Magical Moments

When I started my masters last year, I had no idea that it would take me on such a powerful, transformative journey of learning and growth. Having just finished my second, intensive residency I feel as though I am coming out of the clouds and (in the words of Joanna Macy) "seeing the world through new eyes". I can't even begin to process everything that I have experienced and learned in this program. It has totally changed my life. I am so eternally grateful for the phenomenal profs that bring their whole selves into each and every moment of the learning process. But, more importantly, I am honoured to have the opportunity to share this journey with the incredible people in my class. They have challenged me to empathize with different perspectives, brought joy and laughter to learning and literally been a shoulder to cry on when the weight of the world became to heavy too carry on my own. As I move into the next stage in the adventure, I walk with hope and lightness for I know that I am supported in this journey, every step of the way.

As part of the great.full.life campaign I initiated a community art project today that encourages people to reflect on the concept of mindfulness.

For me, mindfulness is about being aware of yourself, those around you and the relationship between them. What is our impact on the world? How do we interact with others? Do we leave a positive impression or negative energy in our wake?

I have been trying for a long time to improve my own sense of self-awareness through constantly striving towards balance with my emotional, physical, spiritual and mental parts of myself. I make a concerted effort to have an inspiring and hopeful impact on those around me by taking the time to be grateful and appreciative of all the beauty and complexity that surrounds us everyday.

How would the world be a different place if we all took the time to be more mindful in our lives?

Here's a great TED Talk that discusses this very concept:

"Would any sane person think dumpster diving would have stopped Hitler, or that composting would have ended slavery or brought about the eight-hour workday, or that dancing naked around a fire would have helped put in place the Civil Rights Act of 1964? Then why now, with all the world at stake, do so many people retreat into these entirely personal “solutions”?" - Derrick Jenson (Orion Magazine,  http://www.orionmagazine.org/index.php/articles/article/4801/)

This article really resonated with me because I have been doing a lot of thought about this lately. I have been trying to live my own life in accordance with my values and environmental ethics. In so doing, I have tried to be a role model for those around me and made efforts to create ripple effects in my communities for change. 

"[E]nvironmental animation is still not considered a serious transmitter of environmental knowledge by the mainstream media" Nicole Starosielski

I disagree with this statement as I reflect on my personal journey to become an environmental educator and the teachings that I received through environmental animation that played a fundamental role in that process.

The first movie that I ever remember watching was Bambi. I still get sad when I think about that poor fawn losing its mother in the fire. This movie instilled in me a profound appreciation for all animals on Earth. The next influential film for me was Babe. I actually stopped eating pork after watching that movie because I felt such a strong attachment to the character. I was 12 at the time and remained vegetarian for 15 years after that. Let's skip forward in time to a few years ago and the release of Avatar. Apart from the shameless recreation of the Pocahontas story, I actually really appreciated this film. The final scene in the trees left a profound emotional impact on me to the point where I left the theatre and wandered through the city streets crying because I felt so trapped in the urban jungle and disconnected from the natural world. The last piece of environmental animation that I want to touch upon is of course The Lorax. I use this book with every single class that I teach for the powerful symbolism that it embodies. I wholeheartedly believe that this is an excellent way for people to connect with environmentalism, who doesn't love the Lorax? However, I must say that I was sincerely disappointed by the newest version of this film. I feel that it totally misrepresents the essence of the book and that Dr. Seuss would roll over in his grave if he knew what they had done to his story. I was absolutely appalled to learn that they are using the Lorax to sell cars, what has this world come to? Although this totally reinforces the sentiment in the quote above, I still firmly believe in the power of environmental animation in creating environmental awareness. I feel that this highlights the importance of teaching kids to be critical thinkers and media literate to decide for themselves how to interpret the many messages in the media.

In his article, "Small Change: Why the Revolution will not be Tweeted", Malcolm Gladwell claims that social media will not be used to create widespread change because it doesn't require people to become totally invested in issues. He argues that it simply enables people to form weak ties that don't manifest in any sort of sacrifice that is necessary to actually challenge entrenched societal norms.

