Light in the Darkness: Earth Hour

1. All praise is due to Allah, Who created the heavens and the earth and made the darkness and the light; yet those who disbelieve set up equals with their Lord.

97. And He it is Who has made the stars for you that you might follow the right way thereby in the darkness of the land and the sea; truly We have made plain the communications for a people who know.

122. Is he who was dead then We raised him to life and made for him a light by which he walks among the people, like him whose likeness is that of one in utter darkness whence he cannot come forth? Thus what they did was made fair seeming to the unbelievers.

~Surah 6 Anam (The Cattle)

A couple years ago, there was a storm (small tornado?) in the Montgomery County area that made us all lose power for a couple of days. It was a hassle not to rely on electricity for light, not to have a way to preserve our food, and of course, have no INTERNET ACCESS. Good Lord, what would become of us? The TV wasn't a loss because we had already stopped watching mainstream TV, but we still relied on DVD's for entertainment and the internet for instant gratification. Still, those few hours during which we were 'disconnected' from the world were some of the most peaceful hours I've ever experienced. For the first time, the stars were distinct and visible from our porch. There was a general hush that replaced the usual pace of traffic, and time itself slowed down. With no other distractions, we all found ourselves reading by candlelight and dosing off to sleep much earlier than ever possible. It was the kind of beautiful experience that only happens when you slow your pace and simplify. Of course, it also reduces carbon emissions, doubling its beauty. Which is why I'm inviting everyone to join me in observing "Earth Hour" for one hour on March 23rd by turning off all your lights and anything else that you can that uses electricity between 8 and 9 PM.

(From http://www.earthhour.org/about)
It started with a question: How can we inspire people to take action on climate change? The answer: Ask the people of Sydney to turn off their lights for one hour. On 31 March 2007, 2.2 million people and 2100 Sydney businesses turned off their lights for one hour - Earth Hour. This massive collective effort reduced Sydney's energy consumption by 10.2% for one hour, which is the equivalent effect of taking 48,000 cars off the road for one hour.
With Sydney icons like the Harbour Bridge and Opera House turning their lights off, and unique events such as weddings by candlelight, the world took notice. Inspired by the collective effort of millions of Sydneysiders, many major global cities are joining Earth Hour in 2008, turning a symbolic event into a global movement.

The Story of ....Stuff!

We've committed ourselves to reducing our consumption for different reasons: Ramadhan highlighted the search for increased spirituality and improved quality of life. More recently, we've discussed the environmental consequences of the production and destruction of the materials, many of which are toxic. Annie Leonard's video, The Story of Stuff, ties all of the globalization processes together and explores the unseen exploitation that makes all the mass consumption possible. Her main premise is that corporations have crated vast empires of cheap production and rapid consumption by externalizing the true and full costs of their production and services. Overall, the video is an excellent reflection on not only our consumer behavior, but also every single entity (corporation, policies, etc) that is putting all its might into encouraging us to buy, buy, BUY!

http://www.storyofstuff.com/index.html



It’s not all bad, though. I think one of our fundamental jobs is to re-evaluate, re-define, and re-articulate our goals and lifestyles. After all, if we take a second look, there are several alternative markets that don’t exist to be “green”, they just exist because that’s how people get by. My own mother, for instance, grew up with a mother that sewed for the whole neighborhood (local, fair labor, anyone?) and relatives that owned farms. She spent summers shucking corn and pickling peppers and jamming fruit, and browsing through yard sales, flee markets and antique road shows. Now this was all in Tennessee (represent!), in a community of middle class (and conservative, mind you) families. Wherever we look, we’ll find networks of alternative goods and services, from the black market to Craig’s List.

