Plea From Earth

Looking at the world through a sustainability lens not only helps us ‘future proof’ our supply chain, it also fuels innovation and drives brand growth.

Paul Polman

I am tired, it’s been long
Millions of years I have been traveling
You are my passengers for a little while
Why do you try to destroy your vehicle?

You kill me, you try to
You pierce me – you let the gases out of my stomach
You make holes in my sides
I don’t look like I used to anymore

You are using me up eating my power
Building poisons, giving me ulcers
You build rockets to take you away someday
Someday when you no longer need me

Compute and be smart
Write poetry and learn art
Your chemicals and compounds still dry my heart
And what will i breathe?

The air around me is dirty
My blood streams, my veins – the lakes and the rivers
Are polluted by your dirt
I could help you only if you help me

You build power plants to keep you alive
But deep in my heart I know the truth
You are going to leave me dying
When the space shuttle is perfected

I am alone, I cannot speak
Just my outward emotions occasionally
I hope will teach you
Which is why I flex my muscles – earthquakes

Why I get angry sometimes
Volcanoes – I blow my top
Help me, take care of me
Please, I want to live not die

Postscript – Human Impact on our Earth

The Climate Change dialogue about human impact on the Earth has become so politicized and polarized that common sense no longer prevails.

I believe that Climate Change is real.

When humans build skyscrapers where none existed before; cultivate land that was previously barren; turn our forests or jungles into barren lands; take down mountains; build new mountains; or drill enormous holes into the ground; then these are actions taken in the interest of progress which ultimately have a cost.

The Butterfly Effect predicts that the minor flapping of a butterfly wings in China could result in a Hurricane in the USA, these changes to our environment add up to new weather patterns that are just as unpredictable as the old were.

However, these changes also create immense value to humans, they speed up our travel, feed the hungry, make our lives more meaningful and represent immeasurable progress. So what are we to do?

I’m also a big believer in the ingenuity of humans and the power of economics driven sustainability thinking. For example, when I visit a hotel that convinces me to avoid having the towels washed every day, so that we can conserve water, I am also keenly aware that this saves money. There is a lot of money to be saved and made by rethinking our lives in a more sustainable way. That is why I continue to believe that when our brightest minds focus on ideas such as lower cost alternative energy, these will result in disruptive improvements to the traditional industries that were more damaging to the environment.

I'm a big believer in the ingenuity of humans and the power of economics driven sustainability thinking. Please Click To Tweet

My hope is that a new dialogue can be started. One not focused on the causes of climate change (they are numerous and indeterminate), but one that focuses on what we can all do to make our home on Earth more liveable and sustainable. Lets start that conversation now, because anything we do now changes the future. What do you think?