Harriet Rosa Mayfield Bledsoe, or The Revolution Will Not Come Through Your iPod*

On Friday, January 5th, my maternal grandmother died; at 92.

In her life and after her death, I continue to marvel at all the history she experienced. History for me, life for her. In her lifetime occurred:

• World War I
• Women's Suffrage
• the Harlem Renaissance
• the Great Depression
• World War II
• Civil Rights/Integration/African-American Suffrage
• the Space Race

... and the birth of so many modern technologies. I started thinking - the 20th century was so jam packed! Revolutionary, really. So many facets of life - culture, politics, and education just to name a few - were transformed, some rapidly, others over the course of the century. I thought, even I live as long as she did, I'll probably never see as much as she did. The chances of having another packed century are slim to none.

Then I thought, why not? Why can't we make the 21st century totally remarkable? iPod phones are now a reality, as are computers for the developing world that cost under $150. Hybrid cars and efficient solar homes are both efficient and a reality. Why can't we drastically reduce global poverty? Why can't we bring education and technology to remote locations around the world? Why can't we fight AIDS and cancer? Why can't we have standard technology that is environmentally sustainable? We can. Cancer deaths in America have dropped for the 2nd straight year. Carbon neutral solar homes are taking off in California. Now that we have modern technology, let’s make it available. Let this be the century where modern medicine is affordable. Where wealth does not remain isolated, but can be used to affect change wherever resources are lacking.

And then last week I finally watched An Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore's documentary on global warming. The question 'why not' became 'we must'. It's not about politics, or economic development, or military action, or American leadership. All of those have failed. It's about you and me. It's about recognizing the issue, and making it a personal priority. Each individual contributes to global warming, and has collectively caused the problem. And yeah, it has been contributed to by humans since the industrial revolution. But guess what? They're dead, and they can't do anything about it, except turn in their graves that we have not learned from their mistakes.

The good news is that individuals can solve the problem. In fact, we are the key. Last Saturday I was out to dinner with friends and we got on this subject. One of my friends said, well, what can we do? It’s all up to the government and the big corporations. In that moment I got so excited because, as I told her – IT’S NOT! Turning off your computer during the day makes a difference. Sharing rides makes a difference. Using energy efficient light bulbs makes a difference. Are hybrid cars great? Yeah! Is mass transit great? Yeah! Are they practical for everybody? No (not yet). The problem is massive, and requires radical change; but here is what’s really radical: the sum of the solution is greater than its parts. THE SUM OF THE SOLUTION IS GREATER THAN ITS PARTS. So it’s you and I - you, I, our families and friends that are going to solve global warming. I’m there, are you with me? Let's make this century exceptional!

*No guessing about the song/artist/album. Listen to “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” – Gil Scott-Heron; “iGeneration” – MC Lars; “Change” – Joy Denalane; visit www.climatecrisis.net, and of course, watch An Inconvenient Truth!!!