Lisa Devaney's Blog

Hi neighbors. I've moved my blog to TypePad. You can now visit me at http://lisadevaney.typepad.com/blog/. You can follow me on TypePad by visiting my profile. See you there!

Have you ever been in a situation where you need to make everything up from scratch, and the journey of doing so

takes you to sometimes challenging new places and opportunities?

That is what has been happening this spring and summer, as being part of the Urban Culture Project, a new performance group based in my home of Hackney, London. Back in May this year I went out for auditions, and have stuck with the project to be part of a summertime show that took place this past weekend in Dalston. A group of professional artistic directors along with a mix of poets, actors, dancers and musicians, all have collaborated together to make an original performance piece for the Hackney community.

The project was the brainchild of founder Matt Lane, who three years ago was concerned about a violent incident that took place in his Dalston neighborhood. A neighbor got into an altercation with some youth in the area, and they then went to his house, and dragged him out and murdered him. The sad event made Matt want to bring the community together around a positive event and show that the East London area of Hackney has some good in it, beyond the vicious occasional crime that happens here. He dreamed up the Urban Culture Project as a way to get people together to produce and perform.

Working side-by-side with arts industry professionals, the cast of the Urban Culture Project contributed poems, music, choregraphy and performance ideas over the last few months, for an experience that saw a final show performed at the Holy Trinity Primary School in Dalston. Originally, we were going to perform sections of the musical West Side Story, but copyright issues prevented this from being possible. Instead, the decision to make up original material was carried through and the cast and directors spent many a weekend trying out ideas and formulating all the bits and pieces that could work as a performance piece.

The final show called "The Runner" was based on the concept of what happens in Hackney at 3 AM, and how what we think might be happening could be very different from what appears. The piece dealt with issues of mis-perceiving a situation, as a young man runs through the streets of Hackney, in effort to train for the Olympics. While some feared the runner as a person intent on crime, he actually dispells bad energy and situations, acting as a protector of the streets he passes through.

Just a couple weeks before showtime, a final venue was still uncertain, and plot changes kept the piece on a constant feeling of upheaval. I had a bit of fear that we wouldn't have enough time to prepare for a show, but all the elements came together in time to debut to an audience. We spent weekends and evenings in rehearsals, shaping it all out and the effort paid off in time for the show.

My contribution was two poems to kick off the show, and conclude it, that I wrote specially to suit the performance. Back some years ago, I used to take to the stage in SLAM poetry contests, performing this in-your-face type of spoken word for audiences in America, but it has been a long time since I put this talent into action. The Urban Culture Project helped me to tap back into my performance ability, and gain a lot of self confidence to present in front of an audience.

Other cast members also got experience, and one really shined as a singer when she surprised herself by getting the courage to perform in front of an audience. Christine Foster put a melody to our tale of the city at 3 AM and over the course of the project got up enough self-esteem to sing for the public. Cast member Alison Carvely found herself being part of a romantic dance duet, and Gideon Tekeste was amazed to see his poem become the base for the whole performance piece.

While I've produced and performed my own comedy cabaret shows for London audiences, this was the first time I've been able to see how industry professionals develop and create a show. Under the guidance of artistic director Mark Summerbell, the process from seed idea to full performance was lead with professionalism, and a great kindness to participants involved. Also leading the effort was stage director Anthony Ekundayo Lennon, who first had us play games to get into the spirit of performing. Shane Cullinan worked closely to compose original music for the

production and choreographer Paul Henry worked closely with the actors and dancers to make sure the piece was presented with powerful movement.

Many of the cast had little or no performance experience, but the project leaders were able to uncover each participants best talents. This included performances by Robyn Cooper, Timmy Aremu-Bashir and Jermaine Barton. Dancers were stars of the show, with Ruth Dodds, Akiyo Ishihashi, Lina Petersson, Ria Uttridge, Stephanie Vezmar, Katie Willy and David Ogle.The group was supportive and absolutely free of the ego-centric ugly side of showbusiness that gives entertainment a bad name. People respected each member involved and kept a positive outlook on the whole project, even when challenges came about. Keeping the good vibes going throughout rehearsals and showtime was Simon Leigh, production and stage manager, who offered high fives and big smiles to keep spirits high.

