a friend of mine sent me this for earth day:
* think of no-one as ‘them’
* don’t confuse your comfort with your safety
* talk to strangers
* imagine other cultures through their poetry and novels
* listen to music you don’t understand
* act locally
* notice the workings of power & privilege in your culture
* question consumption
* know how your lettuce and coffee are grown: wake up and smell the exploitation
* look for fair trade and union labels
* help build economies from the bottom up
* acquire few needs
* learn a second or third language
* visit people, places and cultures, not tourist attractions.
* learn people’s history. redefine progress.
* know physical and political geography
* watch films with subtitles
* know your heritage
* honor everyone’s holidays
* think south, central and north, there are many americans
* look at the moon and imagine someone else, somewhere else, looking at it too.
* read the un’s universal declaration of human rights
* understand the global economy in terms of people. land and water
* know where your bank banks
* never believe you have the right to anyone else’s resources
* refuse to wear corporate logos; defy corporate domination
* question military/corporate connections
* don’t confuse money with wealth, or time with money
* have a pen/email pal. honor indigenous cultures
* judge governance by how well it meets all people’s needs
* be skeptical about what you read
* eat adventurously. enjoy vegetables, beans and grains in your diet.
* choose curiosity over certainty.
* know where your water comes from and where your wastes go.
* pledge allegiance to the earth. avoid nationalism
* assume that many others share your dreams
* know that no-one is silent though many are not heard. work to change this.
it turns out this is on a beautiful poster – the one you see here. you can get it at at the syracuse cultural workers tools for peace shop.