Globally Green Living

Saturday’s song is World on Fire by Sarah McLachlan. Instead of spending a fortune on making the video, she decided to donate the money to numerous charities instead.

One of those is CARE. They help families become independent and develop sustainable ways of living by providing education and business opportunities.

Women and children often suffer from poverty so CARE focuses on them, which ends up helping whole families worldwide. Although CARE provides emergency assistance, they also promote long-term solutions. Some of these include increasing food supplies with crops and livestock as well as providing access to clean water and education.

Clean water is something that many of us take for granted but it is an ongoing struggle for others. When people only have dirty water, they’re forced to drink it and become sick.

CARE is presently campaigning to raise 10 million dollars towards helping people affected by Cyclone Nargis. The cyclone destroyed rice crops and contaminated Burma’s water.

“CARE has provided clean water, food and emergency supplies to nearly 120,000 people in 12 areas throughout the Irrawaddy Delta and around Yangon.” (Cyclone Relief Picks up Pace, PYAPON, Myanmar, May 29, 2008)

Sarah is also one of the many strong supporting celebrities of the anti-poverty movement Make Poverty History.

Other supporters include Brad Pitt, Bono, Al Pacino, Cameron Diaz, Emma Thompson, George Clooney, Jamie Fox, Mike Myers and more. Since much poverty is caused by damage to the environment by humans, it is possible for all of us to help repair both.

Today’s tune is If a tree falls, by Bruce Cockburn. Too many trees are falling and every minute we lose another 100 acres of Rainforest. This means not only do we lose people and animals but plants used for medicine are disappearing as well. Bulldozing trees down is not profitable long term.
The Rainforest offers many sustainable materials that are valuable. Unfortunately, many companies just think about the short term and go for the lumber.

As a strange aside, Harrison Ford had his chest waxed for the environment. He said: “Few people realise that burning and clearing tropical forests emits at least 20 per cent of total greenhouse gases that cause climate change - more than all the world’s cars, trucks and airplanes combined.” (Harrison Ford had chest waxed for rain forests, Stephen Adams)
If a tree falls lyrics:

Rain forest
Mist and mystery
Teeming green
Green brain facing labotomy
Climate control centre for the world
Ancient cord of coexistence
Hacked by parasitic greedhead scam -
From Sarawak to Amazonas
Costa Rica to mangy B.C. hills -
Cortege rhythm of falling timber.

What kind of currency grows in these new deserts,
These brand new flood plains?

If a tree falls in the forest does anybody hear?
If a tree falls in the forest does anybody hear?
Anybody hear the forest fall?

Cut and move on
Cut and move on
Take out trees
Take out wildlife at a rate of species every single day
Take out people who’ve lived with this for 100,000 years -
Inject a billion burgers worth of beef -
Grain eaters - methane dispensers.

Through thinning ozone,
Waves fall on wrinkled earth -
Gravity, light, ancient refuse of stars,
Speak of a drowning -
But this, this is something other.
Busy monster eats dark holes in the spirit world
Where wild things have to go
To disappear
Forever

If a tree falls in the forest does anybody hear?
If a tree falls in the forest does anybody hear?
Anybody hear the forest fall?

Bruce Cockburn, CockburnProject.net

Brad and Angelina were back in New Orleans last weekend, where they live part time helping with the recovery efforts from hurricane Katrina. Angelina’s work as a goodwill ambassador for the UN is what led her to become involved with kids in New Orleans. She describes the children as fun, feisty and full of pride. According to the Children’s Health Fund, there are still over 46,000 children displaced because of Katrina.

Brad describes his family as nomadic and they purchased a home in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Brad’s Make it Right project has picked up speed and it is wonderful to see everyone banding together to help build new green homes on the Lower 9^th Ward. The houses will be affordable and sustainable. Brad and Angelina are incorporating several green building methods into their own home including solar power.

