U.N. Space Generation Advisory Council make a difference

Back in 1999, I was involved with a meeting that took place at the United Nations (UN) in Vienna, Austria.  This was the first time a group of young people from 60 countries organized a space and earth science and environmental meeting called the Space Generation Forum (SGF).  It coincided with the larger, political Ministerial level meeting.  The key SGF youth organisers were alumni from International Space University (ISU).  As of 2000, I had the good fortune to become an ISU alumnus myself. Personal experience has taught me this team really cares for the planet's future. I feel part of a close-knit community of results-driven people who work together and also independently to learn and teach about the world, so we can better take care of it long-term.

During the 1999 Outer Space Affairs Ministerial, nation state representatives attended their own meetings.  Some youth observed these while other youth specialized in related space and environmental science areas brainstormed their own strategies and resolutions.  The two groups interacted closely for the first time.  When they got together during the final week of formal meetings, youth were able to negotiate some of their ideas be incorporated in the Ministerial level Vienna Convention. What does all this mean for different generations and the Earth?

Young people people around the globe do more than talk about caring for the planet. They seek to help devise solutions to big issues. As of the build up to this major international space meeting in 1999, on-line forums and communications among young people became far more organized. Youth began organisating their own meetings on a regular basis.  They went further to promote space and environmental science awarenss programs around the world. They collaborate with people involved in the U.S. Environmental program (UNEP). Young people return from meetings to their communities to spread their enthusiasm among other young people.  Together, they take initiatives to implement grass roots programs such as after school clubs, discussion groups, and associations which involve young people of all ages and pass their ideas higher up.

Many great initiatives grew out of the 1999 Ministerial, one of the most notable being perhaps the U.N. Space Youth Advisory Council (UNSGAC). This group has volunteers around the world who devote time to raising awareness and implementing programs. Its not simply a question of striving to interact with leaders and discuss revisions to school and university science curricula in many different countries.  The European Space Agency (ESA) and the UN Office of Outer Space Affairs (OOSA) both offer internships programs for youth interested in these areas.  Other organisations have also developed collaborations. UNSGAC members have been know to persuade organisations of the value of creating in-roads and cooperation projects. 

UNSGAC members have also been known to branch off and start their own companies in order to improve people's understanding of space, science and the environment. Engineers build.  Social scientists and cosmologists will discuss and debate.  Journalists write.  Scientists contribute their expertise in their own ways.  Not everyone who has been involved in the SGF or UNSGAC joins a space agency, a government department, a school or university teacher or the military as a pilot or aspiring astronaut. Everyone with an interest can create a role to play in society.  The common thread we can share is a desire to share a love for space and environmental sciences. You can too.

I would encourage you to read more about the evolution of these youth groups and to find ways to contribute to their causes.

 http://www.spacegeneration.org/

http://sgf.unsgac.org/ 

The biggest risk ever

You may have taken risks in your time, but I wonder how far you'd be willing to push the envelope? The chances you take often fuel the most memorable stories you'll share later in this life or other lifetimes if you come to recall those. Its no surprise that people often find the effort to take chances and go after what is heart and soul-driven is worth far more than any associated regret or 'what ifs' would offer.

As for me, I've taken many risks. They're the reasons why my life is so exhilarating. The story I choose to share now represents one of the biggest risks I ever took. Another person took it with me.  An excerpt is published in a March 2007 book by Keen Publications called "Grab Your Tiger." Reflecting back, from the moment I recall risk is illusion, a distortion of mind, I see all I do, I do for me. Its the faith we are each invited to reconnect with that reminds us we are always whole.

Not too long ago, I met a man briefly on a bus in Florida while I visited Orlando for a conference. We impulsively shared dinner and conversation. The next day, the man boarded a plane to head back home. You might think our story ended. Well, it didn't. We had hit it off and a distance romance ensued. The experience was anything but ordinary. After all, he truly lived on the other side of the world.

