A Special (B)Earth Day!

Hello, Dear Readers. Happy Earth Day! I know, I know, it was actually last week, but I'm a big fan of the 'Better Late Than Never' life philosophy. And, really, considering everything the natural world has done for us, the least we can do is extend the celebration beyond one, single, solitary day.

**Speaking of extending the celebration, allow me to inform you of Berrett-Koehler's Earth Day Sale. Until May 12th, you can get up to 50% off of our Top 10 Sustainability titles. What a deal!**

Okay, that's that. Sorry to shamelessly plug our wares, but if we don't do it, who will? But, really, that sales ties in to something bigger than book-selling, I swear. We at BK are making a genuine effort to embrace Earth Day and it's message and to do our part to create change. As such, we're currently hosting an Earth Day 2011 group on BK Community, where we are inviting members to share their thoughts and feelings about Earth Day, as well as their hopes and concern's for our planets future. I even started things off with my own approach to environmentalism, and I encourage you to join and do the same.

Now, we aren't the only ones making a big deal about this day, either. The other evening, I was lucky enough to happen upon a special television program, a 2-hour (commercial free!) PBS documentary called American Experience: Earth Days. To be honest, the documentary was created last year in celebration of Earth Day's 40th Anniversary, but it seems like an appropriate thing to recycle, no?

The PBS website describes the program like this: "It is now all the rage, but can you remember when everyone in America was not "Going Green"? Earth Days looks back to the dawn and development of the modern environmental movement through the extraordinary stories of the era's pioneers." Now, this is an accurate description, but it doesn't quite do the program justice. Made up of current-day interviews with ecological pioneers, as well as incredible archival footage, the documentary shed a lot of light on a celebration and overall consciousness I had previously taken for granted.

What particularly stuck out in my mind is the role that technology has played in the environmental movement. Now, I came into the program a little bit late, and I don't have the time to re-watch right now, so forgive me ahead of time for any rampant paraphrasing or false information. What was news to me was the fact that in the early days of the American environmental movement (we're talking '67-70), most activists were ardently anti-technology. As such, this same movement very much opposed the works of NASA and the Space Race of President Kennedy. It was not until French explore Jacques Cousteau (respected marine conservationist) extolled the potential learnings of space exploration that the movement was able to converge more easily with the mainstream. Around the same time, the highly-popular image of the Earth from outer space was taken and made public, which had a major impact on the growth of the environmental movement. Once people were confronted with the reality of finite space and finite resources, they opened their eyes and their minds to the importance of sustainable living.

So, like I said, I probably botched that time-line in some way, but you get the idea. This story may not be news to all, but I think it provokes some interesting thoughts regarding technology today. Sure, there are still many ways in which technology is working against our planet's future, but at what point do the benefits begin to outweigh the costs?

This article highlights the ways in which organizations big and small are greening their technological processes. But, on a more personal level, this resonates with what I wrote on BK Community. You can go read it if you like, but I'll summarize: My commitment to environmental conservation stems directly from my love for animals. And, while that compassion is the reason behind my 6+ years of being a vegetarian, that decision had far more to do with not wanting to eat my furry friends than it did with any larger connection between conservation and factory farming and/or any other existing arguments. It wasn't until I began watching high-quality nature programs (in particular BBC's Planet Earth) that I began to connect the dots between large-scale sustainability and the animal kingdom I so wish to preserve. So, while I'm sure there are those who would argue that bringing cameras and camera crews into a remote jungle area is an example of technology encroaching on nature, it's also an example of how that practice created a more dedicated environmentalist, and I wouldn't be surprised if I weren't the only one.

So, as always, there are two sides to this coin. And, as always, I'd love it if you shared your thoughts, either here, or on the aforementioned BK Community forum.

Designing Woman: A Woman's World That Works for All - Volume 3

Well hello, readers. Is it time for another blog post already? I suppose it is. That being the case, I'm pleased to report that I can inform of you of an exciting new development: I have a new apartment! Starting in May, I will be a proud resident of San Francisco's Mission District, and I could not be happier. After a tireless and months-long search, I have finally found a place to live, and I think that the space I have found justifies all the work put into the hunt. While I'm sure that you're pleased on my behalf, I wouldn't be surprised if you were a bit confused as to how this is relevant to publishing. But, have I ever strayed too far off topic? I think not!

For the last few months I've been focused on securing an apartment. Now that I have found one, I can move on to something more exciting: designing and decorating it! And, in beginning my conceptual research, I was reminded of a lady I quite admire: architect and designer, Zaha Hadid.

I first learned of Hadid in May of 2010, when she topped the list of 'Thinkers' in Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential People in the World' issue. In reading that article, and following-up on the internet, I was impressed with Hadid's vision and accomplishments. Born in 1950 in Baghdad, Hadid received a degree in mathematics from the American University in Beirut, after which she moved to study at the Architectural Association School of Architecture in London. In the 40+ years of Hadid's career, she has established her own practice, as well as held numerous faculty positions at prestigious institutions around the world. In 2004, Hadid became the first female recipient of the Pritzker Architecture Prize, an award which honors a living architect "whose work demonstrates a combination of...talent, vision, and commitment" and who "has produced consistent and significant contributions to humanity and the environment through the art of architecture."

What's that? Did you someone say "significant contributions to humanity?" A phrase like that automatically sets off of my BK mission-match alarm, and once that alarm rings there's no stopping me. Ladies and gentlemen, it looks like we have our third author in my imaginary BK series, 'A Woman's World That Works for All'!

While Zaha Hadid is already the author of a number of beautiful design and architecture books, she has yet to put words down on paper in an attempt to share what she has learned through her years of experience. In over 40 years of design -- in the fields of architecture, product design, interior decorating and furniture-making -- what sort of evolution has Hadid seen? More importantly (for the purposes of our series), what more evolution does she see in our future? What, to the passionate and unabashedly womanly Zaha Hadid, does a world that works for all really look like?

In Time, clothing designer Donna Karan had this to say about her friend and collaborator: "However you view her work, Zaha is a visionary. Her style is legendary and completely original. Zaha is a woman and an artist of her time -- and yet she is very much ahead of it too."

I rest my case.