I’ve spent much of the last two days emailing back and forth with colleagues around the world in a state of panic. Early Sunday morning, I received a call that three friends – from India, the Philippines and the U.S. – were detained in Indonesia. They were en route to the historic UN Framework on Climate Change Conference in Bali, taking place this week. Along with the official government delegates, many environmental and social justice activist are also attending the conference to share information and strategize about combating global warming. My friends planned to host a forum entitled ‚”Zero Waste for Zero Warming‚” at the conference, to educate others about the strong connection between waste disposal and climate change.
The three – Gigie Cruz, Shibu Nair, and Neil Tangri – stopped in Bandung at the invitation of a local organization opposed to the construction of a new garbage incinerator in their town. The local groups held an event, which drew 2,000 community members, to discuss the environmental, health and climate impacts of burning garbage. My friends were taken by the police on Saturday after speaking there about the ill effects of incinerating waste and advocating for healthier alternatives. At the police station, their passports were seized; they were subjected to lengthy interrogation and asked to sign a document in the Bahasa Indonesian language.
Gigie, Shibu and Neil have been able to send us period text messages reporting that no formal charges have been brought and they don’t feel their physical safety is in immediate danger. But they continue to be detained, and will likely be deported for speaking at a peaceful public education event about the environmental and health problems with burning garbage.
In contrast to the Neanderthal response of jailing people speaking about community well being, a network of active global citizens jumped into positive action. Within an hour of receiving the news, email alerts went out to activists working on sustainability, climate and waste issues around the world. Faxes and emails began flooding Indonesian embassies in Africa, Asia, the Americas, and Europe, calling for the safe release of the three Zero Waste experts. Leading environmentalists already at the Bali conference contacted people they knew in the Indonesian government, all the way up to the President. The combination of email activism and strong civil society networks demonstrated to the Indonesian police that the whole world really was watching.
I woke up this morning to learn that Gigie, Shibu and Neil have been transferred to a hotel, still under police custody, and will likely be deported soon, preventing them from speaking about‚ “Zero Waste for Zero Warming‚” at the critical UN Framework on Climate Change Conference.
Above all, I am just glad my friends are safe. I’m also grateful to be part of a growing global civil society movement seeking both environmental sustainability and social justice, which must include freedom to share environmental and health information. I look forward to that day that people aren’t jailed for speaking the truth about incinerators – both because freedom of speech is guaranteed everywhere, for everyone, and also because incinerators are a thing of the past and we’ve moved on to solutions that really do protect the environment, community health and the climate.
Note: for updates on the three activists detained in Bandung, Indonesia en route to the UN Framework on Climate Change Conference, please visit no-burn.org.
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December 7th, 2007 at 2:25 am
Calling this sad government jailing “neanderthal” is an insult to neanderthals. I have a feeling the neanderthals lived way more in harmony with nature than these insane hominids.
December 7th, 2007 at 5:14 am
The Indonesian officials’ response is just an extreme form of the treatment given by governments worldwide to zero waste advocates. As a waste researcher and consultant it’s evident that government at all levels, almost everywhere has an ‘allergy’ to the term zero waste. I can suggest 3 tactics to try with the more competent and open-minded officials .
1. Talk about the process, eliminating dependence on disposal, rather than the end goal of zero waste. The ‘circular economy’ vision of the film is useful to discuss.
2. Keep joining up waste and climate issues. Rising greenhouse gases are just waste in the air. Don’t let anyone tell you this is too complex.
3. Explain how economic growth based on making junk is now drowning under its impacts. Any country that wants to see its economy grow in future needs to switch to a circular model fast. This means more than ambitious wate and climate policies, it means implementing new economic tools to automatically build the cost of preventing waste into all product prices (including fuels) and to create investment flows on the scale that’s needed. How to do this is explained on http://www.blindspot.org.uk with both simple articles and academic papers.
December 8th, 2007 at 11:21 pm
Why do you not include the need for 1-2-child families worldwide among desirables?
December 9th, 2007 at 9:36 pm
The only way to deal with this is to commit suicide NOW!
December 9th, 2007 at 11:55 pm
Obviously freedom of speech is not “guaranteed everywhere, for everyone.”
Of course you already knew that…
December 10th, 2007 at 1:52 am
This holiday season so many of my friends and relatives have said they don’t want stuff. I think people are getting it.
December 10th, 2007 at 5:21 am
Hi Annie and all who are so concerned with us- the GAIA 3.
It has been a week since that day Neil, Shibu and I got detained in Bandung for “speaking in public” to raise people’s awareness on the impacts of the Waste-to-Energy project in Gedebage, Bandung. As you already know, we were
scheduled to attend the Zero Waste, Zero Warming forum GAIA co-organized with Balifokus and JALA- Sampah at the Civil Society Forum in Bali but decided to attend the community forum organized by our local colleagues as part of the Global Day of Action against Waste and Incineration and the Civil Society’s Climate Justice campaign.
