Earth Day Has Been Cancelled

This 50th Earth Day was slated to be the biggest yet. Spearheaded by young, savvy, motivated and even downright furious people from around the world, this was to be the year where the science was undeniable, the populous was insuppressible, and the changes were going to come by way of massive shows of solidarity and unity, which would force systemic and political change. This year, by god, we’d finally get our message out.

And then came Covid-19. Marches, summits, walk-outs, teach-ins, climate strikes, gatherings of unity of all kinds have been cancelled on a global level. No number of live feeds, Zoom meetings or virtual protests will ever get remotely close to the impact of millions of people taking to the streets in solidarity with the planet. As 2020 careens toward becoming the hottest year on record, our greatest opportunity to raise the alarm has been effectively cancelled. 

And yet, even as the science on a macro level screams of impending disaster. On a micro level, we’ve been granted an incredible, invaluable, and deeply unforeseen gift. A glimpse into a manner of living that does less damage to the environment. A world with less driving, less air travel, less industrial energy use and pollution, less overcrowding of our natural spaces. More time working on, and from within our living spaces, cultivating our own foods, repairing our belongings, slowing down our daily routines, evaluating the need for some of the things that we’ve been so ingrained to take for granted. 

There is wonderful anecdotal evidence about how the earth is responding. Whether it’s the return of wildlife to the National Parks, the vanishing smog in Los Angeles, the massive emission reductions across Asia, the stories we’re seeing are the kinds we’ve all been dreaming of, tired as we are from digesting decades of news of environmental collapse.

I’m not looking through rose colored lenses here. My father is in an assisted living facility, and is making trips into Seattle for chemotherapy. I can’t visit him in either place, haven’t seen him in 6 weeks, despite this being perhaps the most tenuous time in our entire shared history. My income has entirely stopped. I wonder daily about the long term survival of many loved ones - and our entire way of life. I dislike the feeling of being trapped. I don’t like being told what to do. I like to surround myself with good people, I like to go into town to work hard in my office. I like to get out for a ride, climb or ski, and to drink a beer or grab dinner at the Mexican restaurant. I miss the old us. But we were messed up. All of us. 

In 2020 I had planned to make some changes. My approach to business was going to be fully sustainable and carbon neutral. I joined 1% for the Planet, and now contribute at least one percent of my gross revenue to environmental causes. I became Climate Neutral certified, which involved an audit and reduction plan for my entire business, and the purchase of offsets to cover the carbon that can’t be removed from the operations. Finally, I was focusing my work on my local mountains, forests and network. I had less travel on the books than in any previous year of my career. 

And yet, in the last month, I’ve learned so much more about what is possible. I’ve been shooting every day, within the same small but beautiful forest which surrounds my house. My photographic study has translated into a general study of the botany of my yard, and has even spread into regular foraging of wild plants as one of our primary sources of roughage. My son, Cedar, at 4 years old, knows the name of more native plants than I did at 40. True story. I have never been so in touch with the earth under my feet.

The greatest opportunity we have ever had for reflection and recalibration is happening right now; and we’re getting a bonus sneak peak at what a changed planet, based on changed human behavior, can look like. Let us always remember this most unique of Earth Days, and remember how it felt to find a new way of living. A way that involved some deprivation, but called on the human spirit to thrive under a whole new set of criteria. This will be our mission from here on out.