What's next for the Urban Culture Project? They'll be getting a film of the performance made, and there is talk of doing the show again later this year in Hackney. According to Matt Lane, this is a great start to the vision he originally had of creating something that the Hackney community can work together on and take pride in.

 

 

Does anyone know why there has been such an increase in the number of spammers leaving comments here?

It is getting annoying. When Vox.com started I loved it for the real people I was able to connect with in the blogging neighborhood.

If anyone else has experienced this, let me know if there is anything you are doing to block spam from your blog.

I still love Vox.com as a blogging platform and stop by here now and then, however, my main blog is Quick Peeks with BrandRepublic.com.

Thanks for any anti-spam tips you may have,
-Lisa

Working in public relations, many of my colleagues are event producers, and I often hear about "pop-up" events they are running. The term sounds really fun and spontaneous, but I asked around to find out more about what it means in the event production industry.

First I asked Kate Risker, who has run pop-up events for festivals and corporate clients. She told me that pop-ups are usually temporary affairs that aim to showcase the best features of a brand in an entertaining way.

Second, I asked Julia Shalet who runs pop-up events at Brixton Village every Saturday in London. She told me that pop-up events are a good way to keep people coming along to check out the venue, and she's created everything from temporary restaurants to cabaret to 1950s theme shops. She tells me that:

"Open sourcing pop-up events for Brixton Village themed Saturdays has been a great way to develop a space that works for the local community. It gives the opportunity for people and groups to bring in activities and try out ideas that help the market feel surprising, sociable, entertaining, dynamic and vibrant - just how the traditional marketplace used to be. It has helped to drive new audiences to support all the fabulous businesses that are running in the retail units. For us, it is the magic of DIY culture on a shoestring budget."

Lastly, I got in touch with Sara Blonstein, who heads Blonstein and Associates and has been creating spectacular events since the 1990s. I'd describe her as being the pop-up event diva, because, in fact, she can be credited with inspiring and creating the whole concept as it is used in the event industry.  She kicked off the trend in the UK by creating a temporary winter-themed restaurant called The Reindeer in 2006. The Reindeer was a grotto for grown-ups staged in the East End of London, and produced by the same people who created the Bistrotheque venue. From the start of December, until the day before Christmas Eve, the pop-up restaurant and theatre took over a massive space at the Old Truman Brewery. Among pipne trees and fake snow, diners enjoyed camp and kitsch cabaret from the likes of Pam Ann and Kiki & Herb, or they could book a log cabin to host their own private Alpine party.

This spring, Blonstein was again hired by Pernod Ricard to put together the ultimate pop-up experience, an annual event they do each year for the company's worldwide marketing conference which sees all the heads of marketing fly to a private island, off the coast of France. Blonstein's team created Cabaret Les Embiez and Hotel de Deux on the Ricard family private island called Les Embiez. Guests arrived in Marseille, and were taken to Brusc where they boarded a boat to reach the island. Once at the island, guests were transported to attend an enormous pop-up cabaret and dinner, Cabaret Les Embiez. Built from scratch, the structure provided a dining area for 750 people where each of the Pernod Ricard brands showcase their new brands as well as demonstrating the ultimate brand experience of how the drinks are to be served. The cabaret performances included MC Johnny Woo and the 20's dancers The Bee's Knees throughout, as well as a flying piano for Ricard, Malibu's Maliboom Boom Boys for Malibu, a flying gymnast and aerial artist for Chivas.

Following the cabaret, guests were invited to one of the several pop-up bars on the island from Absolut, Chivas, Perrier-Jouet and Mumm and the Blonstein pop-up for Jameson and Havana club. Hotel de Deux was a purpose built structure which was originally outside.

"The feel was heritage traditional meets Hollywood faded glamour, meets Twin Peaks meets Ian Schrager's best," said Blonstein.