Seeing throngs of people marching from different parts of the community to the forum were something I never expected, what I had in mind was different. I was having goosebumps while trying to concentrate on every frame I take during the activity. This is the biggest GDA activity I have attended so far and I am glad I went there. Even more inspiring was seeing GDA campaign materials I designed in the past printed on their shirts, stickers, and other campaign materials- that was very fulfilling.
At the forum, lots of community leaders and civil society representatives shared their thoughts. For GAIA, it was Neil who gave the first talk on the hazards of incineration being translated by our local colleagues. Shibu then presented a manual on Zero Waste and spoke about it. I was the last one who gave a very short message of solidarity and explained to them that there are communities around the world with similar struggles and at the same time promised our assistance in their campaign.
Who would have thought that speaking facts about the dangers of incineration, Zero Waste, and sharing solidarity messages would cause us our freedom to speak? According to the police, we are “abusing our rights as holders of a tourist visa.” Police officers further alleged that “foreigners are not allowed to speak in public”
without prior consent. I was even told that things could have been different if the activity was done indoors rather than in a public area (even if it’s inside the community gate). I am trying to decipher the logic of such reasoning… how can walls or a roof make any difference in our statement – none.
The fact that we were “invited” to the police station, detained and deported for the
simple reason of giving statements is illogical and unjustified. We stand firm that every community has the right to know about possible impacts of any project to their health and environment.
I arrived in Manila 2 days (December 5, at 5AM) from a 12-hour journey from Indonesia. Neil, Shibu and I left Indonesia to Singapore December 4 at around 5PM via Singapore Air after that 3-day incident. It was indeed upsetting that we didn’t make it to the Bali meeting for the Zero Waste forum and the JALA-Sampah meeting
but I’ve got NO REGRETS… it was a “blessing in disguise.” Those 3 days provided us the chance to get to know each other more especially the local partners in Indonesia. The media coverage was also great and gave us an opportunity to raise the issue in both national and international level.
Surprisingly, I didn’t fear the deportation, nor the detention since I know I didn’t harm anybody. I know we were standing on a moral high ground. The never-ending support provided by the Gedebage community members who even picketed infront of
the immigartion office before we left for Jakarta, local, national and international
partners gave us strength and hope. Your solidarity messages and prayers kept us going on…
THANK YOU VERY MUCH for the Support and Prayers…
Gigie
December 10th, 2007 at 5:24 am
By the way, we are still trying to ask the Indonesian government respond to this very unfortunate event. Please sign-up the petition GAIA did to push them to address the issue.
http://www.no-burn.org/action/2007.12.06_gaia3.html?campaign_KEY=21899
thanks,
Gigie
December 10th, 2007 at 5:57 am
There also is a lot of internal pollution with the unnecessary intake for prescription and non-prescription chemicals.These chemicals not only pollute the biochemistry but change the nerve system which is the system which helps us think and relate to the earth environment and make natural judgements on stuff.
People should be more prevention minded and use Doctors who have expertise in the energy model of health and use natural exercise systems which do not need a lot of gym stuff .Our food should be our medicine and our medicine should be our food which will help cut down on stuff.
Thanks for reading this.Dr.Eddie, Certified P. Trainer.
December 10th, 2007 at 7:34 pm
Yes, Its the Holidays again. I would like to put a new “Five year plan” into action … every five years we will rotate/tolerate/celebrate … Christmas, Halloween, elections, Olympics, Leap Year (alternate your favorite!!!)
My other suggestion to those wanting to break this cycle: Go credit card free for 1 year. Do not buy anything unless you can pay cash for it. Work a job at Walmart/HomeDepot/Radio Shack and see if you can survive on cash and $10 an hour. When you seriously live on cash only, all this extra junk suddenly becomes annoying and useless. When a $15.00 piece of junk cost you an hour and a half standing at a cash register … you don’t need it.
I am a 45 year old Mom living in an affluent Massachusetts suburban town and I can tell you something for sure. ENOUGH WITH THE JUNK!!!!. We need a reality check now!
Thanks for the perfect informative video on one of my pet subjects!
December 11th, 2007 at 4:26 am
Thank you for this wonderful and important video. I hope everyone will watch and stop shopping for more stuff they don’t really need. Too many have become slaves to stuff and we also forget that we vote with every dollar we spend.
Thank you, Annie.
December 11th, 2007 at 11:28 pm
Well done Annie. I enjoyed watching every minute and learned a lot. You awakened something within myself that needed to be addressed a long time ago. Forget the Stuff!! From this day forward I will try to be a part of the solution and not part of the problem. Thanks for the inspiration. I am looking forward to showing my children this video. I am ashamed to say we have more dvd’s, cd’s, radio’s, toys, etc. than we know what to do with. I think this will help open the eyes of our young people and that is who will really take and run with it. Thanks again, Annie.
December 12th, 2007 at 11:46 am
The imposition of western values and techniques on third world communities is not always welcome. Your detained friends were indeed medeling in the affairs of a foreign government.
How much of the world’s resources were consumed by the 10,000 who traveled to the Bali Conference?
December 12th, 2007 at 8:50 pm
Thank you for this great video, we enjoyed it very much and wanted to let the other readers know of a way not to toss out still useful items.
You can join your Local Freesharing or Sharing Is Giving group to offer up unwanted items. And even ask members for items you could use to prevent buying them new.
Join us here:
http://www.freesharing.org
http://www.sharingisgiving.org
You can also get a lot of free things on the internet, my website is one example. I haven’t bought a razor or shampoo in a year.
http://www.thefreebiecafe.com
Thanks and keep on freecycling!
Char Hess
December 13th, 2007 at 12:52 pm
Thanks for posting here Gigie, I am appalled but not surprised to hear about your detainment. Indonesia has many issues to be addressed……
Annie and others, thank you for posting this blog. I’ve watched your short 3 times now and will be sharing it more. It’s very inspiring to see this find a broad audience!
For years I’ve challenged consumer culture as a public artist, giving out monopoly money notes on economics, writing zines on how to live in $1 a day, encouraging public dialogue on sustainability and alternative technologies. Now that we’ve seen green become fashion how can we encourage long term foresight in our decisions and development?
I think this short is a great start, but let’s go further with this dialogue. Get it played everywhere and infiltrate the news shows.
This week we hosted Rep. Markey in Second Life where he presented for the Bali audience; he chose not to travel and present virtually, saving the carbon. He said it was 5.6 tons of carbon for one person from Washington to Bali….10,000X that would be an intense situation indeed. http://inkenzo.vox.com/ for his virtual video.
December 13th, 2007 at 3:42 pm
Dear Friends,
Thank you for your support! When we needed you most, you came through for us. It has meant the world to us.
Now that we are all back home, we wanted to send out a brief message to update you on what happened in Indonesia, and how we are taking forward the “Zero Waste for Zero Warming” campaign.
For those of you who missed some of the story, a brief recap is below. But first, please take a moment to sign our statement on free speech and global warming, which will be released at the Bali conference on Friday. The statement is at: http://tinyurl.com/2my9pz
Three of us (Gigie Cruz, Shibu Nair and Neil Tangri) were on our way to the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bali. We went to focus attention on the importance of waste issues in climate change: disposal methods such as incineration and landfilling greatly contribute to global warming, whereas the old trinity of reduce, reuse, and recycle has enormous potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, not only in the waste management sector, but also in manufacturing and natural resource extraction.
On our way to the climate change meeting, we visited the community of Gedebage, outside Bandung, where the mayor is trying to build a trash incinerator against the local people’s objections. There is a strong opposition to the project, rooted in legitimate concerns about the toxic emissions and ash that the incinerator will produce; the increased truck traffic; its contribution to global warming; and the cost. We went to lend our expertise and support to the community, and also to let them know about better alternatives, such as the Zero Waste model being pioneered in Shibu’s home state of Kerala, among other places.
What we thought would be a small public meeting turned out instead to be a large, festive rally with over 2000 people in attendance. You can see photos of it here: http://tinyurl.com/2jaxsz We were asked onto the stage and each gave a brief message of support and solidarity. But things quickly turned sour. Plainclothes police questioned us briefly, then “invited” us to the police station for a formal interview. We told the crowd that the police were taking us away and they mobbed the stage, shaking hands, hugging us, and thanking us for our presence – and sending a clear message to the watching police.
This solidarity was to continue during the more than 48 hours we were in custody. We were never alone – in addition to Yuyun, our host, and Yogaswara, an attorney supporting the community who accompanied us to the police station, we had a constant flow of visitors and well-wishers from Gedebage and Bandung. By the next morning, we were the subject of a full-court press: dozens of reporters and photographers had surrounded the police station. Between the press attention, the local support and the mounting international concern, we truly felt well-supported. Nevertheless, we were nervous about our fate right up until the end.
We spent more than 2 days in custody, with little sleep; and although the police did not press any charges, the immigration authority decided to deport us, without even a proper hearing. When we finally left for the airport, the community of Gedebage turned out once more in force to wish us well and show us their support. The solidarity of so many people – locally, throughout Indonesia, and across the world – has definitely been the most uplifting part of the whole experience.
Indeed, we were thrilled to learn that more than 400 people had written to the Indonesian authorities on our behalf. Governments are loath to acknowledge public pressure, but that degree of attention does not go unnoticed: it is a thrilling testament to the strength of international solidarity.
Now that we are back in our respective homes, we are even more determined to press forward. We are in touch with the local community, and supporting their struggle against the incinerator. We are also hoping to still make an impact at the Bali meeting, through the sign-on statement that we are circulating. If you have not yet signed it, please do so at: http://tinyurl.com/2my9pz
Again, thank you for your support at the time when we needed it most.
Onward!
Gigie Cruz
Shibu Nair
Neil Tangri
December 13th, 2007 at 7:17 pm
Thank Gaia for activists like you. I look forward to the day when we’ve traded all of our so-called freedoms for the security we need. What a safe world we will all live in! And anyone who dares to speak up against us will be silenced. I look forward to the day when we go back to living the way our ancient ancestors did.
December 14th, 2007 at 10:51 am
Praise!
What a delightful video! (with a troubling message)
More Praise!
The consumer model went into high gear after World War II, yes, but it was first conceived by Edward Bernays and Walter Lippman in the 1920’s. But this country has always been of a land of abundance as written about by Jackson Lears in Fables of Abundance and William Leach in Land of Desire. Even Columbus marveled at the natural resources. And then the armed conquerors arrived, claiming religious intentions, but really to occupy and consume (sounds like Iraq?).
But you don’t need to read these: the movie captures and describes the consumer mentality exceptionally well. The books are for deep background and for those that are especially interested in cultural history, as I am.
Kevin Walsh
Chicago Peak Oil
December 14th, 2007 at 12:53 pm
So may I suggest removing the sale of DVD’s off of your site. I realize that in order to produce the video, website, research, etc. you need to raise money, but isn’t the production and replication of DVD’s kind of contradictory.
Just provide a link for people to pay and download the video if they wish.
The sale of DVD’s doesn’t really set a good example of the excellent message you are trying to send.
Nice work though.
December 15th, 2007 at 1:50 am
Good point about the dvd except that you can get it for free. I guess he just didn’t go far to find it.
Peace through superior means of production.
lol….I am a silly boy…..
December 15th, 2007 at 11:04 am
I need the ability to go back, not just stop and play. Someday people will realize that the ability to move around (at least go back) makes their videos 1000% more watchable. I wanted to relisten to some parts for this post, but there’s no way I’m sitting through it again just for that.
I feel this is a relatively accurate representation and a good story, but several of the statistics utilized rubbed me the wrong way and diluted the message.
i.e. 75% of fisheries are fished at or over capacity. This didn’t resonate with me since “fishing at capacity” is perceived as OK by me, and it lumped those in with those being overfished, which I would agree is a problem.
Side note – Not that we have any clue how to manage wildlife and “wild” areas, look at Yellowstone and also at our current Western wildfire situations as examples of our mismanagement.
I know you’re trying to connect, but the overstatement in this way, and it’s done several times, detracts from an otherwise good presentation.
Regards,
Eric D
December 17th, 2007 at 1:23 pm
Although I agree with what you’ve said, and really like the way you said it, I’d like to repeat what previous poster Harriet Mitteldorf mentioned, and that refers to overpopulation. Alomost all current global problems are fundamentally the result of overpopulation, so one of the most effective solutions could be brought about by limiting family size to 1 or 2 children, worldwide. Can you imagine how effective it would be to reduce the worldwide population in a hundred years to less than 4 billion people, compared to the current projected 9-14 billion?
December 17th, 2007 at 2:30 pm
The video is great, very inspiring. Justine (Amsterdam)
December 21st, 2007 at 1:01 pm
Do you know who Dr. Edmond Krecke is? (Google him).
True ZERO Energy use homes. Think about that. Live green and keep more green in your pocket.
Then let’s add electricity generation systems to handle the needs of the family, like refrigeration (I know Sun Frost makes an efficient fridge, but who KNOWS specifically which unit uses the LEAST energy? Like from side by side tests using identical practical parameters) with LED lights, water saving systems with heat recovery, and a geothermal system to tap into the earth’s energy. These are concepts we read about in one house, or a University project, or a trial balloon. Fluff. White Noise in a broadcast about global warming toned down with the stupid phrase “climate change” while more asthma cases threaten more expendable lives in New York as our SOS consumer process marches on.
When are we going to see a sub-division of Zero Energy use homes? For Real. When?
How about NOW.
We are building the first display model home with this concept in Apache Junction, Arizona, one of the Premier vacation destination, resort and retirement destinations in America. If you have a real estate associate it is MLS2803009.
We are taking this concept one step further. We are building our homes (plural) with oversize solar pv systems so an excess of electricity will be generated that is sufficient to recharge the advanced battery pack of an electric car. Please take a moment to consider how much money (and the green implications) of a home that provides you with virtually no electricity bill plus not having to buy gasoline for 75% to 90% of your driving.
We call this a “Zero Energy Lifestyle” and we are going to be building the display model home and sales office on Lot #7 in Q1 2008.
If this is of interest to you please visit our three websites for more information. Start at http://www.eyedestu.com and it will lead you to the others. This is a work of Love and environmental conservation, and it is very much a “work in progress”. So, while there are very many pages on the web sites, there are just a few that are “in work” as well. Just use your back button and continue to peruse the sites.
