Document text
3 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Ashland publisher offers prize for environmental book Orthodox Church raising funds to build new home What does Uncle Foods weekly dinner mean to you? A place for food and fellowship Mother's Day brunch supports World Peace and Prayer Day Education Ashland Middle School students put their Spanish-speaking skills to the test Grizzlies claim speech championship Levy backers eye final push Neal Simon: This is a test Grade-school philanthropist Environment Ashland publisher offers prize for environmental book Ashland water bills could go up to fund watershed protection Stopping fire in its tracks Some trails, roads remain closed due to controlled burn Earth Day: Hope for our 'pale blue dot' Business Ashland Safeway closes Thursday, to reopen as Haggen on Sunday Cars We Remember: Car enthusiast wishes new model designs were ‘more different’ Ride & Drive: 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Silvio Calabi: Taxis and traffic in the olde worlde Airport Day returns May 16 Politics and elections Ashland water bills could go up to fund watershed protection BREAKING: Baltimore prosecutor charges officers in Gray's death Arthur I. Cyr: Cuba’s enduring challenge to American foreign policy – and American politics Kent Bush: Clinton 2.0 is neither new nor improved Arthur I. Cyr: Britain’s earthquake election State News Lack of snow nixes ski portion of popular Central Oregon race Bill under debate in Oregon would limit livestock antibiotics Oregon lawmakers begin minimum wage debate Runners to follow historic salmon migration path Nation - World There's a $10 million precious stone hidden in plain sight at Grand Central Obituaries R. Charles "Charlie" Snyder Death Notices Harry D. Detwiler Death Notices Death Notices Shareable Sports Latest Stories Ashland boys sweep doubles, beat GP Living on the edge SOU lands two on all-CCC softball team See you in August Wry & Ginger: A pitch to make national pastime better High school Ashland boys sweep doubles, beat GP Living on the edge SOU lands two on all-CCC softball team Ashland softball team rolls past Springfield Penn, Norvell, Baldrica pace Ashland track team at Crater Southern Oregon University SOU lands two on all-CCC softball team See you in August Same old Raiders Ashland softball team rolls past Springfield Who's got next? Voices Latest Stories Our View: Forest work is a bargain Letters to the Editor, May 8 Jeffrey Gillespie: Is there a right to offend? Dianne Williamson: Let’s end the marathon bomber saga Editor's Notes: This, that and the other Editorial Our View: Forest work is a bargain Our View: What price history? Our View: Waging peace after war Our View: Rail car roulette Our View: Reading the tea leaves Letters Letters to the Editor, May 8 Letters to the Editor, May 6 Letters to the Editor, May 5 Letters to the Editor, May1 Letters to the Editor, April 30 Guest opinions Guest Opinion: Restoring the Plaza's sense of place Guest Opinion: Making conservation a game Guest Opinion: A good day to act Guest Opinion: Allegations unfair to Dr. Tomashefsky Guest Opinion: Fremont cottonwood is not a hazard Columns Jeffrey Gillespie: Is there a right to offend? Editor's Notes: This, that and the other Mochas, Midrash and Mysteries: Balancing the gift and the task Chris Honoré: A wider context rarely discussed Guest Opinion: Restoring the Plaza's sense of place Chris Honore Council Corner Editor's Notes Jeffrey Gillespie Herb Rothschild Revels Latest Stories Peter Rowan, Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys at Rootsfest Movie listings: May 8-14 Dancing People Company presents 'Salon Series' 5 picks for live entertainment Prepare for lots of dialogue in 'Clouds of Sils Maria' Theater Ticket availability Ticket Availability Ticket Availability 'Arsenic and Old Lace' has killer charm Some OSF crew members seek to unionize Music The Farr Side: Mumford & Sons’ latest is full-on rock Interview: Country singer Suzy Bogguss enjoying life on the road The Farr Side: CMAs do it right, in many ways Interview: Offspring plays hits new and old on tour The Farr Side: Slow disappearance of physical music Visual Art Movies Movie review: ‘Hot Pursuit’ is a hot mess George Miller returns to his ‘Mad Max’ roots Tom Hardy adapts to life as Mad Max Movie listings: May 8-14 Prepare for lots of dialogue in 'Clouds of Sils Maria' Food and Drink Taqueria Picaro takes over Tabu space Owner of Mix and Amuse to bring Flip burger joint to Ashland Cruelest Month: Poetry Blog Lifestyle Latest Stories Looking Up: Once in a while a star blows up Health Watch: Easy tips to drink more water throughout the day Orthodox Church raising funds to build new home Antionette Kerr: Mother’s Day founder challenged commercialism Breathe easier with whole-house air purification Aging Happens Inner Peace Column Inner Peace Blog Mocha Musings Rogues: Tales from the