Wisdom of the Elders in Action - Sustainable World Peace

It just may be that rock n roll/music will indeed save the planet. In 1999 Peter Gabriel and Richard Branson decided that we as a global village were missing the essential survival ingredient - the wisdom of our elders. So they set about to identify a few of them. It didn’t take long for them to approached Nelson Mandela and Graca Machel, both who have done amazing work beyond what I can even describe here in this brief blog post. If you’ve been under a rock for the past 20 years, you will want to read up on Mr. Mandela, but I would encourage everyone to please see the brief, but inspiring biography I’ve linked you to for Graca Machel.

While it took several years for them to put this group together, they launched these elders as facilitators of powerful global change last July.

“This group derives its strength not from political, economic or military power, but from the independence and integrity of those who are here. They do not have careers to build, elections to win, constituencies to please. They can talk to anyone they please, and are free to follow paths they deem right, even if hugely unpopular.”

Nelson Mandela, The Elders Launch Speech July 18, 2007

See Nelson Mandela’s speech from July 18, 2007

This is a potent list of global leaders who have reached a place in their lives and careers where they can shed imposing restrictions and focus on serious global concerns such as basic human rights, world health issues, climate change as well as share their valuable wisdom.


These leaders are not mere figureheads, but have the resources, seemingly boundless energy and drive to create change and movement on issues that other world and political leaders cannot seem to manage.

Kofi Annan
Ela Bhatt
Lakhdar Brahimi
Gro Harlem Brundtland
Fernando Henrique Cardoso
Jimmy Carter
Graca Machel
Nelson Mandela
Aung San Suu Kyi
Desmond Tutu
Muhammad Yunus

Start with these brief biographies that live on TheElders.org, but I encourage you to read more about each of these extraordinary individuals and let yourself be moved beyond your immediate sphere of influence into the realm of courageous action or very simple (sorry in advance for the cliche) random acts of kindness and senseless acts of beauty. It all makes a difference.

:)
GD Meg

the Berkshires - home of sustainable living and mostly serene

I used to live in the rolling green hills of western Massachusetts, better known as 'the Berkshires'. When I left there about 10 years ago, the summer tourist trade was brisk and annoying, but valuable to many folks who had tourist-dependent businesses.

It has gentrified significantly in these last 10 years. Great Barrington, my home town for many years is now a bit more like the Village in NY - artsy-funky-chic. It was sort of the last bastion for full-timers that has now gone NY in the summers. Getting from one end of this small town to the other used to take about 5 minutes by car, now it could take up to 45 minutes any given Saturday!

Okay, enough bitching. This is where I got my sustainable living chops. Being part of the wonderful Berkshire CoOp Market, learning and experimenting with so many other green folks over 20 years ago when this was all considered fringe behavior.

We got to be tourists this past weekend. Stayed in a gorgeous cottage across the street from the Stockbridge Bowl lake, with Tanglewood at one end of the road and the Norman Rockwellian Main Street of Stockbridge on the other end.

I actually shopped in Lenox. When I lived there, I only went to Lenox to go to a workshop or a class I had taken that happened to be up there. Nice place, but I'm just not one of those village, vacation-type shoppers. And I most certainly wouldn't have gone near it on a summer Saturday, what with all those crazy New Yorkers and New Jersey folks!

Guess what we did Saturday???? After going to Tanglewood, another experience I rarely enjoyed when I lived here, we went to Lenox and ate Lunch at a very classy restaurant called Zinc and sat two tables away from Hugh Downs, retired veteran TV news and anchorman. By the way, the food was amazing!

Then, I decided to walk around and shop like I was from New Jersey - although I live in New Jersey, I'm not exactly at home there. Found this fantastic little shop called, The Old Country Store. Hands down the coolest country store I've ever been in - complete with a full line of hysterical gifts from local company Blue Q, great organic baby clothing and gifts, and many other sustainable products and locally grown crafts. If you get up there, please visit this shop. Owners Carrie and Bill Wright obviously have a great sense of style AND humor.

Sunday we had brunch at Martin's in Great Barrington. Wow. I sold Martin my old house 20 years ago and I helped clean this restaurant up and get it up and running. Still a great low-stress breakfast joint - if you don't mind standing in the road and waiting for a while. I just went over to my favorite new age shop - Crystal Essence and did some more tourist-style shopping!

;)

GD Meg

Organic v. Local - The Healthiest Choices for Fresh Food: Not Always an Easy One!

Picking your battles when choosing organic over conventional (which often means locally grown).

It is important to be armed with the latest and greatest information so you can make the healthiest choices for you and your family.

I've done stories on this over the years, but some of my information is probably out dated. So, I'm glad folks like the Organic Center, a non-profit in Boulder Colorado is doing this type of research and sharing it with us! The Organic Center, which produces and disseminates peer-reviewed scientific research and information on the health and environmental benefits of organic food and farming, has just published this very handy little pocket guide, Organic Essentials, to help identify the highest risk, pesticide-laden fruits and veggies while we are shopping.

The list is based on a pesticide-risk ranking system they developed, based on their 2008 report, Simplifying the Pesticide Risk Equation: The Organic Option.

I'm always at a loss this time of year, with all the wonderful farmer's markets and locally grown fresh produce. I want to support local, but I also don't want to eat pesticides and a lot of the local farms still haven't gone Organic. However, I did learn last year, that in New Jersey, a great deal of farmers are transitioning, and while they can't say they are organic, they are darned close.

I think it is generally a good idea to meet your local farmers when you can and ask them how they produce their fruits and veggies and if they aren't organic, what types of pesticides do they use and are they transitioning to organic any time soon? If they aren't and enough people pester them with these questions, perhaps they will get the hint and make the move!

Happy fresh food shopping and don't forget to check out our Green Diva's Guide to Delicious Living food-related blog posts on GreenOptions.com's yummy food blog, EatDrinkBetter.com. We have great recipes and other foodie stuff.

Remember,

Eat. Blog. Be Merry!

GD Meg

Green our Vaccines - Jim Carrey & Jenny McCarthy Lead the Way

BY GREEN DIVA JEN

I intended to post about this very important rally in DC earlier in the month, but did not. Better yet, I've got this awesome account of the event from good friend and one of the founders of New Jersey Vaccination Choice, Mary DeBonis.


The organization was founded in response to the fact that New Jersey has the most vaccine mandates of any state and the highest rates of autism and in order to encourage and empower parents to make informed decisions about vaccination for their children.

Mary attended the march on Washington "Green our Vaccines Rally -- Too Many, Too Soon" to raise vaccine awareness. Below is her letter.

In peace and good health,
Jen
_______________________________

Dear family, friends, and colleagues,

As many of you have been asking, I did indeed embark on a remarkable journey to DC, June 4, to march in the "Green our Vaccines Rally--Too Many, Too Soon." For those who weren't there, I wanted to share my unique, inspiring and sometimes heart-breaking experiences with you.

The March was attended by 8,500 people, who represented every state in the country, as well as Canada and Mexico. We were surrounded by people from all walks of life-- parents, grandparents, children, scientists, physicians, politicians, media, and celebrities, Jim Carrey and Jenny McCarthy, who is mom to a vaccine-damaged son -- who all shared one common goal: to raise vaccine awareness. As we began our 1.3 mile march from the towering Washington Monument, you could see the dizzying array of people, most of whom were clad in bold Green Our Vaccines t-shirts. There was an unusual sense of comraderie and connection among this crowd. They seemed calm, yet extremely determined; optimistic about the goal of raising awareness, yet cautious about the outcome; sad, knowing that tens of thousands of our children are vaccine-injured, yet hopeful that more children will be healed and many more will be spared this tragedy.

Our group marched down Independence Avenue, past many government buildings, chanting "Green Our Vaccines" and "Too Many, Too Soon" to the government employees, media and passers-by who would listen...all the way to the infamous Capitol Hill. As we stood facing the Capitol, we listened to Dr. Jay Gordon, a pediatrician who has healed and continues to heal vaccine-injured children, including Jenny McCarthy's son, through a special diet, heavy metal chelation and supplements; esteemed scientist Boyd Haley who explained the devastating effects of mercury and aluminum, from vaccines, on developing bodies; Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. who confirmed the conflicts of interests within our CDC, WHO, vaccine manufacturers and others whose greed, sadly, has trumped our children's health and wellbeing; then finally, Jim Carrey and Jenny McCarthy, who spoke from their hearts, and introduced us to Jenny's son, Evan, who is now recovering from autism! The moment in time that remains burned in my memory, though, was when Jenny asked all 8,500 people to face the media's cameras and hold up a photo of their vaccine-injured child, or that of a friend or relative. As each of us looked around, with tears in our eyes, we could not believe what we were seeing: there, caught on tape by Good Morning America, CNN, Fox News, and dozens of other media outlets, was the proof, the Evidence of Harm, that our children are suffering from the toxins in our vaccines. There was no denying it. And, these were the parents and friends who will not let allow them to become a forgotten generation.

If you are interested, I've attached a link to some of the signs, photos, and attendees...Robert Kennedy Jr, and Jenny and Jim are toward the end:

Additionally, I have included clips of the speeches by RFK Jr, Jim and Jenny. They were truly awe-inspiring:

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s Speech on June 4, 2008 - Green our Vaccines
Jim Carrey's Speech on June 4, 2008 - Green our Vaccines
Jenny McCarthy's Speech on June 4, 2008 - Green our Vaccines

I wanted to pass along my experiences with the hope of helping just one more child. We met so many parents who shared their success stories of healing their children through chelation, gluten-free/casein-free diets; glutathione, essential fatty acids and B12 supplements, plus cranial sacral therapy, homeopathic remedies and more. They also passed along their words of wisdom: ask parents to do their homework and not blindly follow vaccine recommendations. It's time for us to make informed decisions for our own children. It is no coincidence that NJ has the most vaccine mandates of any state and the highest rates of autism.

This was truly an historic event and one that will live on in my memories. I hope you enjoyed the journey! If I can answer any questions, please let me know. Thanks for listening...

Warm regards, Mary

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can changethe world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."
Margaret Mead (Dec. 1901 - Nov. 1978)

Home Depot Offers to Recycle CFLs

Alan Zale for The New York Times

On a quick follow up to the last post, the New York Times reported today that Home Depot will now accept old CFLs for recycling. All of their stores will be CFL recycling posts and since it is estimated that 75% of the population lives within 10 miles of one - in fact, I think we live within 10 miles of 3 or 4 of them!!!

I'm not a big fan of the mega-type stores and I still like to patronize local hardware stores whenever I can, but I have to admit this is darned convenient and will likely go a long way to helping people adopt the use of CFLs more readily.

:) GD Meg

CFL - New Sustainable Light Source or Dangerous Environmental Hazard?

The CFL (compact fluorescent light bulb) has become something of an icon or symbol for the change to a greener more sustainable way of being. It represents a simple way to make a difference in our current climate crisis. From corporate giveaways to grass-roots fundraising events, the CFL has become a gesture towards the growing awareness that we need to be more conscious of how we use energy. It's many benefits are touted and shouted, but we don't as often hear about the serious problems associated with the MERCURY inside them!

Representative Poe went on a serious rant about a law that would require a switch to CFLs by 2014. I'm not sure how I feel about legislation dictating product choices. I suspect it is more of a congressional reaction to the outcry for a greener US - pandering to the widespread concern about climate change. Perhaps it is well-meaning, but I really don't know enough about the Bill to pass judgment. See what the congressman Poe says about CFLs and the Bill that would outlaw incandescent bulbs.

Okay. Here's what I found out:

• the amount of mercury is VERY tiny


• some manufacturers use less than others - Turolight's Genesis Fusion line seems to have the lowest


• it isn't that difficult to recycle CFLs. almost all local recycling depots will take them or instruct you how to deal with them - if you don't leave your lights on excessively, these things last a long time and this shouldn't be a huge hassle.


• BUT, WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T BREAK THESE SUCKERS!


• actually, don't panic. the instructions seem extensive, but the risks are supposed to be minimal. just keep calm and follow these instructions about cleaning up after a CFL break in your home.


• we've been using fluorescent lights in offices and commercial facilities since the 1930s!

has anyone every broken one of these things? please let me know about your experience with it.

:) GD Meg

Fun Stuff to do this weekend - Renegade Craft Fair

First of all, WOW, it's been a while. Sorry gang. The demands of my new job are sucking up more energy than I thought they would. I hope to get better able to grasp some time to make sure I keep up the posting.

Have stumbled upon an interesting event taking place in Brooklyn this weekend - the Renegade Craft Fair. These creative fairs featuring everything homemade, are held 4 times a year in Brooklyn, Chicago and San Francisco.

There is an extensive vendor list of literally hundreds of highly creative and often quirky crafters.

Here are just a few that represent quite a range of tastes (sometimes literally) with delicious, funky, kitsch and cool:

Biggs & Featherbelle - health conscious body care products

Bright Lights Little City - tacky, but kind of scary interesting . . . lamps and light fixtures made from those little exotic drink umbrellas!

Chestnut Farmer - simple, but interesting 'wooden toys for girls & boys'

The Small Object - funky rubber stamp collections

Wheelhouse Pickles - NY's own yummy pickle. Check out the website.

The event takes place at the McCarren Park Pool this coming weekend - June 14 & 15.

I'm going to try and go!

:)GD Meg