I want to thank everyone who entered the contest to win ROTHBURY Music Festival tickets. There were so many smart, thoughtful, and creative answers that choosing a winner was no easy task. I wish I could give everyone a pair of tickets, but alas I cannot not. There were several answers vying for the top spot, therefore, spelling, syntax, and grammar all ended up playing a tie-breaking role.
The winning submission was sent to us by Mary Lemmer, a student at the University of Michigan, who, like many of the entrants emphasized the gains made by the environmental movement while also pointing to the insufficiency of those gains in terms of actual substantive achievement. Mary wrote:
“Youth across the nation are energized about issues concerning global warming, alternative fuels, and other environmental topics. Young adults are driving the sustainability movement, studying related topics, encouraging people to recycle, and proclaiming the green word!
However, the environmental movement today involves too much talk and not enough action, and action is often hypocritical. Traveling across the country to brainstorm ways to combat climate change emits more emissions than resulting reductions! People talk about great ideas, but talk is cheap, and the best solutions will be those actually implemented! Less talk, more action, better results! Let’s create change!”
Other notable quotes include:
“What is going right with the environmentalist movement is precisely what is going wrong: environmental gains are pitted against economic realities, but only become truly effective when coupled with an economic benefit” -Zachary Kasprzak
“Today, more people are realizing that it is possible for humans to have a profound effect on our environment, although many still refuse to acknowledge this” -Tommy Felts
“In order to make significant steps forward we need to get rid of are [sic]bloody “make everything faster easier and disposable” LAZY! habits” -Andrew P. Rottier
“So even if some people are just going Green for the look of it, then please be my guest, as long as it’s a step forward” -Torie Zalokar
“It would be nice if humans were more altruistic, but the “sustainable” solution is providing them with products and services they want to embrace” -Tom Lyon
“This is detrimental to the movement because more environmental groups are losing their strength on environmental issues in the publics’ eye and are now being treated as mere “special interest groups” -Brooke Robinson
Please stay tuned to the Green Options Media network over the next several days, as I will be posting live updates, interviews, pictures, and much more, from ROTHBURY.
Related Posts:
“Win ROTHBURY Tickets”
“ROTHBURY: A Music Festival With a Purpose”
Congratulations, Mary! You’ve focused on a great topic for all of us.
A famous “green” website suggested, “Want to be green but don’t have the time? Here’s some great places to contribute MONEY.”
Sometimes I think, it doesn’t matter WHY it’s getting done, as much as THAT it’s getting done. But then, I see your essay.
Our youth will make the first step toward ‘green’ by leaving the automobile at home to ride their bikes and eating organically grown foods. Let everyone else figure out the gagets. http://www.powerpancake.com
Congratulations, Mary! Great essay. I hope you have a fantastic time at the festival.