Some years ago, before caring for the natural environment had become semi-mainstream, I used to hear this wise mantra, “Think Globally, Act Locally”, being said all the time in the green circles I frequented. It has now been many a year since I have heard anyone utter it, much less seen anyone “green” live by it.

I’d like you to take a few moments to ponder these words. Think…globally….act…locally. Just repeat that line to yourself slowly a few times and think about the meanings it conjures up in you. What would a world look like where people think globally and act locally?

Here’s my take:

“Think Globally.” Think? People who think at all have become such a quaint and rare sight, they surely need to be put on the endangered species list. At the least there seems to have been a change in habitat. Long, looong ago they used to concentrate in places called universities. Those places have largely been colonized by some invasive other species. The thinking people only have a very marginal presence there now. Where has the rest of them moved to? Anyhoo, the mesage is THINK. Whether you consider yourself part of the thinking species or not. Just think.

Think. Globally. Think outside the box. Expand your mind. Broaden your vision. Be humble. From where you are you may be the center of the Universe, but you’re not alone. Diff’rent strokes for diff’rent folks. (Another one of those wise old sayings we never hear anymore!- Oh, yeah, that’s right, there are no diff’rent folks anymore, we’re all supposed to be exactly equal now,)

“Act Locally.” Act? ….ACT? Who, me? Yes, you! It means you’re an agent, not a patient. It says act. It doesn’t say wait for your neighbor, your favorite movie star or your president to act. It says act. Our bodies are not designed to slump on a couch in front of a tube, they’re designed to move. Shake it baby! Rise and shine!

Act. LOCALLY! That means where you are, what you can, with what you’ve got and with whom you know. Again, be humble.Don’t try to bite off more than you can chew.Do you really believe a handful of boffins can control something as huge, powerful and intricate as the climate of the entire planet on your behalf? Back to square one. THINK! They’ll be very glad to control YOU on your behalf, and rob you blind on your behalf. Thanks but no thanks. Act locally. Me control me, you control you, etc. OK?

All in all, the phrase “Think globally, act locally” strikes me as a highly individualistic adage. It most certainly does not suggest we go along with all the atrocious flimflam that is currently foisted upon us in name of “saving the planet”, like demanding a poor African goatherder be taxed out of existence because his handful of goats farts greenhouse gases. To me it suggests things like eating real food that was grown nearby, walking or cycling if my destination is less than a couple of miles away but driving without guilt if it’s further, drying my clothes outside on a clothesline (you can’t beat the fresh smell and crisp, clean feel), helping somebody out who personally asks me for help, delivering the highest possible quality and value to my clients, listening to my loved ones, and so on. Thinking globally and acting locally is sensuous, pleasurable, gainful, ingratiating, celebratory, and voluntary.

When someone tells you you must suffer in order to save the earth, don’t walk, RUN!