2070? Really??

My email earlier today to an organization that puts on outstanding conferences and webinars. The organization recently sent out an email invitation to its upcoming “shape of our region’s future”-type webinar. Their use of the year 2070 in the event title prompted me to email them this:

I love all the work you guys are doing. That said, it feels shockingly optimistic to see the year “2070” used by a climate-aware organization like yours, as if it’s a given that we humans will still be around that far into the future!!

Do you really feel that optimistic? Or is the use of “2070” in your program mainly to attract the interest and buy-in from conventional organizations, planners, govt leaders etc?

Thanks for all you are doing, regardless.

Jenny Nazak (Daytona Beach Permaculture Guild; Daytona Beach Resilience Task Force)

I will let you know what I hear back from them, if anything.

I just heard back, very quick!

Jenny – My kids often ask my – why do you care? You won’t be around then. LOL. But they will be. We are trying to show that if Florida is to have a future we must start long-range planning now so used a 50-year time frame. But your point is well taken.

Thanks for your interest!

And I responded just now:

Thank YOU. I totally share your viewpoint. Same as you, I care A LOT about future generations. We owe it to them. My point was that I’m just not sure ANY humans will be around by 2070 at the rate we are going. And I worried that when people see 2070 in the title, they might have a false sense of security, like it’s OK to take things for granted and continue with business as usual.

But maybe if we all pull together, and with wise organizations like yours helping people wake up to the need for long-range planning, humans might just live to see that year. And maybe even be thriving, in a civilization that has repented the error of its ways and become compassionate and reconnected with nature.

Thank you so much for undertaking this work! I do look forward to your event! River-Friendly Planning, and human survival on a healthy planet into 2070 and beyond, is a great thing to aspire to.