Thank you. Now, let’s clean up this mess.
If you are an investor, we need you for more real projects, not just fluff. And Yes, we believe you can be smart and “live Green and have more green in your pocket”.
My Best Regards to you and your family,
Donald Eyermann
President “Eyedestu”
Contact info on sites.
December 22nd, 2007 at 4:04 pm
I loved your movie. I’m not a sociologist and I know something is wrong. But I guess that comes with age. There are just things that can’t be explained well, but this little clip does a great job in simple terms so kids can understand. (Maybe us adults as well!)
December 24th, 2007 at 1:51 am
This video is very important because it explains the problems in simple terms. The means of production and the consequences we face are clearly laid out for us. We all are concerned about the future of our planet and we each must do what we can to raise awareness of the problem and offer potential solutions.
My project can be found at http://www.livemorelightly.com
It is a modest project to travel as lightly as I can and host workshops that encourage individuals to live more lightly upon the land.
If anyone knows of any source of funding or any other support that might assist me in this quest, please go to my site and comment. Thank you.
Those who have posted regarding population are partially correct. Please notice that countries such as Japan have been the subject of scary stories in the news claiming that the Japanese are dying out http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4552010.stm. These alarmists predict the population may fall to 120 million by 2050! 120 million still seems like a lot of people to me. This article is one example of many that support creating incentives to increase the population. I have seen no news articles or official statement suggesting that this population reduction might be a reaction to housing 128 million people on a small island nation.
The fact that constant development/consumption is required to drive the economy, as it presently exists, leads governments to attempt to increase the birthrate by offering incentives. I believe that if we all consume less and vote with our spending habits, then corporations will start to listen.
Notice the trends in organic food. As agribusiness lost dollars to small organic markets, they began stocking organic food. If we vote with our dollars — then they understand. Less packaging, ban plastic bags, take a coffee cup with you … live more lightly! All the best – Victoria
December 24th, 2007 at 5:44 am
[...] throughout the world. Yet, three people who were planning to attend the conference in Bali were detained by the Indonesian government for speaking to a group of villagers about a planned garbage incinerator in their area. In Bali, [...]
December 24th, 2007 at 12:52 pm
Mostly true, too absolute.
US is at least getting started on the right road.
What are you going to do about China, India and all the other places that want their place in
the economic world.
There’s an Elephant in the room and someone has
realize that without taking care of it nothing will matter.
December 27th, 2007 at 12:23 pm
I was sent a link to your documentary by a friend of mine. I had never heard of it before, but it certainly looked intriguing. In fact, it looked right up my alley. Like some people, I’m growing increasingly uneasy with the out of control consumption and waste generation of this day and age. I take public transportation whenever possible (which is very possible in my city, San Francisco). When I bought my first car, at 36, I bought a hybrid. I recycle and compost extensively, and a donate to a variety of environmental and wildlife-benefitting causes–about 5% of my net pay in 2007 alone. I’m trying to be a good steward, here.
Unfortunately, I didn’t get more than two minutes through your presentation. There was a one statement made that was so patently wrong that I didn’t see the point in progressing any further. It was: “more than fifty percent of our federal tax money is going to the military”. Say what? It took me less than five minutes to look this up and verify that this was completely untrue. The Defense budget, even if you factor in the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Energy budget for nuclear weapons, the intelligence community, and war appropriations, barely exceeds a quarter of the budget. If that.
I appreciate the fact that you are trying to educate young people about our consumption-crazed society. I travelled the Midwest in my last job fairly extensively and despaired at the fact that nobody was recycling, everyone was driving big cars, and that people generally acted like the planet was a big ol’ pot of gold for us to plunder. The sooner we change perceptions and attitudes out there, believe me, the better. I worry that it won’t happen in time. It keeps me up at night.
That having been said, it’s inexcuseable to slip in such incorrect information as that “more than half of tax dollars go to the military”. When you tell someone that more than half of every dollar they pay to the IRS goes to the military, you present them with a perception of this country that is frankly, wrong. You are creating the perception of a highly militarized society–and if you think our society is a highly militarized one, you need to look at other countries a little more. You also tell people who are able to think critically that you are incapable of even the most elementary of fact-checking, and it severely undercuts the argument that you’re making. I find it somewhat offensive that you would say something like that in a documentary aimed at impressionable young people. Either your audience is not worthy of good research or you honestly think it’s true and didn’t bother to fact-check it because it “sounds good”. Either don’t bode well for the facts presented in the rest of the documentary.
You know, we don’t have a lot of time. Just give it to people straight. You can present a bullet-proof, facts-only, objective documentary on what’s going on and even the most ardent, um, Republican has to concede that we’re just not on a sustainable course. The problem is not in making people see–the problem is that people don’t want to see.
