According to Christian belief, this is God’s world; He created it and the entire universe. Because of the allness of God’s handiwork—created for his glory and our good—we are to respect and value it.

Native American culture and spirituality is also rooted in love, honor and respect for the creator, Mother Earth and all life. They believe that we are part of everything and everything is part of us. Yet the declining world purveyed by the larger human race is not what God created it to be, and the Native American culture is fighting for its survival.

The destruction and pollution inflicted by humanity on the natural world is abhorrent and sinful. It’s totally missing the mark. Nature is in a state of frustration, bondage and decay, and the symbiotic relationship between humanity and nature is at risk. Every time a wild species goes extinct, we ourselves move up a slot on the endangered list.

While humans do their best to enslave nature, it nevertheless keeps striving to break free from us and fulfill its highest purpose. Long-term decay resulting from unnatural, alien additives into the environment, or equally corrosive, removing essential elements, kill Earth’s ecological balance.  One manifestation of all of this is the severe climate changes descending upon us.

Some Texans still deny that climate change is happening, while 97 percent of climate scientists agree that Planet Earth is warming and human activity is a driving force, referencing a large body of peer-reviewed studies. The 3 percent of skeptics offer no evidence to back their opinion. The ultimate evidence is the state of nature itself. We can choose to see the obvious all around us or stick our heads in the sand until rising seawater obliterates that, too.

In this month’s issue, we dive deep into the nexus of climate change and human health, supporting my motto that green living is healthy and healthy living is green; they are inextricably connected. Lisa Marshall’s article on why a warming planet is harming our health (page 22), and Paul Hawken’s article summarizing a doable plan to reverse global warming (page 31) are eye-opening. We hope it all spurs our readers to ever greater action.

Earth Day is the largest civic observance in the world, as well it should be, for without a healthy planet, there is no us. The good news is that as a result of the festivals, expos, seminars, films and demonstrations, every year more people are realizing that honoring, loving and taking care of our environment is something that must and can be done every day.

To that end, please join me and other sustainably-minded folks at the many Earth Day events around the Metroplex; you’ll find a list on page 29. These are good places for you to discover the best way to begin to pursue and accelerate a more green, healthy and sustainable personal lifestyle. We look forward to seeing you there. 

To health and sustainability,

Bernice Butler, Publisher