The Watering Hole Blog

Face the Future Spring 2017 series begins Mar 24

Concerned About the Environment?

Face the Future Spring 2017 Blog Series Begins Mar 24th

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“We don’t have much time. If we truly care about the future of our planet we must stop leaving it to “them” out there to solve all the problems. It is up to us to save the world for tomorrow: it’s up to you and me.”

– Jane Goodall, Reason for Hope

Face the Future Campaign; Reducing Our Environmental Footprint One Step at a Time

I love this beautiful planet of ours and care deeply about the environment. I am extremely concerned about many environmental issues, from climate change and warming oceans to the plight of polar bears and the loss of wildlife habitat – and species – the world over.

“The science is clear. The future is not.”

– Before the Flood, an outstanding documentary by Leo DiCaprio & Fisher Stevens

My idea of the perfect Saturday afternoon is lying on the couch reading National Geographic, cover to cover 🙂 My idea of the perfect Sunday afternoon is heading to the woods or beach for a hike with my dog, followed by a couple of hours of puttering in the garden.

I recycle as much as I possibly can. I try not to buy anything unless I really need it. I compost my kitchen and yard waste. I use my reusable coffee cup 99% of the time. Likewise with my Nalgene reusable water bottle. I use a cardboard box and reusable grocery bags to carry my groceries. In the summer, I try to hang my clothes outside to dry instead of using the dryer. I walk instead of drive as much as possible…

But I do have a car. I heat my home with oil. I love to travel and take multiple flights every year. As much as I love the environment and do what I can to lessen my personal footprint, I also contribute my fair share – and perhaps more, when it comes to air travel – to the problems 🙁

Which is probably why I haven’t got the Face the Future environmental awareness campaign going until 2016. I actually planned on getting Face the Future started EIGHT years ago – but for one reason or another, I kept putting it off.

Yes, I was busy with life and other work projects. But I suspect a part of me also felt like a hypocrite. How dare I tell other people how to reduce their environmental footprint when my own footprint is, at times, pretty damn big?

And the answer is: I can really only provide suggestions to people on how to reduce their environmental footprint in ways that I have already reduced my footprint.

So that’s what Face the Future is: a rather personal campaign about raising awareness about environmental issues and providing people with tips on simple ways they can help reduce their environmental footprint or take positive action in some way…because every little bit helps.

So even though I am just one imperfect person running a tiny company with limited resources, I reckon nature needs all the support she can get at this point.

What is Face the Future?

Face the Future is a grass-roots on-line environmental awareness campaign initiated by my company, Pink Gazelle Productions Inc. The purpose of Face the Future is to raise public awareness about the potential global impact of individual actions, while inviting people to be part of the solution by making simple changes in their own lives.

By reflecting the cumulative effect of seemingly harmless habits – such as vehicle idling, regularly using disposable hot beverage cups instead of a reusable cup, buying single-use water bottles instead of using a reusable one, etc – the Face the Future campaign is a call to consumers to ‘face the future’ by thinking globally and then acting locally.

Spring 2017 Blog Series

The Spring 2017 blog series will run from Fri Mar 24th through till Fri Apr 28th.

The Face the Future campaign started as a weekly blog series in the spring of 2016 (April till June).

We also ran a short series in December 2016 with tips on reducing the environmental impact of Christmas.

To read these past Face the Future blogs, please visit our archives page.

Subscribe to Face the Future

If you would like to receive the Face the Future weekly blogs, please subscribe here.

“Giving up is a copout because no one knows what the future holds. And although it is true that each of us is insignificant, a lot of insignificant people add up to a real force. For me, the rewards of getting involved are that I will be able to look my children in the eye and say, ‘I did the best I could.’”

– David Suzuki, The Sacred Balance; Rediscovering Our Place in Nature

Together, we may still be able to change the future we are heading towards…because if we don’t, who will?

take care polar bear picture by Ella
Drawn by Ella, age 7

The next generation, that’s who. And how fair is that?

About Maryanne

Maryanne Pope is the author of A Widow’s Awakening, the playwright of Saviour and the screenwriter of God’s Country. Maryanne is the CEO of Pink Gazelle Productions and Chair of the John Petropoulos Memorial Fund.

About Pink Gazelle Productions Inc

PGP creates authentic works that inspire people to effect positive change in themselves and the world around them. From books, blogs and e-mail campaigns to play scripts and screenplays, PGP is committed to encouraging people to pursue their dreams with passion and purpose. To receive our Weekly Words of Wisdom e-mail, please subscribe here.

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