December 28th, 2007 at 7:41 pm
Annie,
That is a great victory. You are right that it shows the power of the growing global civil society whose full potential is yet to be understood and used by those interested in equality and sustainability
January 10th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
Annie,
This video is eye opening to say the least. I have been wanting to “step up” my responsibility to the planet I live in and this among other shows I have seen lately has really urged me to get moving and do my part. I do feel that we have a disconnect in our society. It does certainly seem that we have more stuff yet we are unhappier with record numbers of people medicating themselves for depression/anxiety, high rate of divorces and children abusing drugs and alcohol. I was rather surprised the day after Christmas when I went the mall for some returns and to cash in some gift cards how mobbed the stores were-even more than before the holidays. I grew up in Europe until age 9 and I notice every time I go back to visit that people don’t pass their time “shopping” like us Americans. It is really a passtime for us here which is pretty strange when you think about it. And we have more avenues for entertaining ourselves than our counterparts. Unfortunately, we are passing all of this onto our kids. I am in my 30’s and didn’t’ grow up this way-it seems I became this way as soon as I started earning my own money. So if I can become this way in my adulthood what are our kids going to be like when they’ve been exposed to this new strange culture of ours since they were babies? Thank you for putting this film out there and enlightening us enough to make a change.
Good work!
January 28th, 2008 at 7:31 pm
Wow. Full of faulty assumptions and disputable, blanket generalizations. Ridiculous. Try something more scientific (i.e. objective, for those of you unfamiliar with the meaning of that term) and less sensationalistic. For example, 50% of federal tax dollars spent on the military? Wrong. Try 20%:)
February 1st, 2008 at 7:52 pm
I totally agree with Kevin Walsh on his points.
Jim: I think its not the over population the fundamental problem, it is the over consumption.
A country like India or China with almost three fold population than US is consuming 1/10th of per capita US rate. So I believe it is the personal and social life pattern (I mean from economics to culture and values) which is feeding the consumerism…and dumping this planet earth.
February 8th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
Annie,
We’re trying to manufacture components and build Zero Energy Lifestyle homes in America. http://www.eyedestu.com We’re license partners of Dr. Edmond Krecke. 3 time nominee for the Nobel Prize in Energy and The Environment. His web site is: http://www.isomax-terrasol.eu (Click US flag for English)
We need visionary investors who are willing to work with us to make a difference and a profit on Zero Energy Lifestyle Community projects.
We believe we can build truly environmentally harmonious virtually zero external energy use communities, and everyone involved can build green, live green and save green. We can prove that by adopting Smart green alternatives a family’s actual cost of living goes down. Working Families are able to keep more of their money.
That will enroll some people who are marginally concerned for the the environment and will be good news for people who already sincerely care, but didn’t realize that by making a difference they could reap significant financial benefit for them selves and their family….and for the planet.
Please help me identify viable ways to reach wealthy people in the investment community who both want to make a difference and want to make money in the process. Will you help? I believe that if there are financial incentives as well as moral incentives, we activists like you and I will be able to make a difference by enrolling more change making members. Its good to talk about this stuff, but we need to make changes happen.
Please, I need help identifying people who have the where with all to fund projects and make improvements and make money for themselves and their associates in the process. I’m hoping you’ll contact me to investigate the possibilities of a true Zero Energy Lifestyle.
The rescue of Gigie Cruz, Shibu Nair and Neil Tangri was very pleasing to read. Is there anyway to do a contact letter to the international community to find environmentally conscientious investors?
I eagerly await your response. Great Story !
Best Professional Regards,
Don Eyermann
deyermann@cox.net
480-516-6487 cell
480-924-9731 fax
February 17th, 2008 at 7:55 pm
You might be interested in some of the resources available and the awareness camapign (Life before Profit) coordinated by the CCODP.
check out http://www.devp.org
February 24th, 2008 at 5:52 pm
Big Box mart? (big boxes represent less than 1% of all stores that sell stuff, but they employ 17% of all retail jobs)
50% of our taxes go to fund the military?(why then does the military only represent 12% of our budget?)
The corp is bigger than the govt? (then why do corporations allow the government to dictate the taxes it pays and the rules it plays by?)
We use up ALL the water? (why then is the percentage of water on the earth unchanged since the measurement of water first began?)
We eliminate ALL the animals?
(which animals have been eliminated? why then do we spend more of our GDP on animals now than ever before? How is that possible if we now eat more meat, poultry & fish than ever before?)
We are running out of natural resources?
(we now have more trees than ever before, we now have more oil resources than ever before, we now produce more food than ever before. Which resources are we running out of?)
We are down to only 4% of our forrests?
(oh yea, you said original forrests. due to our reforestation habits, we now have more square footage and more productive forests than ever before)
Highest toxic source is breast milk?
(how is breast milk the most toxic when you said dioxide is the most toxic? is dioxide found in breast milk?)
