by Kathie England

Aware

In reading A Life on Our Planet by David Attenborough, I became aware that…

In 1937 when Attenborough was 11 years old – the world’s population was 2.3 billion, carbon in the atmosphere was 280 parts per million, and remaining wilderness on our planet was 66 percent…

In 1954 the year I started third grade – the world’s population was 2.7 billion, carbon in the atmosphere was 310 parts per million, and remaining wilderness was 64 percent…

In 1960 the year John F. Kennedy was elected president – the world’s population was 3 billion, carbon in the atmosphere was 315 parts per million, and remaining wilderness was 62 percent…

In 1968 the year I graduated from college – the world’s population was 3.5 billion, carbon in the atmosphere was 323 parts per million, and remaining wilderness was 59 percent…

In 1971 the year my sister was married – the world’s population was 3.7 billion, carbon in the atmosphere was 326 parts per million, and remaining wilderness was 58 percent…

In 1978 the year my niece was born – the world’s population was 4.3 billion, carbon in the atmosphere was 335 parts per million, and remaining wilderness was 55 percent…

In 1989 the year I moved to Oregon – the world’s population was 5.1 billion, carbon in the atmosphere was 353 parts per million, and remaining wilderness was 49 percent…

In 1997 the year Princess Diana died – the world’s population was 5.9 billion, carbon in the atmosphere was 360 parts per million, and remaining wilderness was 46 percent…

In 2020 the year the Covid pandemic started in the United States – the world’s population was 7.8 billion, carbon in the atmosphere was 415 million parts per million, and remaining wilderness was 35 percent…

This timeline of life on our planet prompted me to wonder what life will be on our planet over the next decades for my great-nephew who was born in 2015 and my great-niece who was born in 2020…

I invite you to ponder that same perspective for what life will be on our planet over the next decades for the children in your life…and become aware…

I invite you to watch the trailer to “A Life on Our Planet” and hopefully it will inspire you to watch the entire documentary by David Attenborough.

Who We Can Be

We can become aware and look at the possibilities of what we can do NOW.

We can be inspired by the words of Barack Obama as he watched a candlelight vigil of people in Oslo cheering after he had received the Nobel Prize for Peace in 2009: “Whatever you do won’t be enough. Try anyway.”