Valley Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Photos Videos Blogs Business Business Services NEWS NOW Our View: Forest work is a bargain ... Ashland publisher offers prize for environmental book ... Ashland Calendar, Friday, May 8 ... Our View: Forest work is a bargain ... Ashland publisher offers prize for environmental book ... Ashland Calendar, Friday, May 8 ... WILD SIDE Earth Day: Hope for our 'pale blue dot' By Joseph Vaile DailyTidings.com By Joseph Vaile Posted Apr. 28, 2015 @ 8:12 pm By Joseph Vaile Posted Apr. 28, 2015 @ 8:12 pm » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2324,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> When I explained to my 3-year-old that we were going to ScienceWorks in Ashland to an Earth Day celebration, he asked, “What is Earth Day?” This inevitably led to that never-ending barrage of 3-year-old questions. Why? Why? Why? Trying desperately to find satisfying answers, ones that would end the questions, I started thinking more and more about “Earth Day.” The whole thing started to seem ludicrous. Do we really need a day to remind ourselves not to pollute and destroy the planet? Shouldn't it be obvious that we don’t want to ruin our one and only home? It was 45 years ago that 20 million Americans took part in the first-ever Earth Day. That day will be remembered as the coming of age of the environmental movement. Earth Day 1970 led to the creation of modern conservation laws — the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act and the National Environmental Policy Act. It elevated environmental consciousness, creating a public more in tune with the urgent need to create a sustainable relationship with our planet. Today, the polar ice caps are melting and the Amazon rain forest is still disappearing. Species are going extinct. And there are so many people. When my grandfather was born, the human population was less than two billion people. Today, we share our planet with seven billion other humans and most estimates show us reaching 10 billion in a few decades. The human footprint just keeps growing and we continue to alter Earth’s climate as well as its landscape, life forms and oceans. Is a sustainable relationship with Earth even possible? I hope so. As the famous astrophysicist Carl Sagan put it, in the “Pale Blue Dot”: "The Earth is the only world known, so far, to harbor life. There is nowhere else, at least in the near future, to which our species could migrate. Visit, yes. Settle, not yet. Like it or not, for the moment, the Earth is where we make our stand. "It has been said that astronomy is a humbling and character-building experience. There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world. To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we've ever known." I have the hope that as rapidly as we have brought about the nearly devastating impacts to the planet, we can change the way in which we relate to our environment. I know this is possible, because on Earth Day, as my 3-year-old and I strolled through the festivities and checked out the fun exhibits at ScienceWorks, we witnessed demonstrations of harnessing free energy from the sun, designing zero-emission cars and growing local GMO-free food with zero waste packaging. We then landed at the KS Wild table. We were immediately talking to folks about saving the wild places in the Klamath-Siskiyou. People were eager to hear about the specialness of this region, and also about efforts to protect this corner of the planet from threats, such as a proposed gas export pipeline across the Rogue Valley and a nickel strip mine in the headwaters of the Smith River. Heading home after Earth Day, I realized that, while we need action on a global scale, maybe there is no better place to show a way forward than right here in this region. In southern Oregon we still have wild rivers that flow through a backdrop of ancient forests and vast wilderness areas. We now have wolves roaming free after being brought to the brink of extinction. Local food systems, restoration-based forestry, and clean water conservation are happening here and now. But they all need our attention and support if we have any chance of succeeding, and not just on Earth Day. As Carl Sagan said, it is our responsibility to preserve and cherish the only home we have ever known — the pale blue dot. Joseph Vaile is executive director of the Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center (KS Wild, 541-488-5789, www.kswild.org). His Wild Side column appears every three weeks.             By Joseph Vaile DailyTidings.com By Joseph Vaile Posted Apr. 28, 2015 @ 8:12 pm » Comment or view comments /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2015 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Local Media Group Publications Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted. DailyTidings.com | P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501