By Suzanne York, www.transition-earth.org “We are the first generation with the knowledge of how our activities influence the Earth System, and thus the first generation with the power and the responsibility to change our relationship with the planet.” That statement was written in 2011 in a journal article by a group of some of the
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By Suzanne York. The outrage over the killing of Cecil the lion from Zimbabwe is palpable. Sadly, this lion is just one of many species of animals killed by trophy hunters (as well as poachers). Yet would people be outraged if they knew that wild habitat for almost all species in Africa – and the
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org Across the world many people are waiting with bated breath as one of society’s most influential religious leaders weighs in on the topic of climate change and its impact on people and the environment. Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church, is releasing an encyclical (a papal letter sent to bishops)
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org. It’s shocking, but a mainstream media outlet has actually mentioned the idea of limits to growth and limits of nature.  The New York Times, no less, has run a front-page story on the drought in California, invoking the concept of limits, in an article titled “California Drought Tests History of Endless
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org. The world is headed towards a “danger zone,” as it is passing a number of planetary boundaries that could destabilize the earth, according to yet another study by an international group of scientists. While your average citizen is probably not even aware of the concept of planetary boundaries, it should be a
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org From the outside, it seems like the UN climate negotiations are all about wordsmithing, rehashing decades-old arguments on responsibility, finance and a little bit about impacts on people. It is more difficult to hear about the planet, i.e., nature, in the talks. When it does come up, nature is often reduced
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org The theme of this past weekend’s Bioneers Summit Conference was “revolution from the heart of nature,” but more than that, it was also that land and life are sacred. If you aren’t familiar with Bioneers, it is an annual conference that just celebrated its 25th year. Attendees are referred to as
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org The Living Planet Report 2014, an analysis of undertaken by World Wildlife Fund, the London Zoological Society, and a few other groups, just reported sobering and disturbing news:  the world is losing more species than originally thought, with the state of global wildlife populations halved in 40 years. The opening paragraph
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org Global overshoot.  You’d have to be in serious denial, or living under a rock, to not realize that humanity today is living beyond planetary means.  We take so much from Earth to live our lives today. August 19th is designated as Earth Overshoot Day, the date humanity exceeds the carrying capacity
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Wildfires are already raging in southern California, as the state drought worsens.  The impact on residents will be great, but what about the ecosystem itself?  With May 16th designated as Endangered Species Day, what will be the fate of wildlife trying to cope in a world of climate extremes? According to a 2012 California Department
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