#32, December 29, 1999
It's time for New Year's Resolutions. But since we are
facing also the end of a century and a millennia, I suggest something more
bold: make a New Year's Revolution.
This is not a revolution involving Molotov cocktails or Boston
tea parties. Rather, it's something more… revolutionary. This New Year's
Revolution is about nothing less than the way you see the world and the way you
live your life.
Your part in this revolution is based on
"responsibility": if you have the ability to respond, then you
have the obligation. Respond to what? Quite simply, the threat to the life on
earth. Our revolution must address the paradigm, or world-view, at the root of
this threat. That paradigm says that individuals are fundamentally separate from
the earth and each other, that happiness lies in amassing material wealth, and
that violence of any kind is an acceptable means of resolving conflict.
What gives you the ability to respond? First and foremost,
knowledge. Knowledge not only about the problems, but how to go about solving
them. Knowledge that for Americans, there is no middle ground in this
revolution. With our vast economic and political power, we are part of the
problem if we are not part of the solution.
"Decision" goes hand in hand with responsibility.
Decision means to cut ("cision") away from ("de"), to
forever reject the old for the new. Only when the Pilgrims "cut away"
from the option of remaining in the Old World could they "discover" and
inhabit the New. Once we cut away from the idea that nothing is wrong, or that
someone else will save us, or that we are doomed, we discover a world of
possibilities around us and within us. We become hopeful, and powerful-- we see
the full height of the mountain before us, but we are ready for the climb.
"Resolution" is important, too. At the beginning
of your revolution, resolution is the "the thing decided on", the
registration of your commitment to change your life and the world. But it also
becomes "the power of holding firmly to a purpose" the will to live up to your commitment. This
revolutionary decision isn't a one-time proposition. Every day brings tests,
and requires reaffirmation. You can take strength from your successes and the
support of fellow revolutionaries.
Think of Rosa Park's decision to work for the Civil Rights
movement, and ultimately decide to not move to the back of the bus. Consider
Julia Butterfly Hill's decision to live in "Luna", an ancient
redwood, until Pacific Lumber Company agreed to improve their timber harvest
plans. Remember the unsung heroines and heroes who staff and support all the
organizations working for peace, justice, and a healthy planet.
These "quiet" revolutions in thinking ultimately
succeed through a well-documented historical process called a paradigm shift.
It starts when a small group of individuals (the "innovators")
recognize weaknesses in the dominant model for how things work. They begin to
advocate a new model. At first the innovators are ignored, then scorned, then
persecuted. But if their new model is indeed better than the old, it gains the
support of the "early adopters"-- the business, government,
scientific, and cultural "opinion leaders" of a community.
Studies of other paradigm shifts (in astronomy and human
rights, for example) have produced some encouraging statistics. The innovators
don't need to convince everyone. Once the new paradigm is accepted by the early
adopters, representing about 20% of the population, it's universal adoption is
inevitable. Sooner or later, the 80% follow.
We are beginning to see this phenomenon around the idea of
collaborating to create an ecologically sustainable economy, worldwide. Once
restricted to a handful of innovative businesses (like locals Smith and Hawken,
and Real Goods Trading Company), companies like McDonalds and Nike are now
getting involved. In Petaluma, the "sustainable city" idea is
gathering momentum from government, business and citizens groups alike, and is
expected to take flight next year.
So, this Friday night, start your New Year's Revolution.
Then watch the sun rise on a new life for the earth.