Penned by Nick
A friend sent this pic from the Netherlands, which like Bangladesh (though at the opposite end of the economic spectrum), sits well below sea level is poised to suffer first from the effects of rising oceans. At the risk of sounding sentimental, it struck me how tragic it will be lose these daily reminders of beauty. As much as environmental preservation has a moral imperative, there is also an aesthetic one that is often overlooked though ever present. How do we find inspiration without beauty around us? Yet another downward spiral we’re forced to wrestle our way out of when seeking to solve the problem of global warming.
This reminds me of an ‘eco-propoganda’ company I found who sell pretty stationery gifts with poignant images of the beauty we face losing (can selling really be called propoganda?). The founder talks about the power of beauty as an emotional catalyst for change here:
http://www.flipsidevision.com/about_diana3.html
(the company itself I think needs to smooth over a few crinkles.. like having a guy jumping out of a plane in one of its Climate Calender pics!)
An important and often over-looked way of doing PR for the planet, it seems to me, is to appeal to our innate, and inspiring, awe for nature, instead of using purely fear/guilt mongering tactics (though I think these have their place too!).
Slowly but surely the world is now taking action. Let’s just hope it’s not too late for those things we’ve taken for granted before.