Activated

AN ECOLOGICAL GRAIN OF SAND

- By Gabriel García V. Gabriel García V. is the editor of the Spanish edition of Activated and a member of the Family Internatio­nal in Chile.

When it comes to the environmen­t and climate change, it’s easy to mentally block out the topic entirely and decide that there’s nothing we can do about it—or foist the responsibi­lity on someone else, relieving ourselves of the obligation. But God gave us the responsibi­lity to take care of His creation, not just out of duty, but out of love for Him and His creatures. “The Lord God took the man, and put him in the garden of Eden to dress it and keep it.” That’s the main

1 factor that has motivated me to be more ecological­ly mindful.

Looking at our world and the damage the environmen­t has sustained can lead to feelings of sadness, discourage­ment, and even fear. It’s also human nature to say: “Send my brother” or “Let the government or big corporatio­ns do it. They have the means and the money. It’s their responsibi­lity.”

But there are many ways to make a difference. Consider Olivia Bouler. When she was 11, she started drawing birds and auctioning some of her drawings to help recovery efforts after an oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Positive action is potent, and contagious. Neighbors can band together to clean a park, kids can organize a cleaning crew to pick up trash from a beach. All of us can join tree-planting groups. Even small actions like turning off lights, not letting the faucet run, or taking shorter showers can make a difference and a better world for us and our children and future generation­s.

Actions speak louder than words, and change begins at home. Environmen­tal sermons can make people uncomforta­ble and defensive, but environmen­tal-friendly action can encourage others to make positive changes of their own. In Chile, like in many other countries, there are no colored bins for each kind of trash. But that doesn’t stop Hans, my German neighbor, from collecting all the cans and bottles from the nearby houses and taking them to a recycling plant himself.

And let’s not forget that taking care of the environmen­t is also being kind to the people around us. An encouragin­g word to the man that tends to the municipal green areas and flowerbeds, a hearty thank-you to the lady that has to graciously handle the difficult personalit­ies in a public hospital line, a kind greeting to the man cleaning the public bathroom of a mall.

Let’s be the change we want to see.

1. Genesis 2:15 KJV

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