Earth Charter Indiana

Monday Memo – To Honor the Other

Administrator — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 13:59:02 +0000

The Earth Charter is not timid. It is bold and confident in its call to shape a world that integrates justice, peace and environmental protection. But it hardly requires stating that we live in a time when many points of view are expressed with boldness. Loud, rancorous arguing has become a fact of daily public life. Nor is it just campaign posturing. Tom Brokaw, in his book Boom, suggests that we’re still fighting out the 1960’s with the same anger over a sharply divided national vision that came to the surface in that time. Maybe so.

I confess that I wrestle constantly with this. Like most of us, I have deeply held political, social and spiritual convictions. And being more than a little judgmental, I struggle mightily to understand how to be reconciled with passionate belief that I feel is dangerously wrong – while knowing that those with whom I so fervently disagree hold onto their beliefs as strongly as I do and that they are just as frightened by what I believe. So is it possible to stand unwavering for our deeply held convictions at the same time that we honor contrary belief, or, if that’s impossible, to honor the contrary believer?

The shootings that wounded Gabrielle Giffords and killed six others jarred us awake to ask whether the absence of public civility gives rise to extreme violence. Now a year later, as public courtesy continues to suffer, it’s not clear that we’ve learned very much. But the Earth Charter raises civility to a higher level than simple politeness. Civility requires honestly seeking merit in the contrary point of view and believing that the other person also has a contribution to make. From The Way Forward…

Life often involves tensions between important values. This can mean difficult choices. However, we must find ways to harmonize diversity with unity, the exercise of freedom with the common good, short-term objectives with long-term goals. Every individual, family, organization, and community has a vital role to play.

For our children’s children,

Jerry King

Monday Memo – What’s in a Name

Administrator — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 00:59:20 +0000

Last week Governor Daniels signed House Enrolled Act 1001, dubbed “Employee’s Right to Work,” making Indiana the first state in over 10 years, the first “rust belt” state ever and the 23^rd state in the nation to enact such legislation. The law prohibits requiring, as a condition of employment, that a person be a member of or pay dues, fees, or other charges to a labor organization. Without question, it was the most contentious legislation in recent memory, dominating two sessions and causing hundreds of opponents to descend on the Statehouse and dozens of legislators to avoid the Statehouse in an effort to prevent passage. This Monday Memo is not about the merits of this legislation, however, but rather considers its name.

George Orwell wrote that “Political language is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable.” This cynical quote begins an article entitled “A bill’s name is part of the game,” published in June 2011 in Medill Reports. The author makes the point that a bill’s title is extremely powerful because it affects perception of a bill and thus its chance of passage. Unfortunately, rather than create a title to provide an accurate description of a bill’s purpose or contents, legislators sometimes strategically concoct a title designed to evoke emotion, obfuscate or even deceive the public, often serving the purpose of putting opponents on the defensive, as well. We can think of several examples of this tactic in recent history — how about the “Patriot Act”?

Governor Daniels was fairly forthcoming explaining his change of heart in supporting this legislation. This is about unions — and the Governor was persuaded that passage was necessary to attract certain businesses – some that wouldn’t even consider locating in Indiana unless we have this law. Whether you agree or disagree with the Governor’s premise or with his public policy position, at least he was candid (even if only implicitly) in acknowledging the bill’s purpose – weaken unions to attract business. But the same cannot be said for the sponsors of the bill who named it, or other legislators and special interest groups who championed it. In fact, if you didn’t read the bill but only considered its title, many of the TV and radio ads that saturated the airwaves and the rhetoric of those who supported it, you would believe that the sole purpose of the legislation was to protect Indiana workers – a noble goal no reasonable person could oppose.

Among other things, Principle 13 of the Earth Charter calls for us to “provide transparency and accountability in governance.” Transparency implies clarity, openness, honesty and accountability. The inherent deception manifested in naming this contentious and divisive legislation “Employee’s Right to Work” is contrary to this principle, an affront to those who have legitimate objections and a slight to the public’s intelligence. We deserve better.