Over the next month and a half, regular e-mails and large phone bills evolved. We even wrote a special electronic book together and he edited my draft of an inspirational book which will soon be published. I wrote him more than 500 letters (card stories inside cards) and posted them to his office (I didn't know his post box). I was told the office girls got a kick out of the stamps? The nature of our vast communications soon prompted him to take the chance of his life. While nearly falling asleep on the phone one night, he blurted out,

"Would you meet me for coffee in Paris?” He knew I planned a spring trip to Europe with my sister.

“That’s a long way to travel from Australia when I only have 3 days in Paris,” I replied, thinking he must've been joking. 

He told me he'd been saving for a new stereo, but the trip of 16, 808km would be his preferred investment. I was flattered, but my ticket and travel dates were unchangeable. I suggested we could meet at another time when we both had more time, but he had never been to Europe and decided his work schedule would allow it about when I was traveling. Why would you say? I told him if he came to Paris, I would gladly give him a scenic tour. After all, I'd lived there and knew the area.

Now, if you don't believe in guardian angels, you might change your mind after this story. A few days after that Paris conversation, I received a curious phone call from an airline. A technical glitch in my booking had caused the airline to cancel my tickets. After I got over my initial shock, I managed to negotiate a return ticket 5 days later that the initial plan. Then, I emailed Australia.

The response I received was, “Italy?”

My reply was, “Need you ask?!”

I suggested some key stops for what was planned as a romantic, 8-day train trip (2500km) through France, Switzerland and Italy. When all was said and done, we planned to meet at the Gare du Nord in Paris on a particular date. That day was definitely something to look forward to, or was it? 

Now, before the big day, the last time I'd been to Gare du Nord, I hadn't recalled four exits on separate floors.  Yet, on arrival, that's what I discovered. Better still, I had been stuck in traffic a half hour in a friend's car in terrible traffic and I had no mobile. Imagine my state of mind upon arriving at the train station 40 minutes late to meet a man who had just travelled 14 hours to meet a woman he'd met in person one evening for dinner and one morning for breakfast? Who was taking the bigger risk? Him scaring friends with his impulsive travel spending or me being so inexcusably late?

This in mind, wouldn't you assume that I would have to negotiate my way through the barrier by way of French policemen because my electronic ticket wasn't working? Wouldn't you assume that I would find no functional pay phone to contact my weary traveller? When I did find a crackly phone, I discovered I'd forgotten the number back at my friend's apartment! If you never believed in Murphy's Law, this day would change your mind on that. Nonetheless, patience and faith saved the day. After all that, he recognized me by the back of my hair and my familiar orange dress.

"I was beginning to wonder if the stereo would've been a better choice, but I'm glad I waited."

"So am I."

"You know, until now I'd never waited 45 min for anyone. Risks can really pay off!"

http://blog.dreambuilders.com.au/journal/2007/9/8/the-biggest-risk-ever-follow-up.html

http://blog.dreambuilders.com.au/journal/2008/2/18/the-biggest-risk-ever-follow-up-2.html

http://blog.dreambuilders.com.au/journal/2008/7/26/the-biggest-risk-ever-follow-up-3.html

This story is the foundation for my first book, Self-Disclosure: Changes from Within. 

Think before you act

Alongside intense media focus on economic issues and religious conflicts, public concern for environmental issues is growing in industrial and developing nations. The biggest issue at hand seems to be whether human beings can create meaningful and fulfilling lives while reducing eco-destruction which is destroying the earth's biosphere. Is it Humanity's dream to become exinct? What do you think of before you make decisions of what to eat, how to travel and what to buy?

Debates continue about topics like the state of carbon dioxide emissions, holes in the ozone layer, air quality, pollution, melting glaciers, global warming, disappearing plant and animal species and life-support systems which enable us to grow food and recycle what is ecologically sustainable.  Hundreds of thousands of approaches are taken to promote restoration and survival of vegetation.  At the same time, corporate interests and the global economy compete for attention and power, and may be destroying the very things we desperately need to survive.

Since humans seek to survive this era of unprecedented uncertainty, we would benefit from realizing the implications of being interdependent, biological beings. We need to acknowledge social and spiritual needs and address our lifestyles which jeopardize our ability to satisfy these needs. We must remember that ecosytems, plants, animals and other creatures share the Earth.  Our species may have evolved remarkably quickly because of the nature of our brain which separates us from other creatures. And yet, the results of greed, ignorance and inflexibility characterize dangers of short-sightedness. If you dream of a more wonderful life, define it.

