THE BROCKOVICH REPORT

What You Don’t Know Just Might Kill You!

MAKING THE DECISION TO GO ‘GREEN’

By Erin Brockovich

Let me start off this issue by saying that I am as ‘GREEN’ now as I have ever been.  My concern for the environment, health and welfare for all of us has not lessened, and it never will.  If anything, my feelings about going GREEN are stronger now as the need for our own personal responsibility grows.

We are all responsible for our own sphere of influence, and with that in mind I would like to address the “GREEN” movement that is going on in the world today, and what that means to each of us as individuals.  Even those who perceive themselves as being GREEN or living GREEN manifest their ‘greenness’ in different ways.  Some people see GREEN as a way to make money, which is okay just as long as they work toward making progress, and don’t jeopardize the environment.  Others see GREEN as recycling or in terms of carbon footprints.  But the truth is, being GREEN means more than just being aware that the ice caps are melting; it means taking the initiative to act upon that knowledge in any number of ‘moving forward’ ways. 

Being GREEN is about fighting air pollution, cleaning up our communities, changing to energy-efficient light bulbs and being more energy efficient in our daily lives. Being GREEN is about finding other energy sources to use besides oil; saving our oceans; our wildlife; our air, water and soil.  Being GREEN means bypassing the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides and other artificial agents and making the decision to go organic.  GREEN is the natural state.  It is what we come from and where we must return if we want to survive.  We can only accomplish this by working together and joining the cause.  After all, nothing is more common among us than our need for the air we breathe, and the water we drink.  Our very lives are contingent upon these two elements.

Being GREEN is both a state of mind and an activist issue; it must not only be spoken about but acted upon. Thinking about it is the first step, butactually going out and doing something to make a difference is the next piece of the puzzle.   If one doesn’t happen, the other won’t…and thecontinuum of life will be broken.  Protecting our environment is a matter of survival, and everyone must do his/her part.  We have got to take our places on the front lines in this battle for the environment—each and every one of us—in order to keep the continuum going.  This is a daily battle; a march toward a better world and a better life for us all.

I have spoken numerous times before in person, and on my blog about politicians and heroes, but now I am speaking of the power and reach that each of us can have as individuals.  In this sense, we do not need politicians standing on the stump.  We are all Oprahs.  We are all Al Gores.  We are all—if you will pardon sharing my name—Erin Brockovich’s, up on the big HD screen of life, fighting the fight for the environment.  The time has come to make a choice and start building a better tomorrow.  May we always choose truth over deception, whatever political face it wears; may we always see clearly enough to know which is which and may we always choose GREEN.  

Keep in mind that nothing in nature stands still.  If we stand by and do nothing, we will get pushed back. In order to make progress and maintain it—we must work together.