MIke Nickerson was here

by Beatrice

Mike Nickerson came to Hamilton yesterday night (Car Free Day).
Hosted by Environment Hamilton's Climate Change Project and OPIRG McMaster he spoke to a mostly empty room!

What a great disappointment that so few people showed up but those who did listened to this eloquent and life affirming speaker give an inspiring talk on sustainability and the move away from over consumption and greed.

Nickerson, whose been immersed in questions of sustainability for over 35 years now, has developed some really helpful analogies to assist in clarifying the points he makes.

For instance he talked about our civilization coming out of it's infancy and adolescence (and what an enfant terrible we have been; "a young offender," really) and how now we're entering our "mature age."

Nickerson makes the analogy of a caterpillar whose main concern from morning to night is to grab at the bio- mass around it to feed itself. It does no more than feed, but once it emerges out of it's cocoon to become a butterfly, it barely consumes at all. Instead it lives as lightly on the earth as is naturally possible.

There are many that wish to remain caterpillars and would prevent the butterflies from emerging but the "Great Transformation" that will lead us into our mature state of butterflyhood has already begun.

You missed the talk but you can still buy his book Money life and Illusion living on Earth as if we want to stay, and you can always invite him to come out and speak.

Just don't pick a Saturday night!

Also Maggie Hughes of The Other side Radio CFMU 93.3 FM recorded the show(see her link at the links section). Hopefully you can catch it there.

Note; Nickerson and his wife Donna have been handing out business card size info about sustainability and long term well-being and his 7th Generation Initiative project for over a decade.
A question of direction: Is it proper, now that our biggest problems result from our size, to hold growth as a goal?
For more see his site; www.SustainWellBeing.net