I have long read Seth Godin’s writings; each day, Seth sends me a message to my inbox with his thought for the day. Over the summer, I read about his work with the crew working on the book and website The Carbon Almanac. I have been reading a lot of books lately about Climate Change. The Uninhabitable Earth by David Wallace-Wells, The New Climate Wars by Michael E. Mann, The World Without Us by Alan Weisman, and I chose The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert for this summer’s faculty discussion book.

I am a farmer and old enough to have celebrated the first Earth Day when still in high school. I thought of myself as a good steward of the land and planet. I do my part with how I live my life, and yet when I heard my then thirteen-year-old granddaughter explain that teenagers are so depressed because they know the world is going to end, I was and still am sad and confused about how we ended up here.

We took on the Chlorofluorocarbons, found alternatives, and helped close the massive Ozone holes in our atmosphere. Each year in STEAM by Design, we use the theme of Sustainable Development Goals for projects and to raise awareness.

Yet, here we are with increasing Climate disasters and what seemed like fewer options going forward. That is when I saw the tag line to the book and website “It’s Not Too Late,” which is true as until we as a species draw our last breath of oxygen on this planet, it is not too late. That is why I like to spell the word Sustainable as Sustain ABLE since as long as we are ABLE, we can sustain this planet. That is why the actions Durham Academy have adopted are so important, as we are ABLE to put action and funding towards action for all of us on the planet.

We can all do something else that Seth suggests: to change our Search when we use the internet. I have done it and feel better already, although I have yet to plant a tree. It takes about 45 searches for that to happen. Read more at https://thecarbonalmanac.org/search/ and make the switch today. I also like getting The Daily Difference message from The Carbon Almanac as it gives me something to think about.