Although I believe that there is some merit in his argument, I think he is missing the mark. He is neglecting to recognize the fact that social media functions to get people involved and organized so that they can then take their actions to the streets through physical protest. He fails to acknowledge the fact that we live in a completely digital era in which social media has become one of the primary means through which people communicate. I argue that it is impossible to rule out this form of communication as a powerful tool to initiate change.

That is a good question. Although there are many people that would agree with the statement, there is a global movement of people that recognizing that by doing-it-ourselves we can make a significant impact on the world around us. This is happening in through back-to-the land movements such as the Trout Gulch community in California that is building resiliency and self-sufficiency through internet-based DIY instructables. There are also more urban-based initiatives such as the Minga Skill Building Hub in Ontario that empowers people with practical skills through community-based workshops. Both of these initiatives are working to provide people with the ability to sustain themselves and their communities with their own 2 hands. This gives people a deep sense of fulfillment in the ability to do things themselves and a powerful connection to the process of production. This not only works to localize economic practices but also helps to build community resiliency that becomes increasingly important as we move into a post-carbon era. 

Have you ever thought about the relationship between television and the earth? Most likely you have thought about the connection between television and materialism. Apparently there are more televisions in American (and I would argue Canadian) households than people! Although most of my peers choose not to own televisions, we all grew up with them and continue to watch television shows via the internet. Therefore, we are still flooded with many of the same marketing and advertising agendas as the average television viewer. After some thought about this issue, I have become more aware of the pervasiveness and power of television in creating the stories in our lives. Through fancy ads and reality shows, we are all being told to buy, buy, buy! And that the more material goods we consume, the happier we will be! No matter how much we fight it, we are all subject to this overt form of influence over the decisions we make in our lives. 

On my way to school today, I noticed that someone had written with sidewalk chalk the words "don't pay attention to subliminal messages, Media Mind Manipulation". This affirmed for me that clearly people are trying to change the story and encourage people to be critical of the stories of consumption and materialism that are so pervasive in our lives.

If this resonates with you, I encourage you to check out the book Television and the Earth: Not a Love Story by Jennifer Ellen Good. It offers concrete evidence and an interesting analysis of something that I'm sure many of us have assumed for a long time.

We have started a movement to raise hope and awareness about the possibility of living a healthy, happy life through simplification and building deeper connections within local communities. It's called Great.FULL.Life and our mission is to engage people to appreciate the fullness of their lives. We want to encourage people to highlight the ways we can make ourselves full without consuming material objects.

We believe that it is essential that we begin to re-examine ourselves, our communities, and our relationship with the earth to discover what truly makes us happy. It's hard to quantify happiness. If we are to believe the stories we're told through mass media, happiness can be bought.

The purpose of this campaign is to stimulate conversation about what truly makes us happy. It is an opportunity for people to reflect in their own lives about those things that make them feel grateful, hopeful, and wonderful and to share their "fullness" with others. In the face of consumer pressure, media bombardment and environmental uncertainty, it is an invitation to accentuate the positive and celebrate life!

  Here is a link to our Facebook page if you want to learn more: Great.FULL.Life

Framing the Environment

Alanis Obomsawin (director of The People of the Kattawapiskak River and Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance)

Like many young people today, I joined the exodus away from my hometown at the earliest possible opportunity. I went as far away as possible to a continent literally on the other side of the world. For a long time, I never looked back. I was so full of new experiences with other people and places that I didn't even miss everything that I had left behind. In fact, it turned out that I found a part of myself that I didn't even know existed. Over time, I developed a sense of home in other places. I resisted coming "home" partly because of some pent-up baggage from my adolescence and partly because I had developed such a deeper sense of community in these other places. I slowly severed most of my ties to that place (except for my family).

After university I felt a strong urge to return to my homeland. I developed an incredibly powerful and profound connection to the natural beauty of that place. But, I still didn't have a sense of community so I left in search of that once again.