April 11, 2008

Have you seen the book called The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight, by Thom Hartmann? The revised and updated version is subtitled The Fate of the World and What we can do Before it’s Too Late. It’s one of many excellent books available today on this subject.

Since we recently passed the sobering milestone of five long years spent fighting an oil-generated war in Iraq, with now over 4,000 U.S. military personnel and many thousands of other people dead as a result (in addition to the massive amount of money being drained from our economy daily for this war), the information these books provide is more vital than ever; if you get a chance, read all about it.

High fuel prices are causing all sorts of havoc. Aloha Airlines, and now ATA Airlines, have folded, causing hundreds and hundreds of people here in Hawaii to be suddenly out of work. Can you think of creative, effective ways to help these people?

Gasoline hovers at $4 a gallon; our electric bills continue to increase, and we here on Maui continue to be disturbingly reliant upon imported goods for day-to-day living, from the food we eat to household items to building supplies to automobiles. And where does the petroleum fueling this lifestyle come from? The earth.
Earth Day is Saturday, April 19. The earth richly deserves a more focused attempt to combine our knowledge and abilities to help set things right. In this issue, our annual Green Guide features local people and businesses who are actively doing just that.

As long as the earth exists, we will survive – if we take care of it.

Maui does have incomparably good conditions for farming, for example. From an almost twelve-month growing season to plenty of sunshine and warmth, to rich volcanic soil, to plenty of room to plant crops, we have the opportunity to grow enough fresh organic local food to supply the needs of everyone on the island. Maui is blessed with plenty of sunshine, and we could build something similar to the world’s largest solar facility that’s planned in Arizona. Maui has clean fresh water that could be collected and distributed more efficiently; we have easy access to the ocean’s abundant supply of food and energy. Maui has tradewinds blowing pretty consistently that could power many more energy – generating windmills, and of course we have beautiful beaches and forests and meadows to play in – Maui has it all.

But in order to survive, first of all, and then to be healthy and prosper, we need to make sure that the earth is healthy and prospering.

Being kind to each other and especially to the earth we all rely on is key.

“Real change comes not from the top down but from the bottom up, when ordinary people come together around a common purpose.” – Barack Obama

Jan Welda