EcoWorldly

Dear United States of the Past,

I am writing from the future. Well, kind of. You see, for me, it’s already January 1st of the year 2008. (Living in Korea, we’re a bit ahead of the trend, I guess you could say.)

I’m writing to remind you to enjoy a safe New Year’s Eve.

Enjoy today. These are the last moments of 2007, and for the environmental movement 2007 was a beautiful year. So cozy up with your favorite New Year’s grog and enjoy how far we’ve come. Here from the future are some of the greatest environmental victories of this past year.

In this year,

The environmental movement in general went mainstream around the world under the fashionable banner term “green.”

The United States finally made a commitment to international action on climate change.

The word “localvore” was the word of the year in the Oxford American Dictionary.

Demand for organic food continued to grow; in fact, organics caught on in a huge way and prices for organic products actually began to drop.

Japan held off on killing humpback whales under pressure from Australia.

Al Gore won the Nobel Prize and an Oscar for catalyzing the world around the issue of climate change.

Solar energy stocks skyrocketed and are continuing to shine brighter and brighter.

Britain announced plans to build the world’s largest wind farm off the coast of Devon.

Corporations around the world embraced efficiency and environmental responsibility.

The biggest music concert in the history of the human race, Live Earth, was held to inspire environmental activism.

Hybrid cars caught on like wildfire and Electric cars are on the verge of making a massive and welcome return to the markets and roads.

Biofuels hit the market with great, building momentum.

Organic cotton clothing became readily available.

Fair trade became mainstream, benefiting farmers around the world with fair prices and stronger local economies. Some countries and many people are now looking to replace “free trade” treaties with “fair trade” treaties.

Tulley’s Coffee started using compostable cups to serve their 100% fair trade coffee. Starbucks also sold one heck of a lot of organic and fair trade coffee. Green Mountain Coffee Roasters also went huge this year with fair trade coffee.

In summary, there were many great accomplishments for the environmental movement all around the world. So on this New Years Eve, take a moment to appreciate that we’re a little bit healthier, a little bit greener, and a little bit better able to appreciate and protect the natural environment around us.

References and Resources:

In 2007 | JibJab (This is just funny.)

Photo Credit:

Whitney Hannaford

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