A Tumbleweed Over the Deep Blue SeaThe earth is but one country and mankind its citizens ~Baha'i

On June 20-22 leaders of the world will gather at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD) at the Rio +20 Earthsummit in Rio de Janeiro. This is a critical meeting, at which the necessity of nations working together to bring about a sustainable level of development -- as well as eradication of poverty -- will be on the table. The purpose of the conference is given on the Rio+20 website is "to secure renewed political commitment to sustainable development; to assess progress towards internationally agreed goals on sustainable development and to address new and emerging challenges. The Summit will also focus on two specific themes: a green economy in the context of poverty eradication and sustainable development, and an institutional framework for sustainable development."


The National Geographic film above, "Collapse," delineates, sharply, challenges we now face which, if not swiftly addressed, may well bring about the fall of our civilization. Great civilizations of the Earth have collapsed before, and this could happen to ours. Water use and pollution, dwindling fossil fuel supplies and how to feasibly replace them, loss of topsoil and overpopulation are each given a look in this 90 minute special. It examines the Anasazi, Maya and Roman Empire, the rise and fall of each -- in which over-success was a big contributor to the collapses. In each case the human populations became too large for the resources that were available at those points in history. Although there are living descendants of all of them, records of these long-standing civilizations and ways of life exist now only in history. The fall of each of them was swift. The film makes a strong case that exactly the same thing will happen to us in the not distant future unless we dedicate ourselves -- collectively -- to averting the catastrophe and don't get sidetracked by political and self-serving economic hyperbole. Anasazi, Mayans and Romans did not have the information available to them that we do now, which enables us to make educated choices about our future -- choices that require plenty of will power, objectivity and scientific input.


Climate change, of course, is at the heart of what Rio+20 will address, and what the NG film covers.

Making changes on a collective level requires a spiritual component, for it is in caring for others of the present as well as the future that we find the desire to transcend our own perceived limitations and lack of ability, individually, to make a difference. As Earth Day approaches the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States is joining the Call for Interfaith Actions on Climate Change April 21-27 .in calling "for interfaith actions across the USA during the week of April 21-27 to awaken our nation’s elected officials, as well as all civic and business leaders and households, to the urgent need for immediate and effective action to address the climate emergency."

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Here's a link to a report about energy objectives which were set forth recently by United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon "for the world to achieve by 2030: ensuring universal access to modern energy services, doubling the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency and doubling the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix."

Sustainable development is not possible without sustainable energy