In order to redefine meaningful existence, we must accept responsibility and be accountable for our actions.  Each decision we make has consequences that resonate long after we think they do.  Each choice we make has a domino effect. Since we're caretakers of a planetary system, its our duty to take steps to raise awareness of the state of our planet and to act to preserve it.

The next time you go to buy groceries, think about the supply chain that brings you the products. Rather than buy from a local farmer who has fresh produce and supplies which do not travel far, buying from larger superstores has repercussions. You may have more variety and product ranges, and food may sometimes seem cheaper, but the reality is that it brings much higher costs.

That fresh produce grown far away is picked before its ripe by people paid just enough to live. Bananas and other exotic fruits and veggies don't grow in northern climates. Even berries and produce that grow in the north certainly aren't available all seasons of the year.  Foreign produce brought in must be refrigerated so it doesn't spoil. Transport freezers also require energy. Since we haven't yet created teleportation,this food travels by ship, plane or truck, the implications are higher uses of fossil fuels, higher levels of pollution, flooding, oil spills and other disasters.

Increased demand for certain foods prompts growers, animal breeders and fish farmers to increase the size of their harvests. Mad cow disease arose because farmers desired to save money and get more for less by feeding animals chopped up animal remains when these animals are herbivores. Widespread bird flu outbreaks in chickens arose when humans were raising them in inhumane conditions and again taking short-cuts. New diseases in farmed fish also arose in part due to human greed. Consider the implications of irrigation. Water is drained from places in large quantities to grow agriculture in areas which lack water.

Our observations of what's going on in the world may never be comprehensive. We probably won't ever know everything. Yet, the little we do interpret is more than enough to cause us to rethink our personal choices. Recognize that everything you do and consume goes much further than simply satisfying your basic needs. You don't need the latest fashion or the newest models. Constant economic growth isn't possible so why do we permit consumer brainwashing? Increasing economic wealth isn't the basis for satisfying all human needs. Reconnect with the nature that sustains you. This will restore meaning and purpose to your human existence.

Non-violent monks driven to vaccuum cleaners

A Buddhist temple in Malaysia has been invaded by large colonies of biting ants.  You may think the solution is simple: step on them, spray them or rid yourself of them some other way.  Those options may work for you, but calling an exterminator or killing creatures of any form aren't options for non-violent monks. Could you evolve to 'live and let live?' Do you always seek control? Would a vaccuum be enough for you?

More than one monk has been driven to employ a vacuum cleaner to capture the ants alive, but that strategy didn't work.  The ants broke through the bag.  In another case, they climbed the handle of a broom to bite a monk's hand.  More ants continue to enter the building.  They're smarter and more resilient than you might think. Some creatures aren't deterred by the way you wish to do things.  They go about their own business and find ways around you or bite their way through. "Ouch!" 

The chief monk told a Malaysian newspaper, "When an ant drops on you... you just have to shake it off."  The thing is, when many ants are dropping on you and going further than causing havoc to your schedule, to taking over your home, and causing physical harm, what would you do? Nothing? This seems to be the approach of the Buddhist monks. It may be a new test for their patience.  What about yours?

Trading places, spaces and identities

Okay, so you're having a hard time understanding someone's behavior or point of view. What are you doing about that? Maybe you ignore the person and hope he or she goes away. You could request clarification, but the person in question may simply repeat what was already said and leave you confused or frustrated. This is an invitation from the universe to gain insight into yourself.

If you wish to better understand someone, you have other options. Imagine you trade places. That's right! Pretend you're the person with whom you disagree. If you were in this person's shoes, how would you feel? What would your motives be for a particular opinion? What do you gain from being inflexible? What does this say about your personality? How do(es) culture, social role, religion, age, gender and life experience influence your perception and attitude?

As you ponder answers, you begin to see new points of view. You begin to see that the anger, fear or resistance are simply layers of illusion to be peeled away. What matters is you open the heart and show compassion. Listen to what someone is really saying. Words and gestures are smokescreens.