We are not paying for the stuff we buy?
(i thought our rate of savings was actually in the negative last year and that americans are more in debt than ever before? what then are we spending our money on, if it’s not stuff and leisure activity?)
Our primary value is based on how much we consume? (so when I sell life
insurance, I should calculate how much the applicant will consume over the
balance of their lives and sell them enough coverage to replace their consumption value?)
The amount of our leisure time is at the lowest in the history of mankind? (Why are attendance
records at sports venues being broken every year?)
March 9th, 2008 at 9:50 pm
I Love your site and I reference it to others all the time. We need a viable solution to the hemorrhaging waste of our current homes and ICE vehicles. 40% of all energy produced goes to heating and cooling our homes. And another 40% is used in transportation. We have a viable alternative. We offer Zero Energy Homes utilizing free solar and geothermal energy to change the paradigm of “heating and cooling” your home to having a system that “climatizes” your home stabilizing the temperature by means of a constantly operating low energy “background” system that eliminates our need for more coal fired or nuclear power plants. We also endorse electric cars with solar electric recharged batteries for your required mobility. As well as electric motorized cycles and a new style of “quadracycle” that will be a stylish step up from a bicycle for local transportation and errands.
That is an 80% reduction in your need for fossil fuel. Now, I need your help to proliferate his “Alternative” technology. http://www.eyedestu.com is my web site. It isn’t pretty, but I have virtually no assistance with this project, however, I’m pressing on regardless. I’m asking for your help to identify ways, means, and activist people to help with the proliferation, public awareness, advertising, newsletters, appearances at speaking engagements, whatever. We need to spread the word that there is a viable alternative. And the best news is, not only is this a better lifestyle, but imagine your savings living in a home with virtually no electric bill, not buying gasoline for 75% to 90% of your driving, and even getting a check from the power company during moderate months in the spring and summer. Our motto is Build Green, Live Green = Save Green. Please contact me directly. deyermann@cox.net Thank you.
March 10th, 2008 at 12:33 pm
What started out to be the age of Aquarius is increasingly becoming more aptly described as the birth of their narcisism. While on the Boomer watch, as a generation they have single-handedly set a course of destruction for us all. Now Gen-X will be left to salvage and restore.
Kyoto is NOT dead because of the Chinese and all other 3rd world countries are being exempt for the rules and regulations, it’s because big American, Canadian, and other international companies are lobbying hard to continue producing in these countries unrestricted yet appear to the public like they are trying to do something but….
If American big business any YOU, the buying public, are really concerned; the prescription for a fix is easy. Turn it over, look at the label and if it is made in a country notorious for polluting our Mother Earth, PUT IT DOWN and walk away.
Talk is cheap, every single one of us has the power to say stop polluting by our consumption patterns – the penalty is far more harmful than any government laws; it’s called BANKRUPTCY. Be willing to pay more or have less to save our planet.
We do it at our house and challenge you to do the same.
Tooltyrant
March 11th, 2008 at 9:03 am
That’s an interesting video, and it raises some valid points. (I’m particularly impressed by the Flash work. Kudos to the design team.) However, there were places where the political bias was pretty high, and the statement about only one little part changing in computers from year to year was completely untrue. Lots of things change in computers all the time. (Any tech could make a list for you.)
That being said, we don’t need to buy the best and fastest computer every two months. My desktop has some older parts, but it still does what I ask without any trouble. To get a new one when the old one is still working just fine would be a bit wasteful. I think that’s the idea that you’re trying to present.
You have a good message here, but keep a close eye on the facts. Inaccurate or exaggerated statements can undermine your credibility and turn skeptics away before they hear the whole thing.
March 28th, 2008 at 11:03 am
We are from Kempenfelt Bay School, we as a grade 8 class just watched your video. We found it very interesting, and thought provoking.
July 7th, 2008 at 9:27 am
Wow. that shocking that kind of stuff is still going on. I mean y r they being taking for up about heath for people and the earth. Is it not the governments job to kept people save and healthy??
August 30th, 2008 at 2:05 pm
Estoy muy contenta con este trabajo, quiero contarles lo que hace una familia en Colombia para ayudar a reducir el impacto ambiental. http://www.bosqueeldomo.org, es un pequeño modelo que puede ser multiplicado, es economico y viable, solo se necesita un poco de colaboración de entidades ecologicas y entidades con recursos para este tipo de programas.
October 13th, 2008 at 9:55 pm
proper sanitation and discipline are the only key to a proper waste disposal. sounds simple but hard to do.
October 26th, 2008 at 1:17 pm
Your Web Site is really wonderful and I bookmarked it. Thank your for the hard work you must have put in to create this wonderful facility. Keep up the excellent work!
