October 17, 2007

Sustainability - Intention

Here are a couple more thoughts from Paul Hawken’s book, Blessed Unrest: How the Largest Movement in the World Came into Being and Why No One Saw It Coming.

“Sustainability; ensuring the future of life on earth, is an endless game, the endless expression of generosity on behalf of all.”

“What is the intention of the movement? If you examine its values, missions, goals, and principles, and I urge you to do so, you will see that at the core of all organizations are two principles, albeit unstated: first is the Golden Rule; second is the sacredness of all life, whether it be a creature, child or culture.”

According to Paul Hawken, he initially estimated that there were a total of 100,000 environmental organizations and social justice organizations, “but the more I probed, the more I unearthed, and the numbers continued to climb…. My initial estimate of 100,000 organizations was off by at least a factor of ten, and now I believe that there are over one – and maybe even two – million organizations working toward ecological sustainability and social justice."


He goes on to name a few prophets of the movement, including Bill McKibben.

“Bill McKibben has been unwavering and unerring in his cautions about climate change.”

I would highly recommend Deep Economy by Bill McKibben. It is an excellent book.





1 comment:

Mike said...

In addition to working on Blessed Unrest, Paul Hawken has been working on wiserearth.org, a global directory of more than 100,000 organizations working on social and environmental change.

It's classified by a detailed taxonomy of more than 300 areas of focus ranging from alternative fuels, sustainable transportation, peace and peacebuilding, local food systems, and more. Start by looking for organizations where you live!