For our children’s children,

Rosemary Spalding

Monday Memo – Getting Past Platitudes

Administrator — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 14:48:35 +0000

About the time that we were introducing the Earth Charter to Indianapolis, I asked a friend who is well informed about all things environmental if he had heard of the Earth Charter yet. He said, “Yeah, they’re those folks sailing along at 30,000 feet, aren’t they?” Well, true, the Earth Charter is pretty “big picture” and high-minded. In fact, as with any framework of principles, it’s easy to let Charter-talk slip into platitudes, and the adjective that often precedes platitudes is “meaningless.”

Those who spend a lot of time with the Charter, however, find it anything but meaningless, although it sometimes takes careful thinking to see how the Charter bears on the important concerns of the day. One might find guidance relevant to the Keystone pipeline, the latitude of redevelopment commissions, fair wages and economic opportunity, for instance. But one might not find anything that speaks directly to “Right to Work,” smoke free air, charter schools – or how to survive Super Bowl weekend.

But that doesn’t mean that the Charter is useless for those questions. If I strongly believe that we must. “Promote social and economic justice, enabling all to achieve a secure and meaningful livelihood that is ecologically responsible (principle 3b), or that we must “Empower every human being with the education and resources to secure a sustainable livelihood… (9b),” do those values help me sort out competing arguments about right to work?

If I believe that we must “Honor and support the young people of our communities, enabling them to fulfill their essential role in creating sustainable societies (12c).” or that we must “Provide all, especially children and youth, with educational opportunities that empower them to contribute actively to sustainable development (14a), does that in any measure lead me to understand better what I hope about the future of public schools?

If I believe that we must “Affirm that with increased freedom, knowledge, and power comes increased responsibility to promote the common good (2b),” does that shed light on the debate about smokefree air?

The Charter doesn’t attempt to provide prescriptive solutions for complicated public questions, but it does offer a framework that, with thoughtfulness, can help us see our way through important and knotty issues of our time.

For our children’s children,

Jerry King

Monday Memo – Thank You and Transmission

Administrator — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:32:14 +0000

Anita’s passing in mid-December brought an outpouring of cards, phone calls, food, e-mails, prayers, and offers of assistance. All these were tributes to her amazing life and an illustration of the web of life (community) in action. I am deeply grateful for your condolences and your notes about how she touched so many lives.

Her passing is also a reminder to me of this generation’s responsibility to “Transmit to future generation’s values, traditions, and institutions that support the long-term flourishing of Earth’s human and ecological communities.” (Principle #4b of the Charter) In that regard I found a letter to our grandson, Alex, written around Christmas 2010. I include it in this Monday Memo as one example of how each of us can “transmit.”

“The times we live in are both perilous and promising. The promising part is what I hope and dream for you: a world with clean air, good and sufficient water for all, safe streets, nutritious food, healthy minds and bodies, enough money for basics, smiling elders, fulfilling work, mutual respect, life-long learning, quality homes, healthy ecosystems, and strong communities. The perilous part is the reverse of all these things which is quite possible in whole or in part. If the perilous part prevails I hope for you the ability to be resilient, to play the cards you are dealt with the courage of your grandmother, Anita, and to be creative in finding ways to be useful and happy in the midst of hard circumstances. The reason your grandmother and I do what we do in every way we can is to ensure that your generation and those after you will be able to enjoy the promising part.”

For our children’s children,

John Gibson

Monday Memo – Compass to Common Ground

Administrator — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 18:07:28 +0000

Given all the campaign rhetoric and with the Indiana General Assembly now in session, there’s plenty of evidence of the deep divisions that separate us over political and economic philosophy and social and moral issues. In fact, if we take media reports at face value, we’d conclude that we’re hopelessly divided, 180 degrees and a universe apart. In spite of that, however, I still believe that there are important core values that unify us and that the loud voices on talk radio, from people seeking votes and in ranting letters to the editor do not really speak for most of us. Most of us recognize bombast from the right or left for what it is.

Even so, I believe that there’s an important place for language that helps us recognize and express that which we hold in common. In fact, it’s the Earth Charter’s unique place in public life to provide that compass with which we can hope to find common ground.