Things were a little different for me and my brother. For one thing, we were living in the crowded and polluted (although beloved) city of Tehran. Growing up on a budget in the bustling capital of Iran, we had less, or almost no access to the local farms. And yard sales don’t exactly serve a necessary function in Iran. As far as I know, no one has an excess of material wealth that could be displayed on some lawn during a sunny Saturday morning. As a kid, I considered the fate of all the trash people were so comfortable to toss in the streets; the shiny candy wrappers and old plastic bags floating in the wind. I was totally unaware of the social and environmental costs of that “American” (and thus, I thought, HIGH QUALITY) T-shirt, which coincidentally was made in China anyway. The bazaars and street shops of Tehran are a different story than the malls, Target and Best Buy stores of the US, which brings me back to The Story of Stuff. As citizens, individuals, teachers, policy makers, company leaders, students, and families, we can do a lot to change our perception of what we need in our lives. But the video explores interactions on a global scale, and there’s a lot more to be done than only buy non-sweatshop clothing, and fair-trade chocolate (not that either of those methods aren't important and a good start). I’ll leave that discussion for another time though…

What the world eats in a week

Italy: The Manzo family of Sicily
Food expenditure for one week: 214.36 Euros or $260.11

Germany: The Melander family of Bargteheide
Food expenditure for one week: 375.39 Euros or $500.07


United States: The Revis family of North Carolina
Food expenditure for one week $341.98

Mexico: The Casales family of Cuernavaca
Food expenditure for one week: 1,862.78 Mexican Pesos or $189.09

Poland: The Sobczynscy family of Konstancin-Jeziorna
Food expenditure for one week: 582.48 Zlotys or $151.27

Egypt: The Ahmed family of Cairo
Food expenditure for one week: 387.85 Egyptian Pounds or $68.53

Ecuador: The Ayme family of Tingo
Food expenditure for one week: $31.55

Bhutan: The Namgay family of Shingkhey Village
Food expenditure for one week: 224.93 ngultrum or $5.03

Chad: The Aboubakar family of Breidjing Camp
Food expenditure for one week: 685 CFA Francs or $1.23


(Thanks to Lena for the info. And to Sabira for this link)

Concientious Consumer Curbing your Consumption

It's been a while since I contributed, but I wanted to share this article that I came across courtesy of SeekersDigest.org. It's about the careful comsumer and watching how much we eat. It focuses on the size of our servings and what influences our food choices as a society.

Let me know your thoughts.

I love gifts :)

Following up Anila's post below, I wanted to share two good resources for those planning to buy presents when visiting family and friends for the upcoming holiday weekend or 'Eid or birthdays or whenever.

From Treehugger - How to Green Your Gifts (here). The top 10 tips:

1. Be sure your material gift will get used
2. Give a consumable gift
3. Share a piece of yourself
4. Make a gift of a green service
5. Make a gift of any service
6. Give a gift where it is needed on behalf of someone better off
7. Creative gifts show you care
8. Buy a local gift
9. Buy high-quality goods
10. 10. Think about your packaging

They also publish a yearly green holiday guide (here), for those of you that can't get away with just baking cookies, like me ;)

Not dead

Don't fear, the Ramadan Compact is still alive. We have some great posts in the works. And some of us are even trying to continue our compacting until the next Ramadan. Check back to see all the new stuff.

In the meanwhile, some (electronic) food for thought:

GUARDIAN: Face to Faith
By Hamza Yusuf

This article originally appeared in the Guardian Unlimited.

Hunger can bring out the worst in us. In a wonderful scene in Shakespeare's As You Like It, a desperate and hungry Orlando comes upon Duke Senior and his exiled court in the forest, who are about to start dinner. Assuming the law of the jungle presides in Arden, Orlando brandishes his sword and demands food upon pain of death. Duke Senior rebukes him for his lack of civility, and wisely adds: "Your gentleness shall force, more than your force move us to gentleness." Orlando responds: "I almost die for food, and let me have it." Unfazed, the duke says: "Sit down and feed, and welcome to our table." Orlando is shamed by the duke's gallantry and explains that hunger had bred violence in him.

Almost four centuries later another bard, Bob Marley, melodically reminded us: "Them belly full, but we hungry / A hungry mob is an angry mob." We all know the primal nature of hunger; we have experienced the irritability that comes from missing breakfast or skipping our cup of morning coffee or tea. We hyperbolically talk of "starving" when a mealtime draws near. Our food trysts are now frequent every day in what sociologists refer to as "repeated food contacts" and farmers simply call grazing. At the drop of a hat, we indulge in lattes and biscotti. Many people no longer eat three "square" meals but rather graze all day, with Starbucks troughs sprouting up everywhere to ensure none suffer the pangs of hunger or the pain of caffeine withdrawal. In the lands of plenty in the west, we tend to forget that the abundance and easy accessibility of food was not always so and is not as widespread even now.

