Live Earth
I made the trek to Live Earth at Giants Stadium yesterday, primarily motivated by one thing: see the Smashing Pumpkins.
I’m not going to bore you with details about the actual Live Earth concert events because it’s been covered all over TV for the past few days. I sincerely hope the events will be a catalyst for change (and it’s certainly drawn more attention to the climate crisis) but I don’t think it’s realistic to expect immediate results. Attending the concert didn’t give me warm fuzzies or an illusion that my attendance was doing something to stop global warming–it was a freakin’ concert! I mean, where else could you have seen Ludacris, Kanye West, Dave Matthews, Bon Jovi, and The Smashing Pumpkins on the same stage? That’s what yesterday was about for me (and probably for a lot of people who bought tickets and went to New Jersey).
But what can we do today and every day going forward to actually make a difference? Take a look at Al Gore’s 7-point pledge:
Video: Al Gore Reads the Live Earth Pledge
The pledge:
- To demand that my country join an international treaty within the next 2 years that cuts global warming pollution by 90% in developed countries and by more than half worldwide in time for the next generation to inherit a healthy earth;
- To take personal action to help solve the climate crisis by reducing my own CO2 pollution as much as I can and offsetting the rest to become “carbon neutral;”
- To fight for a moratorium on the construction of any new generating facility that burns coal without the capacity to safely trap and store the CO2;
- To work for a dramatic increase in the energy efficiency of my home, workplace, school, place of worship, and means of transportation;
- To fight for laws and policies that expand the use of renewable energy sources and reduce dependence on oil and coal;
- To plant new trees and to join with others in preserving and protecting forests; and,
- To buy from businesses and support leaders who share my commitment to solving the climate crisis and building a sustainable, just, and prosperous world for the 21st century.
The Live Earth Website has some ideas of small things you can do to take action at this link.
And though I think it’s cool that Al Gore was actually at the Live Earth concert I attended, I think it would have been infinitely cooler to see him in holographic form instead.