Setting Goals

This morning I had conversations with a few friends about the feasibility of proceeding with a 1in7b film series this summer. I was counseled: (1) to remain sensitive to my own energy levels and (2) to be open to recruiting enthusiastic assistance from others. Good advice.

So this afternoon, as I began ruminating on all this, I returned to Films For Action's Guide to Hosting a Public Film Screening. Right there in front of me the first two sentences were, "Decide on an outcome. What do you want to accomplish with the event?" Then the page offered three or four suggestions. Well, yes! I DO want to accomplish ALL of those possible goals. Yet the question haunts me, "What do you want to accomplish?"

My first realization is that film screenings are LOCAL and my deepest goals are global. So what if thirty, or a hundred, or even a thousand (unlikely) people in Little Rock watch a documentary film? What difference will it make in the big picture? This is a crucial question. (but for that matter, what difference does it make if fifty or even several hundred read my postings on Facebook? Who knows?)

Either way, 1in7b as a Facebook page and a Website, has two goals, (1) to be a positive force globally, and (2) to be a positive force locally in Little Rock and in Arkansas. Except for promoting good films to a broader audience, the "1in7b Film Series" would contribute little to the first goal. But since film screenings are local the films could indeed contribute to the second. How would this project be helpful locally?

At this point, I want to emphasize that there are MANY groups and organizations doing outstanding work in Central Arkansas along the lines that I wish to encourage. My ONLY hope is to contribute to the wonderful work they have been doing for years. I could list many of these, but here I will only mention Just Communities of Arkansas. Believe me, there are many others.

What, then, could we hope to add to the efforts already being undertaken in the City and around the State? (1) We can support their ongoing efforts. (2) We can help raise awareness to the issues we all believe are important both here at home and around the globe. (3) We can help coordinate the efforts of disparate groups working toward the same ends. In any case, we must do the first. The second is always worthwhile, whether it involves arranging movie screenings or other activities. The third is more ambitious and clearly beyond my own personal skills (or my present calling), but worthwhile nonetheless.

There are many goals such as these we could adopt. If anyone ELSE wants to lead one of these I will happily contribute, and if anyone else has other suggestions I will gladly listen. Otherwise, I suggest that we might want to consider what it would take for Little Rock, Arkansas to become a "Compassionate City".

If we, as a city, decide to accept this goal, 1in7b would be more than happy to host screenings of documentaries to support this goal. This would include bringing to Central Arkansas films related to poverty and hunger, human rights and equality, climate and environment, and peace and non-violence.

Can we begin this summer? To be honest I see no rush, but I'm also open to moving forward. The goal of becoming a "Compassionate City" is clearly several years in the offing, but when do we start?

The bottom line is we (I) won't pursue a film series in 2014 unless I sense a ground swell of support for moving forward now. But this does not mean I have given up on the idea, not by any means. If we begin now we can (1) start this year, or (2) begin to coordinate our efforts and promote a bang-up series in 2015.

As always, I am open to the leading of Spirit. Thank you for reading, and thank you for responding.

Open Response to Sen. Boozman

A few days ago I sent an email to Senator Boozman expressing my concerns about the Keystone XL Pipeline. Here is his reply.

Thank you for contacting me with your opposition to a TransCanada Keystone XL Pipeline. It is good to hear from you.

I certainly understand your concerns about the pipeline and the possible effects on our communities and wildlife. However, I also feel strongly that we need to use the vast oil resources we have in North America to lower gas prices and lessen our dependence on foreign oil from unstable regions. This pipeline would not only add more energy to the supply lines, but the profits from that energy would go towards American businesses and create more jobs. The best way to achieve sustainable oil and gasoline prices for Arkansas families is to increase domestic production. Also, the Canadians are developing their resources, so the questions are whether the United States will benefit or whether the resources will go to competitors, like China. While we do not see eye-to-eye on this issue, you should know that, at this time, a final determination on the pipeline has not been reached. Please be assured that I will keep your concerns in mind as we move forward debating energy issues like this pipeline.

Again, thank you for contacting me on this very important issue. Please be sure to visit our website at www.boozman.senate.gov . I look forward to your continued correspondence.

Sincerely,
John Boozman
U.S. Senator

Senator Boozman,

Thank you for your reply. Since you have welcomed my continued correspondence, I will respond.

You wrote, "I certainly understand your concerns about the pipeline and the possible effects on our communities and wildlife." I'm sorry, Senator, but I don't believe you do, or you would have responded differently. But for the moment let's say you do understand. You go on to write, "I also feel strongly that we need to use the vast oil resources we have in North America to lower gas prices and lessen our dependence on foreign oil from unstable regions. This pipeline would not only add more energy to the supply lines, but the profits from that energy would go towards American businesses and create more jobs. The best way to achieve sustainable oil and gasoline prices for Arkansas families is to increase domestic production." Here are my responses:

• If we pursue using up the vast fossil fuel resources in North America, this action will:
  1. substantially exacerbate climate change in important ways, and
  2. significantly increase risks of other forms of air and water pollution.
  .
• There is no reliable evidence that such a course of action will lower gas prices. None.
• There is no evidence that this course will lessen our dependence on oil from unstable regions.
• The profits from tar sands energy will contribute insignificantly toward American businesses.
• The profits from tar sands energy will not create a meaningful number of new jobs.

Then you make another questionable statement, and one I consider highly worrisome:

• The Canadians are developing their resources, so the questions are
  • whether the United States will benefit or
  • whether the resources will go to competitors, like China.

Wrong. The Canadians are trying to exploit their resources, but they need our complicity to do so. Really, they do. And yes, they will continue to try without us, but don't think for a moment they will be able to destroy the planet nearly to the same degree without our collusion. We, however, will not benefit. Competitors, like China, will benefit either way, but not nearly as much if we just say NO to the Pipeline.

You claim that "the best way to achieve sustainable oil and gasoline prices for Arkansas families is to increase domestic production." You know, of course, that "Canadian" is not "domestic", but for the sake of argument let's say that the tar sands deposits were in Montana and the Dakotas. The best way to achieve sustainable energy and energy prices for Arkansas families is to increase production of renewable energy resources, which (1) are increasingly cost effective, and (2) and are being increasingly attacked by the fossil fuel industry (for obvious reasons).

Senator, in my responses I have challenged your statements, but it is not my intent to be confrontational. We are both citizens of the great state of Arkansas, and we are both citizens of the USA and planet Earth. We truly are in this together, and I sincerely wish to work together. Furthermore, I concede that I have made a number of unsubstantiated assertions. I believe they are defensible, though, and I would love the opportunity to examine the evidence with you, should you wish. Your call.

Finally, you acknowledge that "a final determination on the pipeline has not been reached." Yes, and that is precisely my reason for writing. To be frank, Secretary Clinton's Department of State was not entirely encouraging in this regard. They made mistakes, serious mistakes. And honestly I've not been much more encouraged by Secretary Kerry's State Department. If the Administration ends up making the right decision to deny the KXL Pipeline permit, Congress should endorse this position. If, on the other hand, the Administration folds to pressure and approves the permit, the American people will demand that Congress override this decision. Our country must do the right thing for ourselves, for our children, and for the children of the world. As a former president once said (and I paraphrase) we will be dead before our legacy is written, but is shirking our duty what we want for our legacy? Not me.

Please do not ignore the science.

Sincerely,
Dr. Donnal Walter

Another cover

I had intended to take a few weeks, even months, to accumulate enough new profile pictures to create a new cover photo-mosaic for the 1in7b Facebook page. Surprisingly, I've had no trouble collecting images for a second cover in as many weeks, which has turned out to be a remarkably fulfilling creative outlet for me.