Blonstein demonstrates through her pop-up events how brands can play up the most exciting features of their products and services in a memorable one-off affair that gets media attention and gets people talking.

Examples of other creative pop-up events that have been produced by others, over the years, include:

• A pop-up version of the famous Central Perk Cafe from the TV show Friends was temporarily built to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the programme on Broadwick Street in London.

• The Double Club opened on 21 November 2008 and closed on 12 July 2009 in an old Victorian warehouse next to Angel tube station. The pop-up venue was make up of a bar, restaurant and disco area each consisting of an equally sized Western and Congolese spaces in order to connect the two cultures in terms of music, lifestyle, art and design.

• From 10 August 2009 to 18 October 2009, a pop-up bar at Somerset House called Bombay Sapphire Dusk, held a series of masterclasses entitled Bombay Sapphire Gintelligentsia. The gin's ambassador, Sam Carter, shared his knowledge of gin and taught aspects of the art of cocktail mixing at the event. The pop-up bar was designed by industrial designer Tom Dixon and funded by Design Research Studio. on the menu was delicious Bombay Sapphire Dusk cocktails, inspired by Dusk in the eight different countries from which Bombay Sapphire's ten botanical ingredients are sourced.

In 2010, Blonstein has pop-up events in works that will see brands using unusual spaces and venues to engage people in performance, entertainmment and glamourous affairs. While her events generally require large production budgets, she works creative magic at each happening to make funds really stretch in creating lavish environments.

Looking forward to seeing some interesting pop-up events this summer,

-Lisa

*I also posted about pop-up events on my Quick Peeks blog for BrandRepublic.com

This week in London, the fashion industry has once again filled the city with glamour, parties and a look at what the

trends for the coming year will be for the events of London Fashion Week 2010. I got invited to go backstage of the Fashion East catwalk shows, to shadow blog the happenings, and watch Sara Blonstein, a veteran fashion show producer, along with her team of Blonstein & Associates, in action.

Along with a few other bloggers, we arrvied in the early morning this past Saturday, February 20, to see the make up artists, hair stylists and designers prepare models for the afternoon show. It took hours for the models to prepare, including body paint, day-glow hair extensions and glitter that was required for the cyber-punk outfits and headgear by designer Nasir Mazhar. Other designers preparing included Hekki Salonen and Michael Van Der Ham.
 

Blonstein, and her team, staged the Fashion East show inside of the subterranean basement of Somerset House, a rough space that was formerly used as burial vaults. Blonstein, and her colleague Lulu Kennedy, the founder of Fashion East, discovered the hidden treasure venue and worked to transform it into a spectacular setting for catwalk shows, and parties. When it debuted as a venue last year, Victoria Beckham attended Fashion East and praised the use of the creative venue.
 

"It was a risk for Lulu and I to use this space, and we had to clean out what was an infested mess of pigeons and rats to make it possible," Blonstein said.
 

To use the space as a catwalk, Blonstein hired theatrical lighting designers and arranged benches alongside the stone

walls that wound through the cave-like rooms of what she now calls The Vaults. Guests, including international fashion press and celebrities, were assigned seats on the benches, and everyone got a front-row view of the runway. Models paraded the designer's creations through the venue, walking through what is one of the longest runways the fashion industry has witnessed. The space allowed for a much more intimate viewing of the show, with models passing so close you could feel the clothes breeze past.

To hear to an interview with Blonstein about her transformation of The Vaults at Somerset House, listen to this Audioboo recording.
 

Backstage, Blonstein's team directed proceedings, guiding models through a maze of tunnel-like rooms that make up the underground environment. Because of the interesting venue, guests were treated to one of the most original and creative shows of the week, that reflected well on the creative reputation Fashion East has for showcasing new, young, visionary designers from London's East End. Highlights of the show were Nasir Mashar's futuristic looking head pieces and outfits, and the fabric collage designs of Michael Van Der Ham. Previous designers who have debuted and made their name through Fashion East include Henry Holland.

