Earth, Us

It's Earth Day!

Despite the fact that Mother Nature seems intent on keeping winter going in Minnesota until May, I still love her. In honor of Earth Day 2011 I thought I'd round up some salient articles that I hope will make us all more aware, concerned, and involved in protecting this precious resource that is our home.

Canada, which occupies some stunning bits of the planet, has compiled this Earth Day assessment.

The Huffington Post has rounded up 9 Earthly books you should read. On this list is The World Without Us - a book I love!

The Wilderness Society offers links to volunteer opportunities.

As a person who loves the wilderness, and wolves in particular, on this Earth Day I want to raise awareness about Predator Defense. Often villainized and mischaracterized predators are an essential part of ecology and deserve our respect and protection from exploitation and the ever-present threat of extermination. This topic is especially worrying given that Congress has voted to de-list wolves from their endangered status.

Earth Day should make us sit up and pay attention to the crises that threaten our fragile planet, but don't think about the environment today and take it for granted tomorrow. We are not guests here, we are made of and sustained by this planet. To abuse, poison, and destroy the earth is to rend our own flesh and break our own bones.Today is just the starting line but the race - upon which our lives depend - is only beginning.