As you may have have guessed, I spend a fair amount of time online. While doing so, I pay close attention to the images on various web sites and Facebook pages. I am particularly interested in "profile images" that would fit well into the next mosaic. Take a look at the image for this week:

My technique has evolved and the image above is double resolution, but here is how I select and arrange the individual images to be included in this composite. Some of this profiles are from my own Facebook friends. Some are celebrities for one reason or another. Many are unknown to me. But they all have a story; they all have hopes and dreams, joys and sorrows. Each one is a UNIQUE individual, and all are alike in more ways that we often recognize. Some have lived a long life, even died, such as Maria von Trapp who was 99 years old at her death this week; others have their entire lives ahead of them.

I have enjoyed spending a few minutes examining each profile wondering about the person represented. Why is her or his picture online? What were their lives like before the picture? What has happened since? The point is that we are all unique individuals and we ALL have a unique role to play in our communities, our nations, and the world. I am one in seven billion people on this planet. One person can only do so much, but SO MUCH is what I can and must do.

1in7b Cover

The Cover of 1in7b is a composite of profile pictures from around the globe. Fewer than ninety, these images are intended to represent the seven billion people who populate our world. A few of them I know personally and relate to regularly; most of them I have never met and may not even know their names. They are all real people with fears and concerns, dreams and aspirations.

Although I am not an artist by any stretch, my creative side would now like to make a new cover. Don't worry, I don't plan to abandon the concept of a few profile images standing in for the seven billion, but it seems appropriate to rotate these. I thought about just changing one or two occasionally, but on further reflection it seems better to change the entire Cover from time to time.

So here is my plan. First, I have been collecting images from various sources and saving them to a PowerPoint file. The originals are stored with full resolution so that when they are cropped and reduced in size, they will be as crisp as possible. Second, I will begin the process of cropping and reducing these to 53 x 53 pixel images, which will also to be stored on the same PPT file. This allows for easy manipulation and sorting. Third, I will move these images to a new composite image to be uploaded to Facebook, which will require cropping the top and bottom rows.

Here are the specs. Each of the profiles is 53x53 pixels. The space between each one is 3 pixels. There are 15x6 cells in the entire cover image for a total of 90. Some may be combined as 53x109 pixels or 109x53 pixels or 109x109 pixels. The edges are 7 pixels in width and 6 pixels in height. The entire image is 15*53 + 14*3 + 2*7 pixels in width and 6*53 + 5*3 + 2*6 in height or 851 x 345 pixels.

IPCC Fifth Assessment Report (AR5)

The Final Draft of the Working Group I contribution to the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) is due out at the end of this month. It is under active consideration this week. In anticipation of this event, I want to review the relevance of this group and its work.

Under the auspices of the United Nations (UN), the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the leading international scientific body for the assessment of climate change. It reviews and assesses the most recent scientific, technical and socio-economic information produced worldwide relevant to the understanding of climate change. It does not conduct any research nor does it monitor climate related data or parameters.

Thousands of scientists from all over the world contribute to the work of the IPCC on a voluntary basis. Review is an essential part of the IPCC process, to ensure an objective and complete assessment of current information. IPCC aims to reflect a range of views and expertise. The Secretariat coordinates all the IPCC work and liaises with Governments. It is supported by WMO and UNEP and hosted at WMO headquarters in Geneva.

Established in 1988, the IPCC has produced four previous Assessment Reports (1990, 1995, 2001, and 2007). The Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) will provide a clear view of the current state of scientific knowledge relevant to climate change. It will comprise three Working Group (WG) reports and a Synthesis Report (SYR). It is the first of these WG reports that is due out at the end of this week.

What will we learn?

We don't know yet, really. The report has not yet be published. Not surprisingly, however, there have been leaks, some of them controversial. It has been published, for example, that the report will show that "carbon dioxide could have a smaller impact on global temperatures than scientists predicted in 2007, opening the possibility greenhouse gas emissions do not have to be radically cut." At the same time it has also been reported that the effects of global warming are more severe than previously thought. Writing the report is an iterative process. How about if we wait and see what it says at the end of the week?

Nonetheless, no one is predicting that AR5 will substantially reverse previous Assessment Reports in the consensus that global warming is caused primarily by human emissions of greenhouse gasses. Pertinent questions will of course include the relative degrees of various forcings, revised rates of change, and likely consequences of climate change. Some of these findings may be somewhat speculative as well, but this report, the most up to date information available, is not expected to call into question the reality of man-made global warming and climate change. If it does, I will be among the first to post such a statement here.

