January 1, 2020

by drplasticpicker

Today is the first day of a new decade. The last decade that I actually knew what to call was the 1990s. The decade of my youth, when we were all into techno, dancing that Roger Rabbit and “raising the roof.” My children cringe when I show them the dances we used to do in college! The 2000s and 2010s, what were they called? I don’t think any of us really knew. But now it is the twenties, and it has a definite name and a definite goal. Our goal is to save ourselves from mass extinction and to rewild our earth. So on that note, I am truly hopeful because as famed anthropologist Margaret Mead said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world, indeed, it is the only thing that every has. ”

Five Reasons to be Hopeful on the First Day of The Year 2020.

1. $13.6 B solar park in the Dubai desert: I know energy and the middle east and oil is complicated. I need to learn more about the middle east and the different countries. But the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is starting phase 4 of finishing a solar farm that will power as many as 13 million homes, reducing carbon emissions by 6.5 million tonnes annually. It includes mirrors called heliostats that will power steam turbines and generate electricity. As long as you are not a bird, this is generally good for the earth.
2. UK Establishing 500 Million Pound “Blue Planet Fund” to Protect Oceans: I got this from the BrightVibes feed which is fantastic by the way. This fund will protect oceans from plastic pollution, warming sea temperatures and overfishing. The Queen of England addressed this environmental project and companies are involved and hope to “bring systematic change needed that will ultimately see businesses radically alter their entire approach to waste.”
3. UK Bans Exporting Polluting Plastic Waste: That’s it. Some of the most important changes are simple.
4. Oregon State Ban on Plastic Bags Begins Today: It is that simple. Oregon’s state ban on plastic bags is effective today January 1, 2020. Oregon borders the Pacific Ocean, and I’m sure some of those bags have floated down to the beach I clean.
5. This Blog: drplasticpicker.com started as a journey of mindfulness, wellness and environmental exploration. Now at 42, I think I know who I was always meant to be! It has been 122 days of being drplasticpicker, and going to the beach most days. I have picked up 119 grocery bags full of trash, salvaged 510 items, written 90 environment-themed blog post, 195 instagram followers, averaging 200 pageviews a day, and through effective strategic donations of not more than what a reasonable person spends of “wellness” have preserved 2,456 acres of mother nature (from mangrove forests, Kenyan rangelands and many acres of our beloved Peruvian rainforest) and saved 150,000 rainforest trees.

There is so much to be hopeful because I have accomplished a lot, and there are much more remarkable people than drplasticpicker out there fighting for the earth! So I have joined the movement of millions of people individually working to save the earth. The ploggers, the litter-pickers, the low-wasters, the zero-wasters, the recyclers, the reducers, Green Peace activists, Ocean Clean Up crew, Rainforest Trust amazing charity, trash artists and the ocean plastic pickers/beach cleaners – there are so many of us. How can we not be hopeful? Hopeful but determined and realistic and using the full force of our beings to change the course of history.

Here is the next blog post in this series https://drplasticpicker.com/1-8-2020-eight-reasons-to-be-hopeful/