February 8th, 2009 at 5:25 pm
Technically we’ve been in a state of global warming since the ice ages. But, to those who suggest that the polar ice caps are melting and we’re all going to drown from the rising sea levels is just a load of crap. The earth warms and cools in periodic documented cycles…and right now (in case you missed it) December went down as the coldest recorded temperatures ever across the US. It registered a -38 degrees where I live in MI. Warming? i think not…
February 21st, 2009 at 4:44 pm
Dear Ms. Leonard and fans,
You are a genius. I first saw your film in November, 2007. In January, 2008 I began teaching an ecology class to elementary children based on your film. I taught them about the materials throughput process, had them read labels on their clothes, food, toys, books, etc. to discover who made the stuff, where was it made, how did it get to us, how did we get to the place to buy it, what was it packaged in, what did they do with the packaging, how long did they use the thing and what did they do with the thing when they were done with it. Then, we divided up and studied the family’s habits with respect to toys, books, food, restaurant meals, plastic bags coming in the house, plastic bags in the environment, clothes, furniture, paper, household goods, etc. We all learned a lot. We produced artwork to reuse plastic bags and toys and tried to get media attention for the projects. It did not work.
I tried to market my outreach concepts to Covanta and that did not work as well. Although the class ended in May, 2008, I have continued to devote my time to renewable energy.
Here is why I am writing. What do you know about Covanta? Are they dirty processors of trash? Do they release toxins in the air? I actually visited one of their plants in Dickerson, Maryland. They claim they have a process that captures the ash and oxidizes it. Is it true?
I need to know, because I am on the verge of negotiating with them for a renewable energy project and I feel compelled to get your opinion of them first.
Thanks, Terry Goolsby is Sowinergy
May 18th, 2009 at 6:23 am
Many thanks for the wonderful film. The message is excellent and very strong.
Beware, however of generalisations. I am a committed environmentalist and work in the UK advising businesses on environmental issues. However, in a previous job, I worked for a company building energy from waste plants, and did extensive study on the environmental impacts of such plants. Modern plants of this type – which are often misleadingly referred to as incinerators – are of amongst the cleanest of all combustion based power generation options, with dioxin levels less than many conventional power plants burning coal or oil. They also provide an important option in the disposal of waste, generating energy from materials which, when recycling is not possible, would otherwise be buried in holes in the ground.
Emission standards in countries outside USA or Europe may be less stringent, so I can sympathise with the Indonesian story, but dioxins from modern plants in USA and Europe, do not provide a significant health risk, and this should be made clear.
Thanks again for a wonderful film.
Martin
June 29th, 2009 at 11:59 pm
We will only see a positive progressive change in this world not just when our government starts cooperating but when all governments start cooperating. Activist have always gotten a bad rap from our governments but this is not about something as bias as war this is about our planet’s well being!
October 14th, 2009 at 6:28 pm
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN!
I just have to tell you something about entry #33. This system symply doesn’t work. Krecke is not a Dr. (not here in Germany). And just google for “noble prize” and you will see that there is no Nobel Prize for “Energy an The Environment” as Mr. Eyerman says. Just visit our homepage http://www.vii-ev.de or get in contact by email if you want to know more about this…
And please don’t misunderstand me. It would be great if it worked! Our association knows even the headquarter of Kreckes ex-company in Luxemburg. On his homepage he shows it as a reference – IT DOESN’T WORK. It’s heated electrical!!!
Markus Kunkel
info@vii-ev.de
December 2nd, 2009 at 10:52 pm
Renton de Alwis Says: Your comment is awaiting moderation.
December 2nd, 2009 at 10:40 pm
Ayubowan! from Sri Lanka
By the way Ayubowan our greeting in Sri Lanka means ‘may all living beings on earth have longlife’;not just you or me…
I am a Buddhist .. and the Bhuddist way of life has it that we be not driven by greed but for work on shunning it. But the dominant western based culture that gave us the consumerist models, have it that ‘greed is good’ and having choice within the free price driven economy (market) is the ideal system. The majority of the world had beleived this for centuries and continues to beleive it. Climate change and global warming are the outcomes of this failed belief system.
Cap and trade as I call it is the ‘Pin-Puw’ scheme meaning ‘Merit-Sin’. This is the latest gimmick of the ’sunshine industries’ and you have got it spot on in the movie ‘Cap & Trade’. What Cap and trade is to me is;’You do good and aquire merit, I buy that merit off you for money to sin with it’. What a satanic innovation by those who made the mess in the first place..
It is time that the west looked at Buddhist economics… Mahatma Gandhi’s saying ‘ there is enough on this earth to meet every one’s needs, but not everyones greed’. Thai king has articulated this Bhuddhist thinking as ‘Sufficiency Economics’
We need new thinking, innovative ways and most of all selfless and greedless schemes that are designed to save the world, not schemes that are designed to make money for those who claim to save the world.
More strength to fresh approches and a new paradigm..
From the Indian Ocean island nation of Sri Lanka
Renton de Alwis