Wood Chips
From the shores of Lake Superior (The Third Coast)
Early summer in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The earth is springing to life, insects are swarming, everyone is watching the weather to take advantage of much anticipated lingering evenings with their arctic light. But this year will be different. Covid-19 is not letting up. Our society is now an embarrassment to the rest of the world as our leaders and government officials have left us unprepared for this epidemic.
In the latest issue of National Geographic (July 2020), the journalist Robin Marantz Henig offers a perceptive article entitled “Why Weren’t We Ready for This Virus?”
In summary, she writes scientists have identified three conditions – climate change, massive urbanization, and proximity of humans to farm and forest animals that are viral reservoirs unleashing lethal microbes never before seen by humans.
As she suggests, our current crisis is not simply a health challenge. It directly relates to how we have chosen to live with our natural environment, our social policies, and environmental regulations. For the most part, we left a dismal record.
It’s time for a new level of awakening. Stakes have never been higher. If we go back to normal, we face more and more of the same. It’s going to be a hard ride, one way or another.
Here’s three things we can all do: Get to know your neighborhood. Learn about good practices of how to eat for a healthy planet, how to monitor the quality of your drinking water. Contribute, as best you’re able with time and resources to nonprofit (nongovernment) organizations which serve as watchdogs for all of us.
We can reset life on our planet. Each of us making a personal contribution. One small step at a time.
Jon
The Cedar Tree Institute
“Wood Chips” is a series of brief reflections written by Jon Magnuson, Director of the Cedar Tree Institute.
