🌿 PEAT October Newsletter
🌿PEAT newsletter October 1st ‘The Power of Imagination’
What would the world be like without the of power imagination? Story telling down the centuries has created culture and identity the world over. For babies and children how important is play in how they learn and develop. What imagination did it take, for example to build the pyramids, develop Einstein’s theory of relativity, or closer to home who knew knitted barnacles can help stabilise salt marsh. In spite of all its troubles how important and long lasting has the NHS been since its inception in 1948. The words of Martin Luther King
‘I have a dream’, in the speech he made in 1963 on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, still echo today.
All are the outcome of the power of imagination, the power of seeing things differently, better, creating a lasting legacy for the future. What might we imagine for our future? It’s a generally held belief that most of us want to leave the world in a better position for the next generation, but given all that we know it’s hard to see how that’s going to happen.
Yet what a time it is to be alive, what a contribution we can make, if we choose. When future generations ask what did you do when you knew, what will we, or I answer? Joanna Macy an environmental activist, and writer of many books, talks about the Great Turning in response to the crises we face, and describes a process of a monumental shift in perspective and behaviour. It requires imagination beyond our current reality, and instead of seeing the challenges as what we might lose, she sees it as a chance to see what might be gained by creating a greener, fairer, future.
Rob Hopkins who started Transition Towns asks groups of people to imagine themselves into the future, what might their home, street, school, place of work be like. I’ve put a link into a video below, it’s very powerful, and all of it is already happening somewhere in the world. So it’s not beyond our will and our powers of imagination. Where are the ‘pockets of the future’ on our doorstep? The community orchard, food planting and growing for community use, the Repair Cafe, supporting the circular economy, reuse, recycle, repair, Waste into Well Being in Kendal doing what it says on the tin, and many more. At the recent Dark Skies event, Jack Ellerby made the powerful point that some things can be done immediately to make a real difference to our wildlife, our environment and people, by taking a few simple steps to reduce our light pollution.
Of course these are tiny steps, but if we all use our power of imagination together how much more could we do? We are meeting with local councillors shortly to see what commitments and changes we can work together on to create a more positive, hopeful future on our peninsula, we will keep you updated. At PEAT we positively welcome your imagination, your ideas, and energy, get in touch we would love to hear from you. peatmessages@gmail.com ‘Whatever you do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.’ * On that note congratulations to SLACC for their tenacity, and power of imagination in all the work they did with Friends of the Earth on Cumbrian coal mine campaign.
* Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Warm wishes Annette (Chair)