Where are we? Here. What time is it? Now.
Eighty-one tons of mercury is emitted into the atmosphere each year as a result of electric power generation. Every square mile of ocean hosts 46,000 pieces of floating plastic.
Here it comes…
Every second, 10,000 gallons of gasoline are burned in the US. Each year, Americans use 2.2 billion pounds of pesticides.
Wait for it…
Every two seconds, a human being starves to death. Every 46 seconds, a woman is raped in America. Every day, 29,158 children under the age of five die from preventable causes.
We’re almost there…
Ninety percent of the large fish in the ocean and 80% of the world’s forests are gone. Each day, 200,000 acres of rain forest are destroyed; 150-200 plant and animal species go extinct; and 13 million tons of toxic chemicals released across the globe.
What an amazing time to be an activist!
No, I’m not being cynical. I’m simply listening to the sound of opportunity knocking…kicking down the damn door, you might say. When else in all of human history has there been a time when we were in better position to re-imagine the future? Eco-systems are screaming for mercy and our landbase is practically an endangered species.
What we do (or don’t do) in the next few years could quite possibly tilt us all toward either the point of no return or toward a far more sane form of society. In other words, each and every one of us can take part—right now—in creating the most important social changes ever imagined.
This isn’t about skin color, gender, or what parcel of geography you happen to have been born on. I’m not talking about party affiliations, incremental reform, or what sky-god you’ve chosen to worship.
This isn’t about who did or said what first. This isn’t about ego. This isn’t about waiting for the perfect (sic) time to get involved.
It’s all about recognizing a crisis and taking the appropriate measures.
We’re on the brink of economic, social, and environmental collapse. What an extraordinary time to be alive. How lucky are we? We are the ones who’ve been entrusted with the most vital mission of all time: survival.
#shifthappens