Here is Part 2 of Brad in an interview with Larry King discussing the Adopt a House campaign. The pink houses represent the destroyed homes from hurricane Katrina. Everyone is asking why the heck the temporary houses are pink. He shares that they wanted something loud that got attention yet was still hopeful. As each house is adopted, they will be making it right and putting a house back on its foundation.

(See Larry King and Brad Pitt Part 1, Part 3 and Part 4 for more)
This final clip is an interview with Charlie Rose discussing why someone did not do something sooner to make it right in New Orleans. He also shares the touching story of how the name of his “Make it Right” project came about. He met a man in his seventies who did everything right, worked hard, raised his family, and yet it was all wiped out so now he is living in a trailer.

Here’s a rant by Lewis Black called “Back in Black” about Earth day. He makes fun of some of the celebrities who give us environmental advice. It’s comical but he makes some good points.

Things are a little hectic here today and I can hardly hear myself think but didn’t want to leave you in the lurch so sharing something light.

I’ve been hanging out on YouTube so thought I would share some Environmental songs for Saturday. Enjoy First, Big Yellow Taxi by Counting Crows (originally by Joni Mitchell)

Rush, The Trees.
There is unrest in the forest,
There is trouble with the trees,
For the maples want more sunlight
And the oaks ignore their pleas….
So the maples formed a union
And demanded equal rights.
“The oaks are just too greedy;
We will make them give us light.”
Now there’s no more oak oppression,
For they passed a noble law,
And the trees are all kept equal
By hatchet, axe, and saw.

Rush was one of the first concerts I saw. I got kicked out because I kept creeping up to the front and was on my boyfriends shoulders.

One of my favorites, Rain on the Scarecrow by John Mellancamp. Lyrics:

Scarecrow on a wooden cross; blackbird in the barn;
Four-hundred empty acres that used to be my farm.
I grew up like my daddy did, my grandpa cleared this land;
When I was five I walked the fence while grandpa held my hand.

Rain on the scarecrow, blood on the plow;
This land fed a nation, this land made me proud;
And, son, I’m just sorry there’s no legacy for you now . . .
Rain on the scarecrow, blood on the plow;
Rain on the scarecrow, blood on the plow.

The crops we grew last summer weren’t enough to pay the loans;
Couldn’t buy the seed to plant this spring and the Farmers Bank foreclosed.
Called my old friend Schepman up to auction off the land;
He said John it’s just my job and I hope you understand.
Hey, calling it your job, ol’ hoss, sure don’t make it right,
But if you want me to I’ll say a prayer for your soul tonight.
And grandma’s on the front porch swing with a Bible in her hand;
Sometimes I hear her singing “Take me to the Promised Land.”
When you take away a man’s dignity, he can’t work his fields and cows . . .

There’ll be blood on the scarecrow, blood on the plow;
Blood on the scarecrow, blood on the plow.

Well there’s ninety-seven crosses planted in the courthouse yard—
Ninety-seven families who lost ninety-seven farms.
I think about my grandpa and my neighbors and my name,
And some nights I feel like dyin’, like that scarecrow in the rain.

Rain on the scarecrow, blood on the plow;
This land fed a nation, this land made me proud;
And, son, I’m just sorry they’re just memories for you now . . .
Rain on the scarecrow, blood on the plow;
Rain on the scarecrow, blood on the plow.

Kids can have an impact on the environment too! Leann Rimes teamed up with All Small & Mighty laundry detergent to search for the greenest kids in American elementary schools.

Leann Rimes is encouraging kids to help their families make changes including switching to eco-friendly products. All has a “Go Green & Small With All” program. Families interested in going green can visit their site and track their efforts to protect the environment. There’s also lesson plans available to download for teachers and parents.