Here are five statements that grow straight out of the Charter. Not every person will necessarily agree with each one, but I believe they are starting points for agreement that most people can come around. Don’t most of us agree that:

Our first responsibility is to respect and protect the earth and life on earth
Social and economic justice, human dignity, equity and opportunity are necessary components of caring for life on earth
Full access to the systems and decisions of government is an essential foundation of society. Government is not something outside of ourselves; we are our own government.
Violence destroys and dehumanizes; a mature society relies on and nurtures peace
We are fully inter-dependent interpersonally, across cultures, globally and with the natural world.

Those principles won’t solve the complex issues before us, but they might help us discover that we have more in common than we thought.

For our children’s children,

Jerry King

Monday Memo – Winter Solstice

Administrator — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 00:49:24 +0000

Winter Solstice

I sometimes tell my friends who live in warmer regions that Midwesterners are people of strong character because of our winters. They know that I’m joking a little. And besides, by that reasoning, the good people of Green Bay might be the hardiest of us all, but we wouldn’t be ready to admit that yet.

Even so, I do sometimes wonder what differences we might find between people who live where there are very distinct seasons and those whose climates are moderate or warm year round – how people in the tropics, for instance, experience earth’s cycles and how their experiences matter to them. Of course we know that it was common that ancient cultures framed their lives and their understanding of the forces of nature around the change of seasons. Seasons not only determined when to plant, hunt and store; they also helped put in perspective birth, loss and regeneration. Still today knowledge that spring follows winter and fall and summer and the spring before – that knowledge for many of us is an essential part of how we understand ourselves in the cosmos. Every summer leads to fall. There can be no spring without winter.

The Earth Charter doesn’t mention solstices or seasons, but surely trusting earth’s rhythms is an essential component of caring for the community of life with understanding, compassion and love, as the Charter puts it. We can be grateful for the seasons and grow confident in the knowledge that every year, winter’s longest night will make way for ever-longer daylight.

For our children’s children,

Jerry King

Monday Memo – A Season for Wonder

Administrator — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 14:33:23 +0000

A Season for Wonder

Several years ago our late friend Hamilton Niss accepted an invitation to participate in an ecumenical service during Advent. His part was to read the Nativity story from the Gospel of Luke. Ham was a member of the Baha’i community in Indianapolis, so ecumenism came naturally to him, and his reading of the account of Jesus’ birth was the most memorable I’ve ever heard. He read the story with a fresh wonder – a genuine amazement almost as though he was discovering this stunning event for the first time. Announced by angels! Found in a manger! Astonishing. I was moved by hearing anew this tale which I knew by heart and by deep appreciation for this friend who found such delight in someone else’s religious tradition. If I had forgotten, Ham reminded me that the power of faith is not to push us apart but to draw us together.

Whether or not our own beliefs and traditions are “religious,” the Earth Charter’s potent phrase to “harmonize diversity with unity” speaks to us over the clamor of arrogance and divisiveness so that we are inspired, like Hamilton , to find sacred wonder in all that earth places before us. That’s a message for this and every season.

For our Children’s Children

Jerry King

Monday Memo – Dec. 12, 2011

Administrator — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 03:14:28 +0000

CHINA

My wife and I just returned from a trip to Asia. The majority of the days were spent in China. The number one theme that we heard from our tour guides in China was that making money is now the thing to do. Yes, you heard me correctly, despite the official Communist Party dogma it is now considered to be the smart career move to strive to accumulate money and cars etc. China’s economy has been growing at a fast rate for the last decade and it is beginning to show. I do not just mean the new multi-level housing complexes sprouting up in all the major cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, but the high levels of pollution that is the result of expanding an economy using coal-fired electrical power. As we left Beijing, we saw a smoggy haze that lasted for well over fifty miles to the south of the capital city. While touring in Beijing we could taste the sulfur in the air that we breathed. Yes China is becoming an economic power, but at a steep price.

Before one gets too concerned about the risk of China becoming the next world power or a threat to the United States please consider the following statement that was published in the South China Post in Hong Kong: “if one lives in Beijing or Shanghai they may as well be smoking twenty-nine cigarettes a day”. The pollution is so bad in those two cities that just breathing the air is equivalent to such a bad habit as smoking at least a pack a day.