The Paradox of Peace

Today, as every day, I will pray for peace, but today I will also participate in the global prayer vigil for peace called for by Pope Francis six days ago. The invitation is to everyone, "including our non-Catholic Christian brothers, followers of other religions and all men of good will, to participate, in whatever way they can, in this initiative."

"We will gather in prayer and in a spirit of penance, invoking God's great gift of peace upon the beloved nation of Syria and upon each situation of conflict and violence around the world. Humanity needs to see these gestures of peace and to hear words of hope and peace."

The vigil in St. Peter's Square from 7 pm to 11 pm today (September 7) will include a recital of the rosary, eucharistic adoration, Scripture readings, a papal blessing and remarks by Pope Francis. Hundreds of thousands of others of all faiths and in hundreds of locations around the world are expected to join the vigil in their own ways. My own participation will be to meditate at the Arkansas House of Prayer (AHOP) with a few friends at noon CDT (7 pm in Rome). All are welcome. In contrast to the event in St. Peter's Square, our practice at the AHOP is to observe silence, quiet the mind, and seek the face of the Divine within.

Which brings me to the paradox of peace. Peace begins within the human heart, within my heart. Gandhi said, "Be the change you want to see in the world." This means that world peace begins with me. So why not meditate and pray in my own closet? I certainly could and many will do just that from wherever they are today. But when I sit in silence in the meditation room with two or twenty others, my own spirit becomes more aware of the Divine center within those around me, and together we unify our spirits with all those gathered around the world. We sense more deeply that we are not separate egos. We are one with everyone and we cry out with all those who suffer the ravages of violence wherever they are.

The AHOP event today is a prelude to another on September 21, the International Day of Peace, at 7:00 pm (Midnight GMT), when all who can are invited to join us at the AHOP for BeThePeace Little Rock. Hundreds of millions are expected to meditate simultaneously in one of the largest globally-synchronized meditation and prayer events in history. Peace begins with me; yet I cannot truly be at peace until the human family lives in peace.

And so I have been accused of being an idealist. Guilty, but I am not naïve. Conflict and violence will not end this month. Nonetheless, I find great hope in the combined efforts of over eighty organizations in more than four hundred cities around the world in asking twenty percent of the world's population to think and pray about peace on that day, as I do so in stillness. That is the paradox.

We "Did the Math." Now what?

By all accounts, the screening of Do the Math at Market Street Cinema last month was a success: good crowd, lot's of enthusiasm. But what exactly did we accomplish? Here are my thoughts ten days out.

First, a few of us had previously seen the film online, but viewing it on the big screen with a large gathering is a whole different experience, very inspiring and worth the effort. Second, I believe it raised awareness in the community by a small but significant amount. Not a few people said they had no idea of the magnitude of the issue, and others already sympathetic to the cause said they learned a lot. Third, the screening led directly to several actions toward divestment and reinvestment being initiated. This takes time, of course, but the ball was started rolling. (For those interested in learning more about divestment and reinvestment GreenFaith is offering a Webinar on July 15 you can view at home, live or recorded.) Fourth, several people asked how they can get a copy of the film to show their friends. Not only the trailer, but the movie is on YouTube. Finally, it's gratifying to have brought together many related groups and causes. At the risk of leaving some out, I counted individuals with ties to:

• Arkansas Interfaith Power and Light
• Sierra Club, Central Arkansas Group
• Just Communities of Arkansas
• Little Rock Summer of Solutions
• GreenFaith
• Episcopal Peace Fellowship of Arkansas
• Occupy Little Rock
• Occupy Arkansas
• Arkansans Concerned About Oil Pipelines
• Mayflower Arkansas Oil Spill
• St. Margaret's Episcopal Church

So what do we do now? Soon I hope to write a separate essay on what our next steps might be, but the second film in the One in Seven Billion series is Occupy Love, a documentary that frames the crises of our time as the greatest love story on earth.