For Topshop, the sponsor of the event, the attention from supporting Fashion East has drawn millions of media impressions to the brand, an important aspect that Blonstein says is key for any company looking to establish visibility and creative positioning among a key demographic group. She hopes more brands will take Topshop's lead and be adventurous in working with her company this year to deliver events that stretch imaginations.
 

 

Blonstein, who is well-known for her production of many of the most memorable parties and events in London, thrives on staging productions in challenging spaces. Her artisitc vision has transformed many edgy environments into spectacular affairs. She made her name in the early nineties when she ran the Pussy Posse parties, tied to an anti-AIDS awareness campaign. These parties won national press attention, and she found herself launching her event production business, nearly two decades ago, with the mission of meeting demand for an industry that didn't want the same old boring corporate party.

 

Blonstein grew her reputation as a creative leader in Experiential event marketing, and her company has worked with many big brand names including Vivienne Westwood, MTV, Channel 4, The British Fashion Council, Fashion East, Pernod Richard, Stolichnaya, Jameson, The Reindeer, Selfridges, BAFTA, LG, Victorinox and Amnesty International. 

Companies often turn to her to transform unusual spaces into theatrical masterpieces that make dramatic impact on how a brand is perceived by press and influential audiences. The experiences she creates are the result of her investment of personal passion and refusal not to compromise standards and vision for executing her productions. She combines her productions with talent from the worlds of theatre, dance, art and film, and the end result is spectacular.

"We love finding a space that most people would think is impossible, and transforming it to create something really special," she said.

Blonstein is also an East London trailblazer, who was one of the first to set up business in Brick Lane, and was part of the community that helped transform Shoreditch into the trendy, boutique destination it is today. She lives in Bethnal Green, a short walk to her office, where she transformed her home into a stylish abode with oriental style.
 

Shadow blogging alond with Sara Blonstein was great fun and I appreciated having this experience,
-Lisa

Just out of school and with a degree in media studies and web design, Mya graduated with uncertainty about what she

was going to do for work. She started out her career doing freelance web design work, picking up little jobs from some of the agencies in the city that were building company websites. She found the work uninspiring, and would spend her free time searching through the internet for more interesting opportunities.

Mya's real interest was in how the Internet was a place for people to share their lives. She often became engrossed with stranger's stories who she found online, looking over their photos, their blog posts and other digital media that they posted publically. Real life stories she followed included that of a single mother who was raising her child with the help of family and friends, and she followed along with a young London man who was single and spending most of his time clubbing and drinking with friends. Other stories that keep her interest were sad tales of people suffering from Cancer, and those with passionate interests in unusual subjects, such as exotic pet breeding and those who were trying to grow extinct plant species.

Mya's collection of stories of real life people was mostly for her on amusement, but sometimes she told her closest friend Rosie about the other people's stories. She found that if a challenge was being faced, it helped to know what some of these other people were facing and doing to overcome difficulty.

Rosie found Mya's hobby to be a little bit creepy, because of the voyeur aspect of it, but enjoyed hearing about some of the stories that her friend was collecting. It was Rosie who helped Mya find out about the job as being a digital archivist. Rosie met a man called Ron Briefel, who was filming people dancing at a parade one afternoon. Rosie was passing by and curious to know what was going on, so asked him about it. Ron explained that it was an annual May Day parade and that he was documenting the event for people to watch in the future.

Thinking of Mya immediately, she asked Ron more about his interest and found out that he was part of a collective of people who were describing themselves as digital archivists. These digital archivists were recording and posting as much documentation of human history as they could in their own lifetime, and storing the information on secure computers that were scattered around the world. Ron said these computers were enclosed in fire proof valuts that were built to withstand centuries of time.

In the future, Ron told Rosie, all we will have to learn about our human history are these collections of digital data. With the change threatening life on earth, humanity was going to lose so much, he explained, and that he and the other digital archivists were working toward salvaging a record of human culture.  Rosie got his contact information, to share with Mya.

When Mya learned of what this man who called himself a digital archivist was doing, she contacted him immediately. Could this be what she had been doing all along, and could she help in documenting human life with digital media?

