Let’s begin with the obvious: earthquakes, tsunamis, tornadoes, and volcanic eruptions are natural phenomena. War, nuclear power, deepwater oil drilling, and over-crowded, substandard housing are not. Poverty is not. These unnatural events and conditions are completely human and, therefore, unnecessary. At some point we apparently decided that our need for energy outstripped our responsibility to protect the public health. It wouldn’t be too farfetched to describe industrial humanity’s chief energy production methods as giant furnaces fueled with human lives. The BP oil rig blow-up in the Gulf last year gave us a glimpse of oil’s future. Producing energy by burning coal or nuclear fission kills people even without accidents like Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, the ’08 TVA coal ash spill, and now Fukushima. Clean coal is a myth, as is the idea that nuclear is in any way "green." We shouldn’t be spending a dime on subsidizing either industry. It will require billions of dollars just to clean up and safely store the waste, not to mention rebuild the mountains, replant the forests, and decontaminate the oceans, rivers and aquifers. Scientists have begun to label this post-industrial revolution period the "Anthropocene Age" because of the huge impact we humans are having on every aspect of life on earth.
    
We need more energy?
Let’s spend our money on conservation and renewables, ending poverty and promoting peace.
     
Aldo Leopold, considered the "father of wildlife ecology," author of A Sand County Almanac, wrote something that should be part of every school child’s earliest lessons: "We abuse the land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect." The Lakota say, "Mitakuye Oyasin" which roughly translates as, "We are all related."
     
The Hopis have released a statement that says, in part, "Humanity is now choosing the path upon which all life will follow and we have known this time would come. In this time of change, we ask all the people of the world to return to a more balanced way of life." We've been hearing Indigenous Peoples saying similar things for decades. We’re certain this represents a point of view that is widely shared among all of us who are a part of Plenty. It is definitely shared among all the people at the Right Livelihood 30th Anniversary Conference in Bonn last fall. It's even showing signs of becoming almost fashionable. Almost.
     
At the same time, a thoughtful observer could be forgiven for suggesting in 2011 that the human race seems determined to keep sowing the seeds of its own destruction, that too many of us are unlikely to "return to a more balanced way of life," and, in any event, it’s probably already too late. If we believed that we might be tempted to close Plenty’s doors and head for the hills. One of the numerous reasons we don’t is—it’s just too depressing! A long time ago we learned that doing something for others, working to make things better, is the key to happiness—so there’s even a selfish reason for helping. And one more thing, we are continually witnessing the unrestrained joy, playfulness and passion for life exhibited by children living in the most miserable circumstances imaginable. If nothing else, we have to do whatever we can for them.

                                                                                      Gratefully yours,
                                                                                      Peter Schweitzer                               
                                                                                      Executive Director