My husband and I have been going on dates 2-3 times a week, without children, and the only rule about these dates is that they can't cost money. We cheat every time and buy donuts, but that's beside the point. We've been hiking up to Little Mountain, watched the sunset, and read books together. Last night we went to a book discussion with the author of Life, Money & Illusion: Living on Earth as if we want to stay by Mike Nickerson. He also founded the 7th Generation Initiative (SustainWellBeing.net) which has defined sustainability in this way:
Well-being can be sustained when activities:
1. use materials in continuous cycles
2. use continuously reliable sources of energy
3. come mainly from the qualities of being human (i.e. creativity, communication, movement, appreciation, and spiritual and intellectual development)
Long term well-being is diminished when activities:
1. require continual inputs of non-renewable resources
2. use renewable resources faster than their rate of renewal
3. cause cumulative degradation of the environment
4. require resources in quantities that undermine other people's well-being
5. lead to the extinction of other life forms
It was a very interesting discussion, partly because the group of people there were already so involved in promoting sustainability as a social goal. There was a doctor from India there who works all over the world and had recently come from Darfur, an ecoforester working for The Land Conservancy here in BC, various philanthropists and people locally who try to live with a smaller footprint. I need to read the book but I came away feeling very motivated and feeling as though I could define what I have been doing on DeliberateLife.com for the past 4 years a little better.
I was wondering if I should bring back the old site as it was, but I think this blog format is working very well, as I would really like to have more people guest-post if I could.
Coming Next Year!
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