Ron met with Mya and the two minds connected, with Mya explaining how for many years she had been collecting stories of real life individuals who were sharing their lives on the Internet. Ron brought Mya to a meeting of other digital archivists and they immediately invited her to be part of the project.

Mya was trained by the others in methods of tracking, documenting and archiving the stories of thousands of human lives and soon became one of the digital archivists.

Welcome to Haiはい。my transmedia journey.

To find more about this story, cut 'n paste the tag Haiはい。into Google and look for the entries.

-Lisa

*Flickr photo by vykingtwin: http://www.flickr.com/photos/74209349@N00/

In December 2009, world leaders from 193 nations converged on Denmark's Copenhagen with promise that an

agreement would be reached to stop the change from happening. After more than 30 hours of intense negotiations, they failed. It was a turning point for the planet, and the last unified opportunity humanity had to stop the burning, to fix the environmental destruction that was drying up rivers and lakes, melting icebergs and raising the earth's temperature by nearly 4 degrees Celcius (7 degrees Fahrenheit).

America's President Barack Obama said the agreement reached was a starting point toward reversing the impact happening from the change, but it was not enough. Paper promises could not save the planet. Rich nations would continue on path to burning up the planet, while poor nations struggled to not fry up.

It was at this time, following Copenhagen, that the visionaries who understood the devastation facing the planet decided to begin building the hidden cities, to save some of the human race. They met in secret in the year 2010 and began the plan to build a haven in every nation of the world, that would serve to save 100,000 people from each nation on earth, salvaging what they could of the diverse cultures, before the planet died. Inside the hidden cities, those selected would be protected from the burning, and be able to have safe shelter while the change happened.

Over the next 10 years, the leaders of nations continued to try and duct tape together protocols and agreements that were supposed to put a halt to the produciton of poisonous greenhouse gas emissions. Yet every year another body of water dried up, and rich vibrant farmland that once grew crops that fed the world were turning into deserts, causing starvation and suffering throughout poor and rich countries. Animal species became extinct, and yet the pollution that was burning holes in the ozone layer continued, killing the natural infrastructure of earth and throwing the harmony of the planet into complete chaos. The change was inevitable and the only salvation for life on earth, the visionaires foretold, would be to save a few. The mission set forth was like Noah's Ark for the future.

Work began quickly in 2010 to build the hidden cities, without support or interference from governments, and while the bureaucrats argued and fought to protect commercial interests, the visionaries discretely put in motion the steps they needed to save humanity from the change.

Welcome to my transmedia journey. Cut 'n paste the tag Haiはい。into Google to find more of this story about what happens to humanity on the brink of climate change,
-Lisa

LISTEN to this part of the story here.

Pets were few inside the hidden cities, but many people kept caterpillars, and helped nuture them from worm, to

chrysalis, to butterfly. The process of transformation gave the people of the hidden cities a sense of promise and hope.

So many animals, and people, had been lost to the change, that a catepillar represented the chance for emergence from the situation. While the change was happening, some species of caterpillars threatened environments and people when the never ending rains, extended from the period of change to longer seasons, created habitats where the creatures thrived. Some over-thrived.

In Liberia, mass breeding of caterpillars, in an exceptionally wet climate, pushed people out of their own homes. The masses of caterpillars devoured plants and food for other wildlife became scarce. Normally, the caterpillars would not all fully develop, but in the extreme damp conditions the creature's multipled, nearly all growing to full adulthood. It became known as the caterpillar crisis of climate change in Liberia, and consideration was given to spraying the country with chemical pesticides to defeat the munching worms. The threat of poisoning the environment made the authorities decide against any pesticide use, and so the people moved away from the caterpillar infested areas, taking shelter in refugee camps.

While Liberia hated the caterpillars, other parts of the world were marveling at the growth of the species, and the

season of the butterfly, which they welcomed. Millions of butterflies would appear in late summer in parts of the world where the caterpillars thrived, and people would travel from far away places to witness the explosion of colour that took place. Butterflies were like the new spring flowers, and unlike the hairy, black and brown beasts that haunted Liberia, other parts of the world saw the Monarch caterpillar increasing in population and bringing beauty to the landscape.