• Leann is the youngest person to win a Grammy and the first country artist to win a Grammy for Best New Artist. “As the youngest person ever to win a Grammy Award, I understand the potential that kids have to make an impact on all of us,” notes Leann Rimes, music superstar. “That is why I am so excited to be a part of the ‘all’ small & mighty nationwide environmental program - “Go Green & Small with ‘all’” - because it empowers kids to lead the way and encourage their families to become more environmentally-responsible. Protecting the environment is so important to me and is a cause we all should embrace.”

Winning School Prizes

The winning school will get a $50,000 grant towards green improvements. Every child will receive a green iPod shuffle with an environmentally friendly solar charger. They also have a chance to be featured on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. Entries are due by November 26 and finalists will be announced on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in January.

“We believe that young students have the passion to help their families become more environmentally-active and aware,” said Helayna Minsk, Unilever Marketing Director, ‘all’ laundry detergent. “Simply using eco-friendly products like ‘all’ small and mighty, the leading 3x concentrated laundry detergent that saves environmental resources in packaging and shipping, can make a big difference for sustaining our environment.”(GREENWICH, Conn., Nov. 15 /PRNewswire)

For some ideas on how we can all have an impact on our environment, see “Go Green With All“.

Brad Pitt is not only gorgeous but has a heart. In September he attended Clinton’s Global Initiative and pledged 5 million dollars to help people rebuild who were hard hit by Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. Billionaire Steve Bing also pledged the same. The cost to simply attend is 15,000 and some that were inactive last year weren’t even accepted after offering their money.

The Lower 9th Ward was one of the hardest hit so the focus is on building them 150 new sustainable and affordable homes. Brad Pitt assembled a team of experts for his “Make It Right Project” and explains how they came up with the name.

“The heart and soul of New Orleans, specifically the people of the Lower 9th Ward, are paramount to this project,” said Pitt. “The words of one elderly man who is determined to return to New Orleans led to the name of our organization: he asked us, directly simply and profoundly, to help make it right. So that’s what we’re doing. We’re going to help to make it right with 150 sustainable, affordable houses—houses that stand out for their design both aesthetically and structurally, so that these people can live in beautiful safe structures that respect their spirit and provide a good quality of life.” (Brad Pitt, Steve Bing Plan New 150-Home Community in New Orleans’ Lower Ninth Ward, New York, Press Release, 2007)

It’s been a couple years and it’s heart breaking to see how people are still suffering. Here’s a clip of Ann Curry’s interview with Brad. Brad and Angelina actually bought a house in New Orleans and he comments on the horrible conditions people are living in. I think that Brad Pitt using his celebrity status to help people get their homes back is admirable. They deserve to have dignity, justice and respect and it’s nice to know someone cares and is trying to make it right.

Tracy Lyons, environmental activist and National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) advocate is in the middle of her Mercury Rising Tour. The musician is drawing attention to global warming, pollution and encouraging alternative energy solutions such as solar and wind power.

The video called “Save Me” has been viewed on YouTube over 250,000 times. It has become an emotional environmental anthem which has been featured on NRDC’s youth website ItsYourNature.org and Treehugger as well as many others.

If you download the song “Save Me”on iTunes all proceeds go to National Resources Defense Council (NRDC). It’s an environmental action organization that Tracy is both an advocate and a member of. NRDC is an excellent source for the latest environmental issues and they keep you up to speed on the newest developments. Their site is very informative and educational and I have learned a lot. Their mission is to save the earth.

Lyon’s eco-stage will be powered off the grid with biodiesel and features a state of the art hydrogen fuel cell. She’s also supplying information on the latest energy technologies and providing education about environmental initiatives.

Other singers have participated in concerts such as Live Earth but Tracy seems genuinely committed. She has a history of playing at environmentally themed concerts and I think the fact that her stage is eco-friendly shows she really does care. To offset their band’s carbon footprint for any harm they may do to the environment, they’re purchasing carbon credits.

Billboard magazine said, “singer/tunesmith Tracy Lyons proves that she has a knack for wrapping strong words in a velvet glove.” I agree and think it’s great that Tracy is out there publicly pulling for the earth.