I'm writing days after you turned six months old. It's hard to believe how quickly you've grown, yet I have mixed feelings about the world in which you are growing. We have a terrible, regressive administration in this country, and authoritarianism is on the rise globally. And even as the scientific consensus on climate change is clearer than ever, governments like ours ignore it and continue policies that imperil your
The two of you have inherited your father’s affinity for the out of doors, a fact that’s apparent even though you’ve spent your lives, thus far, living in the urban confines of Brooklyn and, now, in an apartment in a Philadelphia suburb. On the weekends, when there’s time to do what you want, you want to play soccer in the field behind our building, go fishing, and per our most
If this letter reaches you, it likely signifies that a number of important factors are in place in this world. A friend once showed me that we can longer take things in life for granted. The act of having a child itself is something that was romanticized and conditioned into my generation as we grew up. Our lives were built around a world where everyone has a family (husband and
Dear Lucy,
If you wanted to be born at all, you had to be born at this time.
That was the hook of a song I started to write not long after your birth, feeling joyous about that event but ambiguous—or downright bad—about the world you were inheriting. The song (I never got beyond the hook) was an effort to come to terms with my conflicting feelings about being a father to
This year my birthday and Father’s Day have coincided again, and I get to share a special day for me with a person who deserves to be celebrated every day. I wanted to commemorate this with a letter that I’ve been meaning to write for a while. (I’ll try to do it in a somewhat concise manner – for the journalist that you are.)
This is for a person I owe
You've never known a world without climate change. I'm so sorry. I so hope that decades ago, my generation finally woke up and truly started showing that we cared about our kids and grandkids.
You both showed me that the solution to the climate crisis was simple; we just needed to listen to you.
As you know, in 2013 I made a career change, leaving the world of high tech to try
I'm writing to you in 2018, during a time of great change. You are learning about many of the challenges that we as people face, yet it's still shrouded in the innocence of childhood.
I, in the later part of my life, and you both in your prime. I can imagine you've seen much happiness and sorrow, and everything imaginable in between. You likely think about many of the same things
I am writing to you as Father's Day 2018 approaches. You two, now aged 4 and 2, are asleep upstairs in your room: Zivi, on your mattress on the floor, and Ayala in your crib, surrounded by your posse of stuffies and your two blankies. Your mother and I are downstairs on our laptops, working.
I'll be honest: I don't know enough about climate and climate change. I know that climate
Maybe one day, you’ll both be lucky enough to have children, and you’ll understand the love, and joy, and pride of parenting.
Maybe you’ll also know what it’s like to be a hero in your children’s eyes. Right now, you think your dad can do anything - fix any problem - and that makes me want to do big, heroic things for you every day. It makes me a better person,
It's 2050. You are 42 years old now, a year older than my own age when you were born. You may have children of your own now, or not. Who knows? So much is unclear from where I sit in 2018.
I don't know where you'll be living. New Orleans, the city of your birth, is the only home you've ever known. But will it still be viable in 2050? I
As I raised you, your Mom and I, made a vow to take you to as many of the natural wonders that this great country has to offer. We visited as many of the national parks as we could reach. We traveled all around and were blessed to experience and grow to love these wild places and the creatures that inhabited them.
Now, the climate changes, these wild place's plants and
I look at you and I feel so lucky. Lucky to have you, lucky to live in such a great place, and lucky to live in such a great time. A time when we live in resource abundance. A time when we know that there are issues with our environment but it can still wait until another day. As you grow up, I fear you will not be so lucky.
I'm sorry I've been so busy since 2012 working towards getting a price on carbon, but when the future's at stake some of the present has to be sacrificed. I loved starting your ski adventures back when you were two and I especially enjoyed when your grandfather would join us. I'm trying so hard in order for me to have a chance to ski with my grandkids (no pressure, your
You two children are so innocent and unassuming in your entrance into this world, trusting ultimately your parents to provide the essentials of life, including safety, for you. Your mothers, my granddaughters, faced the same circumstances a generation ago, and their mothers, my daughters, same thing two generations ago.
The question here is: Have each of our generations done what is necessary to provide that safety for the up-coming inhabitants of
By 2050, you will be in your mid 30s. In my mid 30s, I was pondering what career would best support my three children, one of whom is your mom, Clare. I had a choice: journalism or nursing. I picked journalism, but nursing would have been just as amazing! Nevertheless, a quarter century ago I was not thinking about climate change and how it might impact my children and grandchildren.
The most important are 100% by 2050 renewable energy because the pollution created from the burning of fossil fuels kills millions of people every year. It could be that before 2030 80% were renewable and clean energy at 2050 100%.
If the world moves to 100% of wind, water and solar energy, it would be:
Eliminate 4.6 million premature deaths caused by air pollution per year around the world.
Save 22.8 trillion dollars
"I like this place and could willingly waste my time in it." This is something I often find myself thinking while admiring the varied landscapes of this planet, be it the beaches of southern California or the high peaks in the Rocky Mountains. All of my fondest memories are thanks in part to the earth and the constant wonders she provides. However, I am afraid for you and yours. I
My parents showed me so many wonders of mother earth growing up. I will always cherish my childhood memories gardening with my mom and dad. As a young child I would always look forward to cleaning the garden with my father. We would always find the something new in the garden whether it be creatures or objects. He made it such an adventure. My mom made so many wonderful dishes
The ego's too much to my daughter the their futuro filhos. Que ela sirva para todos os futuros que estão fazendo hoje e agora.
Acabo de assistir o documentário / filme: Antes do Dilúvio, apresentado pelo Leonardo Di Caprio.
O nosso mundo está morto pelas mãos, confesso que é difícil de entender o poder de auto destruição do ser humano, todos os dias uma corda aperta um pouco mais nossos pescoços. Tudo
Today, I promise to keep my spaces clean and my environment cleaner. I want to plant trees and keep my home full of life, clean air, and healthy attitudes. In effort to positively impact climate change, I want to continue to compost and make sure everything I cook with, snack on, and drop goes into the bin in order to keep all of MY organic waste out the landfill. Individual
I'm writing days after you turned six months old. It's hard to believe how quickly you've grown, yet I have mixed feelings about the world in which you are growing. We have a terrible, regressive administration in this country, and authoritarianism is on the rise globally. And even as the scientific consensus on climate change is clearer than ever, governments like ours ignore it and continue policies that imperil your