Bookworm

Because most of our work sites are low-volume, I've done a lot of reading out here and thought I'd recommend what I've enjoyed so far :)

1) Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond (Answers the question why European civilizations dominated others, without racist implications)

2) God Grew Tired Of Us by John Bul Dau (Memoir of one of Sudan's Lost Boys. Incredible what he survived!)

3) Life of Pi by Yann Martel (Fiction - LOVED this book! It rocked my world)

And now, I've just finished reading two very inspiring, educational and somewhat frightening books. One called “Hope for Animals” by Jane Goodall, and the other “Say Goodbye to the Cuckoo” by Michael McCarthy. While Jane’s book inspires you with stories about how humans are fighting to bring species BACK from the brink of extinction, McCarthy’s book is at first romantic about nature, and then hits you with the real hard facts about it's destruction. They balance each other out quite nicely. What they both make clear is that conservation is a global issue, which is why we not only have to change our ways, but our governments and businesses need to as well and collaboration is paramount. Here is a very interesting talk on the Economics of Nature, which will no doubt open your eyes (it’s only 15 mins): http://www.ted.com/talks/pavan_sukhdev_what_s_the_price_of_nature.html

On another note, McCarthy mentions the phenomenon of Shifting-Baseline, where each new generation has the tendency to take what it sees around them as the norm. For instance, let’s say your parents saw thousands of Yellow Warblers growing up. Now you see twenty, and your child will see only one. Even though we hear our parents say, “well, in my day…” we don’t listen, and continue to think that what we have around us has always been here and will always be here. We cannot allow ourselves to fall into this trap and be unaware of what has gone and what is going for we will wake up one day to a silent spring and wonder what happened to it all! This is the moment to become aware! More on this in the next post....hah, watch yourself people, watch yourself. I'm about to go on a tirade. It's the best kind though, because it involves helping the planet :) and look at this face : ) how can this face be scary and menacing, right?

I've already moved onto my next books and am reading (partially re-reading) Aldo Leopold's Sand County Almanac (which I also highly recommend - it may awaken the naturalist in you!) and some Edgar Allen Poe on the side, which is always nice :)

OK. That is all for now.

Peace, 
Erin