future for life on this planet.
The intervening years led to a deep dive into the planetary issues that we face as a species, as well as a deeper (re)connection with the natural world of which we are a part.
The most deeply impactful time came from becoming personally involved with the local resistance against two fracked-gas pipelines that were proposed to be forced through the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, destroying the natural ecosystems and communities in their intended path.
This led to organizing a two week long, one hundred and fifty mile walk into the heart of Virginia along the proposed path of one such fracked-gas pipeline, as part of the Walking The Line project that I was compelled to make happen. The deep connection and inspired, passionate people that I encountered along the way both changed my life forever and turned into something of a calling. A life's mission, if you will. Welcome to the Earth Calling Project.
I believe Earth is calling all of us, calling us home. As a species we've lost our way, lost our connection to each other and to the natural world of which we are a part. In a world of mass consumption, ecological devastation and deep disconnection, it's imperative that we find our way back, back home.....
Mother Earth is calling us into action, sending us clear feedback in the form of the climate derangement that we will see with ever increasing intensity in the years ahead. It's our initiation as a species, our right of passage to step into our true calling as custodians of this breathtaking, awe-inspiring planet. This project is my response, me doing my bit.
I hope you will find Earth Calling you, too, and maybe join us on this epic adventure to help create a regenerative, resilient, thriving future....
“Look again at that dot. That's here. That's home. That's us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every "superstar," every "supreme leader," every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there-on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam." - Carl Sagan, 'Pale Blue Dot' - 1994
Our pale blue dot: Earth, as seen by Voyager 1 from a distance of more than 4 billion miles (6.4 billion kilometers). February 14, 1990.
This miraculous planet that we get to call home is simply too precious. Surely we should act out of our gosh darn love and appreciation for her awe-inspiring beauty, irrespective of our own needs, don't you think?
If any convincing is needed with regards to the miraculousness of our home and our need to protect it, watch 'Overview' below, listen to the profound words of Jane and Carl, or the deep connection of Arkan...
1972 - a research team at MIT wrote 'The Limits to Growth' - Presented as a report to the Club of Rome, the book used computer modelling to demonstrate that sustained economic growth on a finite planet would lead to environmental and economic collapse in the early- to mid-21st century.
1992 - the Union of Concerned Scientists issued: 'World Scientists’ Warning to Humanity' - signed by more than 1,700 scientists, including a majority of the then-living Nobel Laureates in the sciences. Its message was clear and unambiguous:
“The earth is finite…..current economic practices which damage the environment, in both developed and underdeveloped nations, cannot be continued without the risk that vital global systems will be damaged beyond repair.”
2017 - the Alliance of World Scientists issued: 'World Scientists’ Warning to Humanity: A Second Notice.' - signed by more than 20,000 scientists in 184 countries. It concluded: :
“We face deforestation, ocean acidification, diminishing fresh water supplies, the Earth’s sixth mass extinction event, exponential human population growth, overconsumption and a climate system veering outside of the conditions within which human civilization developed.”
2018 - the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change issued a report calling for dramatic action on climate change. The New York Times summarized the key findings and recommendations:
"To prevent 2.7 degrees [Fahrenheit] of warming, the report said, greenhouse pollution must be reduced by 45 percent from 2010 levels by 2030, and 100 percent by 2050. It also found that, by 2050, use of coal as an electricity source would have to drop from nearly 40 percent today to between 1 and 7 percent. Renewable energy such as wind and solar, which make up about 20 percent of the electricity mix today, would have to increase to as much as 67 percent.”
2018 - A report produced by the WWF involving 59 scientists from across the globe finds that the vast and growing consumption of food and resources by the global population is destroying the web of life, billions of years in the making, upon which human society ultimately depends for clean air, water and everything else.
2019 - Approximately 2 years after the World Scientists’ Warning to Humanity (2nd Notice) was released in 2017, an additional warning was released with over 11,000 signatures: 'World Scientists’s Warning of a Climate Emergency' - The paper opens with:
“Scientists have a moral obligation to clearly warn humanity of any catastrophic threat and to tell it like it is."
2019 - A three-year UN-backed landmark study from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform On Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services by more than 500 experts in 50 countries, has grim implications for the future of humanity:
"Nature is in freefall and the planet’s support systems are so stretched that we face widespread species extinctions and mass human migration unless urgent action is taken"
“The health of ecosystems on which we and all other species depend is deteriorating more rapidly than ever. We are eroding the very foundations of our economies, livelihoods, food security, health and quality of life worldwide.”
“The Report also tells us that it is not too late to make a difference, but only if we start now at every level from local to global.”
Professor Jem Bendell's 2018 paper which outlines his belief in the inevitability of climate induced societal collapse, in the near future:
