WELCOME TO EVERGREEN EARTH

As a child, I raised mallard ducks and quail in rural Pennsylvania where I grew up—and ended up caring for just about any kind of wild bird that had fallen from its nest. I was also lucky that my family were supporters of various wildlife foundations and concerned with endangered species around the globe. One year, my father was awarded “Philanthropist of the Year” by the National Wildlife Foundation.

Even though my home life was an inspiration, my early concern and commitment to preservation of the wild and the environment began during my first trip to Africa when I was fifteen. I was utterly amazed by the landscape as our family drove across the Serengeti. These famous plains were unbelievable enough, but it was also the people who made a great impression on me. During the trip, we were invited into a local home by a Masai family. The father of the house welcomed us along with his seven wives and their many children.

They seemed intrigued by the white folks in their neighborhood and especially by the braces on my teeth. They were happy people living out their lives in this beautiful place where they tended their cattle peacefully. I later learned that due to their religious beliefs they do not work the land and make their living by trading cattle. They seemed unstressed and quite a contrast to the life I knew in the US. I remember wondering at the time, “Do they understand that a man has walked on the moon that they see in the sky? Do they care?”

It didn’t really matter—the Serengeti is one of the most spectacular places on earth. To see the mass migration of the wildebeest from horizon to horizon was truly mind blowing. I could only imagine what it must have looked like when the bison roamed the western US many years ago. I wondered how much longer this great migration in Africa would continue. Even then, I thought about the human encroachment into their space, how climatic change would certainly put pressure on the animal kingdom and quite possibly lead to the end of the great migration.

Over the years, I began to see what environmentalists had seen before—that our current way of life—where just about everything seemed disposable—was actually destroying the Earth. Things have changed since then and recycling is a big business now. Still, as many of you might agree, I believe that we are now close to “the point of no return”. The facts are clear and show that without more drastic changes in the way we live our daily lives that the eventual outcome will be nothing less that catastrophic—whether in our lifetimes or coming generations.

I began my quest to find some answers three years ago and began to recognize how small changes effected locally can create big changes globally. I know this isn’t a new concept, but it was for me and also struck me as an essential, empowering perspective. This was really the beginning of the idea that has now become Evergreen Earth—an expanding family of companies and organizations dedicated to sustainable building development, environmental education and training, and renewable energy products and services.

I wanted to create a forum that would allow me to work with others to discover how to change the way we live now and act to preserve and sustain the only planet we have. I hope that this blog will allow me to hear about the journeys and discoveries of others who join me as readers. Together, I know that we will make new discoveries about sustainability, renewable energy, and other solutions that will have an impact on creating a Greener future for coming generations.