What is the tie to the Earth Charter? Our tour guide of Shanghai was asked if people complain to the government about the pollution or other concerns. His response was yes, but it is not good for one’s career or status with the government. Section (4) a of the Earth Charter reads that government institutions should “uphold the right of everyone to receive clear and timely information on environmental matters and development plans and activities which are likely to affect them or in which they have an interest.” If our Shanghai guide was correct this certainly in not true in China.

China may be a fast growing economy, but they do not have freedom or a say in what impacts their health. In 2012 important decisions will be made in the United States as to whither we will follow the path of the Earth Charter or the way of China. Please keep the goals and ideals of the Earth Charter in mind when you evaluate who deserves to be elected at any level of government. The lack of a say by the common folk living in the major cities of China is making for a real problem for China which we can and must avoid.

For our children’s children

John Drake

A Debate Worth Having

Administrator — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 16:12:41 +0000

By my count there have been 13 primary debates so far among Republican candidates for President and 13 more are scheduled. Indications are that the public is growing weary of these debates – engaged primarily to see what outrageous moment or gaffe may occur. Once a Republican candidate is selected there will be debates with President Obama. How worthwhile are these debates, where positions are often reduced to sound bites? Imagine a debate where candidates are asked to relate their positions to the principles of the Earth Charter. Now that would be a debate worth having, and certainly a debate worth watching. Here are a few suggestions.

The Economy: How will your plan to improve the economy promote social and economic justice, enabling all to achieve a secure and meaningful livelihood that is ecologically responsible? (Principle 3.b)

Energy and the Environment: Are you willing to take action to avoid the possibility of serious or irreversible environmental harm even if you believe that scientific knowledge is incomplete or inconclusive? (Principle 6.a) Does your energy policy ensure that we act with restraint and efficiency when using energy, and rely increasingly on renewable energy sources such as solar and wind? (Principle 7.b) How will you make sure that the extraction and use of non-renewable resources such as minerals and fossil fuels be managed in ways that minimize depletion and cause no serious environmental damage? (Principle 5.f)

Domestic Policy: What is the federal government’s role in empowering everyone with the education and resources to secure a sustainable livelihood, and provide social security and safety nets for those who are unable to support themselves? (Principle 9.b) Will your administration prohibit discrimination in all its forms, such as that based on race, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion, language, and national, ethnic or social origin? (Principle 12.a)

Foreign Policy: Will you commit to demilitarize national security systems to the level of a non-provocative defense posture, and convert military resources to peaceful purposes, including ecological restoration? (Principle 16.c) How will you ensure that all trade supports sustainable resource use, environmental protection, and progressive labor standards? (Principle 10.c)

Governance: Will you uphold the right of everyone to receive clear and timely information on environmental matters and all development plans and activities which are likely to affect them or in which they have an interest . . . and promote the meaningful participation of all interested individuals and organizations in decision making? (Principles 13. a and b)

Enabling informed elections and then holding our elected officials accountable requires first that we properly frame the issues. The Earth Charter provides an excellent framework.

For our children’s children,

Rosemary Spalding

Monday Memo – Dec. 5, 2011

Administrator — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 15:47:54 +0000

Earth Charter Friend:

At this time of year it would be tempting and easy to comment from an Earth Charter perspective on unsustainable consumption. There’s definitely plenty of that going on. But rather than rant against excess inspired by Madison Avenue, let’s pause for a minute to reflect on certain values that we have in common that call up a very different view of ourselves. In fact, the glaring irony of this season is so well recognized that it almost doesn’t need to be stated. The world’s great religious traditions do not call us forth to door buster sales at the malls but to lives of balance and contentment based on simplicity, moderation and humility.

We experience the goodness of life – what I want to call grace – in friendships and intimacy, birth and family, in music and other creative expression, in sharing of ideas and solutions, in the ever-turning of seasons, in animals and the natural world.

We reflect grace when we give back our own hopeful and creative imagination, become sources of reconciliation, share our companionship, give life, and respect the dignity of people and animals. Whatever our traditions in this season, it will be the gifts that affirm and sustain that will actually matter in this time and for those who come after us.

For our children’s children,

Jerry King