Reading Response week 3

I anticipated the reading of the "50 People who could save the world" from The Guardian all week, and then I read it, loved much of it, thought about it, and then forgot to blog those thoughts. So here I am now to let the world know just what I think.
I am going to go about this by sharing who stuck out the most to me while reading.
To begin,

Madhav Subrmanian
Schoolboy
Subrmanian has been collecting money from around his community for the conservation of the tigers. At the age of 12 he has a passion and he is running with it. Nobody ever discouraged this kid from thinking that he could not make a difference, or maybe they did and that is what drives him, but somewhere inside of him he knew what was wrong and that he had to do something about it, and he is. May all that is good bless this child as he continues to walk through life inspired and driven to save something that he sees needs saving.
I truly believe that the young if taught what is right, and to conserve etc. will shape the future, I am so happy to hear that it is working somewhere in the world right now, to know that the sound of this young person's voice is ringing through the streets as he sings his heart out. Keep on singing Madhav!

Amory Lovins
Physicist
Wow! This one blew me away, the first few sentences sounded like an energy efficient fairy tale.
" Think of a world where cars burn no oil and emit drinking water - or
nothing at all. Where central power stations are redundant and buildings
and parked vehicles produce enough energy to drive factories. Where no
house is built that cannot generate electricity for others. Where carbon
emissions have long been declining, and industries no longer waste almost
all their material."
I am still left questioning if his efforts will be properly introduced into reality, but I want to believe that they will.
As fantastic as his ideas and visions are I wonder if our oil dependent society is ready to let go and buy new cars that don't rev like the old ones.
If what this physicist says can become reality, then we may just make it into a more efficient era and with smiles on our faces and (hopefully songs in our hearts like that of Madhav above).

Okay, only one more because I really could comment on them all, but my readers, yes all of you who I know have sought me out to listen to my word, might get bored. Yes yes, I know it's a long shot, but nevertheless I will spare you of my extended critique and comment.

My final of the 50 that warmed my heart like I thought only hot chocolate made with soy milk could, is...drum roll please...


Rajendra Singh
Water conservationist
Wow! Yes, I know, another "Wow", but really this one had to be mentioned. Singh's actions are of my own heart, I just have not been able to make the difference he has yet. This story goes to show what kindness, compassion and some well directed thought can really do. This man has moved water that saved mountains of people and more to come. Water conservation is an incredibly important element to ensuring a stable and harmonious well-being for future generations, as well as our own.
Unfortunately, it is not easy in communities like our own here in Reno where people see snow in the winter and think that there is plenty of water to go around for all time, thus there is no reason to conserve.
I would like to see the water faucets that don't allow you to keep the water running mandated here in our desert community. Yes, we get snow, but we are still a desert with some water issues.

Okay I was just kidding when I said I was done,
quickly I want to touch on the one woman who has been planting trees. She was really the one who I was going to comment on above, but then I got reminded of the other good fella' who had to be mentioned.

Wangari Maathai
Environmentalist
"If I have learned one
thing," she says, "it is that humans are only part of this ecosystem - when
we destroy the ecosystem, we destroy ourselves, for on its survival depends
our own."

This is one strong and driven woman who takes life as a challenge that she is already standing up to meet.
She is my inspiration! One of them.
Not only do I cherish trees and forests with a particular fondness for redwoods who are widely threatened along the length of California, but I believe in the kind of action, pro-action that she is taking.
I once saw a movie that was called The Man Who Planted Trees this movie was essentially telling the story of Maathai. It was about a man lived alone in a small house on a hill with not another person nearby. This old man collected acorn and other trees seeds and would sort them to weed out the bad ones that would not grow as well as the others. He spent his days doing this and maybe he had some sheep that he would let graze while he collected the seeds, tiny detail, really unimportant to the point. So every day of this old man's life he would either be collecting seeds or walking around with his long sturdy walking stick which he used to poke holes in the ground then place a seed in the hole covering it carefully.

This man went about his days in peace doing this for many years, he never spoke, and rarely came upon someone to converse with anyway. One day the narrator of the story came upon the man where he walked and grazed his sheep, yep I remembered he had sheep, pretty sure anyway, in the desolate hills near where the old man lived. The narrator, a younger man, asked the old man what he was doing, but got no reply simply a wave of a hand inviting the traveler to accompany the old man to his house. They drank milk and the young man watched the older work at sorting the seeds. The young man soon took to helping.

They worked at this together going about the business of the old man's routine for a number of days, sorting and planting seeds then the younger man continued along his way somehow fuller than before he had arrived at the old man's side.

Now, there was a small town just below the hill with the old man's house and there were a few people who lived there. But these people were always gruff and mean, never happy, for the wind swept through there tiny village like a horse to its' feed after a long hard day.

There were no flowers that grew, and nothing lush or beautiful about the place at all, making all the inhabitants unhappy and cranky.

The young traveler had passed through the village and experienced this for himself, so many years later when he came back he was able to see the stark difference in not only the hillsides and the village, but the villagers too.

When the young man, who was no longer so young anymore traveled back to the hills to see the old man, what he saw was hillside after hillside of gorgeous lush trees of green. The entire expanse as far as the eye could see was no longer barren and dry, but covered in green. The villagers were no longer unhappy from the wind and lack of water and beauty, in fact people moved from all over now to live in this gorgeous region.

The traveler knew at once who was responsible even though the villagers may have not, he went up to the house to see the old man, and honestly I can't remember what he found. But what is important is how the work of one person can change so much in life and I believe that this story portrays the work of not only Wangari Maathai, but also Rajendra Singh.

I know this is a lot of writing for only one article, but a lot of what these people are working on and their actions and devotion resonated within me and this all had to come out.
Just think it could have been more.

I will end this by sharing how I think this article, in a sense, reflects geography.
We are all tied to one another by a complex web that leaves no one untouched. What we do affects people of culture across the globe, the people mentioned in the Article "50 People who could save the world" understand this on some level and are working towards harmonizing our relationship with the environment, which, I believe, is of the utmost importance if we are to live at peace amongst ourselves and with our earth. If that does not concern geography, well then maybe I should not be studying it, and if that is not the case then Dr. Starrs, please let me down kindly.


Response to Nigel Allens Review of Wallach's Losing Asia

Quickly I will say that from Allen's review I think that I might enjoy Wallach's work. Although shrouded in history, which doesn't always tickle my fancy as there is excellent potential for boredom to creep in, Losing Asia seems as though this account of the traveling merchant would be a bit of a feast for the senses. If the book was lying on a table in front of me I would peak in to get a glimpse of the maps of which Allen does not approve.