January is a good month. It’s a month that is the human symbol of starting over. Out with the old, in with the new. This January was particularly exciting for us here in the US, as we ushered in a new era of progressive politics with almost a little too much pomp and circumstance. But underneath the excitement lies a particularly disconcerting truth. We still have a nation to fix.
Mini versions of everyone from the Obama family to Oprah Winfrey and the San Francisco Boys Chorus can be spotted in this creative Lego masterpiece.
As my family and I continued our California journey this week, escaping winter on our Wisconsin farm, spotting the mini-figure, four-inch version of Obama first brought a smile. Creative and colorful, you’re immediately drawn into analyzing the realistic detail of this endeavor.
But scratch the plastic surface. For me, this Lego depiction took on deeper meaning, a metaphor to inspiring the challenging days ahead. Harkening to Obama’s inspiring speech yesterday, if the new President and his administration truly seek change, particularly positive help for our planet, there are lessons to be learned from this Lego display:
1. Twist the Expected
Sure you expect to see Legos at Legoland. That’s the lure that kept our seven-year old son salivating up to the park gate. But Obama taking the presidential oath of office, constructed out of Legos?
This morning I found myself thinking about inaugurations past. In particular, John F. Kennedy’s 1961 Inaugural Address. That, along with meeting Auden Schendler Executive Director of Sustainability at Aspen Ski Company a few weeks ago, got me thinking about my ideas of greening small businesses.
We all know that in order to be a green business we have to walk the walk, as well as talk the talk. And, walking the walk needs to be more than greening your individual business. Changing your business practices is only one piece of the greening puzzle. Just because you can’t afford to install solar panels right now, doesn’t mean you can’t make a big difference. In fact, the time you invest in making a difference may be as valuable to environmental progress as installing CFLs. What if every small business owner in America got involved? Joined a green business organization? Strengthened their green requirements for suppliers? Provided customers with greener alternatives?
Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States of America today. As one of the first moves of his presidency, he has suspended all of former-President George Bush’s midnight regulations. The order was issued by White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel directly following the swearing in of Obama.
The regulations will not go into effect until Obama has had a chance to review their legality. Hopefully, this will undo some of the damage Bush attempted to leave our country with, such as his permitting coal companies to dump waste near rivers and oil companies to drill without reviewing the endangered species act.
This morning I watched Obama’s inauguration in a high school theater with several hundred young men. Everyone was captivated. As our 44th president delivered his speech, I kept thinking about the applicability of many of his words to the world and sustainability in its broadest sense. Here, how President Obama’s speech - originally written to encourage and inspire America in the face of crisis - can be expanded and applied to sustainability. Today, instead of tips, a call to action and pull of spirit.
That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. . . Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.
Environmental groups are criticized for their “doomsday” scenarios. Rainforests are dwindling, corals are dying, population is exploding, and global warming is ominously threatening.
These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land - a nagging fear that America’s decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.
Beyond America, there is a nagging fear that the earth’s decline is inevitable. Will fewer children have access to clean water? Will they starve? Will they know that polar bears and tigers once lived outside of zoos?
In the coming days, there will be 22 inauguration balls held to celebrate President Barack Obama’s entrance into the highest office. Of those balls, two will officially be green.In fact, both of these balls are called “The Green Inaugural Ball,” which could certainly lead to confusion for guests invited to both. One ball will be held by Al Gore and the other by PETA. From the Baltimore [...]
The 44th President faces enormous challenges implementing an environmentally-friendly agenda.
On January 20 the United States will be swearing-in a new president, indeed perhaps our first green president as President Elect Obama has made many references to growing the green economy and ideas for a more green energy policy.
Well our friends at Americanna noted the references. They also noted that presidential memorabilia is a big deal and that it is even a bigger deal when the country feels that a history making change is at hand.
There will be many firsts at Tuesday’s Presidential Inauguration, but mentioning the environment in the inaugural address will not be one of them: though pretty darn close.
Tomorrow in the U.S. is the eventful day where our president-elect becomes our 44th president. Being lucky enough to live in Washington, D.C. I plan on braving the crowds and the cold to participate in history.
One thing that has taken hold throughout this historic campaign is the slow rise of political art. Remember the McCain earrings and all the amazing DIY that was found at the DNC?
Art has played a huge role in the president-elect’s campaign. You only have to look at Shepard Fairey’s now ubiquitous Hope poster to see the affect. Political art and craft is just one way to stump for a cause, or show support for a president-elect.
Obama paraphernalia has been popping up all over the city. It is mostly cheap t-shirts and buttons and pins with the likeness of Obama and his family. But, I happened across this great “That’s my DJ” t-shirt. It is hand printed and designed by Sound College.
You and your kiddos have some green Obama souvenirs, right? Well, even if you don’t (and even though my four-year-old voted for McCain), there are some fun, educational, and eco-friendly ways to help your kids celebrate our upcoming inauguration–by celebrating this inauguration, in particular, but any inauguration, you help your kids understand the ceremonies that are meaningful to our society and help give them a sense of history and their particular place in it. By making your celebrations thrifty and eco-friendly, you help them learn how to live full and generous lives while honoring your family’s ethical beliefs.
Some of these activities below will require a little prep time and some won’t, but all can be participated in by kids from very young to very old:
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