Many people who lived in the hidden cities remembered the seasons of the butterflies with joy, and desired to keep the Monarch caterpillar as pets in their living areas. These pets were hand-fed leaves and grass, and given safe, dark places to build their chrysalis, and time to allow the transformation. When the caterpillar began to break out of its chrysalis, people gathered to watch the butterfly emerge.

When the birght coloured creature spread its wings and flew into the air, the people clapped at the performance.

 

Welcome to Haiはい。my transmedia journey,
-Lisa

*Flickr photos by:

Caterpillar - Brenda Anderson: http://www.flickr.com/photos/curiouskiwi/

Chrysalis - MsEli: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mseli/

Butterfly - dwain77: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dwain77/

Erik Foss worked seven nights a week, splitting his time between shifts at a few bars in the city, as well as getting his

own bar going. He found an underground space on the Lower East Side and with the help of friends was digging it out and getting it ready to open.

While bartending paid the bills, Erik was really in New York City to be an artist. Whenever he had time he painted, made collages and drew pictures of all the feelings that he had to absorb night after night while working at bars. Often, he heard a lot of pain and anger, especially with the pressure of the change happening. People were hiding out inside the many underground bars around the city, where the darkly lit spaces protected them from the burning sunshine that was destroying the environment everywhere on earth. They brought troubles with them to to the underground bars, and often Erik was the only person around that would hear some of the stories.

They told Erik about family and friends who got sick from the change, unable to tolerate the rising temperatures, a lot of people were developing heat illnesses. If they were young, it was easier to fight off the intensity of the fever and the constant feeling of thirst and being dizzy. If they were old, death was common.
Beyond the illnesses Erik would hear about, there was always the usual complications of living life. Lost jobs. Lost lovers. Lost dreams. For centuries bartenders had been listening to the stories of heart break and hard times, and Erik often felt like a sponge for all the pain that floated around the city and a magnet for it to land at on a bar stool in front of him.

Erik had a way of turning things onto a more upbeat funny side and with a rock 'n roll style, he'd make the most depressing person forget about the troubles and have a good time. A few special cocktails helped pick up the mood and Erik would just take the pain away with him and put some of it into his artwork when it got overwhelming. Furious strokes of paint to canvas emotionally healed him, and he'd then offer some of the results back to customers for sale.

They'd buy back their own pain sometimes, and hang it up on a wall in their home.

 

Haiはい。is my transmedia journey. Cut 'n paste "Haiはい。" into Google to find pieces of this story,

-Lisa

*Photo of Erik Foss by Supreme Mangement.

*Artwork by Erik Foss. 

Today I’m joining 8,000+ bloggers from 144 countries, reaching 11 million viewers to chime in one a single important global issue of climate change for Blog Action Day, and want to share with the world why this topic is personal for me.

While green living is popular, fashionable and trendy right now (hurray!), I’ve actually spent a lot of my own life being

green and supporting a variety of environmental movements, writing about environmental issues and absolutely loving nature to the point of clapping when I see an ocean wave crashing against the shore, marveling when the sunlight hits against green leaves and makes an almost translucent effect, and crying when an eco-disaster destroys part of the world, from the Exxon Valdez oil spill to the icebergs melting and killing the habitat of polar bears.

Here are some of the very personal reasons why I’m in love with nature and deeply, emotionally concerned about the impact of climate change on the environment.

Reason #1: I Lived In A Tent

When I was a baby, back in 1967, my parents found themselves suddenly homeless. Dad was a musician and had a great gig for a time working for an orchestra in Maine. When the contract came to an end, he didn’t have another gig lined up, and couldn’t afford the house they were renting.