Few of us who have the luxury of reading the daily paper over a cup of coffee and a piece of toast slathered with rich butter and marmalade have ever gone hungry intentionally, unless we succumbed to some ridiculous crash diet. But there was a time in the west when Lent, which commemorates Christ's 40-day fast in the desert, meant fasting all day and eating one meal at night. As time passed that tradition devolved into a semi-fast and now means merely giving up something one really likes, such as chocolate.

Even our portions of food and drink are much greater than what our grandparents had. In the midst of this cornucopia of consumption, millions of Muslims voluntarily abstain from food, drink and sex during daylight hours in the month of Ramadan. They watch their co-workers eat and drink throughout the day, and occasionally have to apologise for not joining in due to their religious observance. Fasting for a month makes them aware of hunger as a palpable physical sensation, not a remote occurrence they read about in the newspaper. When the UN tells us that almost a billion people suffer from hunger and malnutrition and 25,000 people a day die from hunger, a faster appreciates these statistics in ways that remain distant to others.

But fasting is not just about giving up food and drink. It's about tending to "the better angels of our nature". The prophet Muhammad said, "If one is not willing to give up bad behaviour during his fast, God has no need for him to give up his food and drink." Muslims are encouraged during this time to be better people, to treat others with more deference. If enticed to argue, the faster is advised to respond: "I am fasting."

There are many ways to be hungry. One can hunger for love, or fame or social justice, but hunger for food seems to curb all other cravings. In being aware of others' hunger, we contribute to a more empathic world. Perhaps, if, like Duke Senior, we responded to the cries of the myriad desperate Orlandos foraging in the forests of famine out there with hospitality and help, they might be coaxed into civility themselves. Certainly, hunger can bring out the worst in us. But it can also bring out the best.

Guardian Unlimited (c) Guardian News and Media Limited 2007

Where Are All the Green Toys At?

The Ramadan Compact seems to have trickled into my every shopping experience.

I went to Target (my most favorite shopping venue) yesterday to buy a gift for my nephew and a few friends who have young children.

As I walked down the toy aisles looking at the selection I had second thoughts about purchasing anything. I looked at all that packaging for just one toy and could not stomach having it go into the landfill.

More importantly, and I have been having this on-again off-again conversation with my sister, what am I teaching the children around me. As an adult I have had to struggle with realizing that happiness and fulfillment do not come from things. I often wonder if I learned this lesson as a child and if I am, inadvertently, teaching the young children in my life this lesson?

Here’s another dilemma. I like giving gifts to kids. It’s just so much and fun and they get such joy out of it.

As I stood among the selection of toys contemplating what to do, a few choice thoughts crossed my mind.

1. I could go ahead and purchase toys. I mean who at the Ramadan Compact would know that I was living out of integrity with my core values.

2. I could not purchase anything and explain the environmental and socio-political impact of purchasing toys to the kiddies. I just have a feeling that would not work.

3. I could give each kid a little certificate that says “A donation was made on your behalf to plant trees” or “save the whales”. That would go over really well with a five year old, don’t you think?

What is the middle of the road answer to wanting to be a responsible global environmental citizen and spoil a few kids with stuff they will play with for a few hours and then forget?

I did buy a few toys. Actually I bought kids craft kits packed in cloth bags with minimal packaging. As a bonus I will stuff the bags with candy. I figure the parents will really enjoy having their kids hyped up on sugar.

With the marvel of the internet I found a great activity. Having the kids hunt for treasure…Argh! I am creating a treasure map and inviting all the kiddies (about five very loud kids) over to my parents place to go treasure hunting. At the end of the treasure hunt they get their treasure (or craft kits).

Sure it’s not gold, or Sponge Bob, or Dora the Explorer paraphernalia. But isn’t the fun in searching for the treasure, sharing the fun, and getting doped up on sugar than the actual treasure. Something like…”it’s the journey not the destination that’s important”.

I’ll let you all know how it goes.

P.S. Some Companies that Make Ethical Eco-Friendly Toys (just found this in an internet search after I purchased the craft kits).
GreenToys.com
Peaceful Company.com
Think Button.com