We lived near the fisherman docks on the coast at this time, and Dad loved hanging out with the boat builders. One of his friends offered a patch of land in a boat yard that we could camp in for the summer, and Dad jumped on it – moving the three of us into a tent on the property. My Mom had never camped before in her life and was terrified of snakes. The mosquitoes were insane and apparently I

was covered in bites. We ate amazingly well, as everyday the fishermen gave us lobster – because at that time they couldn’t sell it on the market for some reason. I don’t remember it really (I was about 1 years old) but family members still talk to me about it, and my parents tell me these stories of how we lived off the land and got help from the community that summer. To this day I am in love with sleeping outside in a tent. I’m so happy being snuggled up, in the outdoors, in the woods or on a beach somewhere, where beautiful nature is all around.

If the climate changes, will the memories my family has of the coast of Maine just be memories? Will the coast of Maine be flooded and those fishermen's villages destroyed? Climate change, I take it personally!

Reason #2: My Grandfather Taught Me To Respect Nature

Often in the summers as a child, my family would join my grandparents in visiting the Adirondacks. Grandpa was

researching and writing a book about the great Adirondack explorer and surveyor Verplanck Colvin, and we’d join

my grandparents on adventures through the woods “bushwhacking” to find long forgotten survey marks left by

Colvin in the deepest woods. We also climbed the high peaks of the Adirondacks to find Colvin’s survey markers,

and at the tops of these incredible mountains were often endless rocks that you had to scramble up to get to the

peak. On these rocks grew lichen. As kids, we paid little attention to where we stepped and often trampled across

the lichen. We would also rip up some of it from its precious place clinging to the rocks, because we were curious

about it. Grandpa scolded us often and told us the story of the lichen plants that were thousands of years old, and

may have lived on the rocks since the time of the dinosaurs. His story made us think, and we then made a game

of trying not to step on the lichen. Grandpa also taught us repetitively the “carry it in carry out” philosophy for every

time we entered the woods. He spent most of his life as a Boy Scout Troop leader and brought many children into

the woods for camping trips and environmental educational excursions. To this day, now in his late nineties, he

looks over pictures of the Adirondack mountains that Colvin surveyed, and shows people his book. To this day, I

think about lichen, and still utter the phrase “carry it in, carry it out!”

Maybe if we all uttered the simple catchy phrase "carry it

in, carry it out" we could make a difference toward

climate change?

Reason #3: I Was A Reporter Covering Environmental Issues

For a number of years I had the best job of my life – working as a small town newspaper reporter in upstate New York. As a reporter, I covered everything for the community from cop reports to school board meetings to wacky stories, such as a woman who had a giant puffball growing in her garden that looked like a face. I loved it. Absolutely loved it. The rural area I was covering for news had many environmentally sensitive issues impacting it, with New York City pressing itself further north there were many land development concerns and the area was filled with fragile eco-systems that were under threat. I was an eye to all of these issues. I wrote a series of articles about the Wallkill River in upstate New York, and explored all the environmental threats from farming, to industrial waste to general pollution that threatened this river. For this I won an award, and got the attention of then Governor Mario Cuomo who cited it as an example in one of his speeches. I didn’t have to cover environmental issues to the extent that I chose to, but I made it my focus because of my love of the natural world.

 

There are many, many, more deeply personal reasons why I love the environment, but the above are three of my own reasons why I feel strongly about the issue we are all facing of climate change. I’m sure that the 8,000+ bloggers writing posts today also have intensely personal associations with the natural world, and I’m interested in reading some of the other posts that people share for Blog Action Day. Many people are going to write about the upcoming gathering of world leaders in Copenhagen for the United Nations Climate Change Conference and maybe if those world leaders give some contemplation of personal memories they have because of experiences in the natural world, they will care a lot more about climate change and do a lot more to make it stop happening.

 

I’m also interested in your personal stories about climate change here on Vox.com, so please join in today and register your blog at www.blogactionday.org

 

Concerned about climate change,

-Lisa

*The above images were found on Flickr and credit goes to:

Polar Bear:

Greenz4u’s

http://www.flickr.com/photos/80079525@N00/

Coast of Maine:

Ken Lund http://www.flickr.com/photos/kenlund/

 

Freeduh2’s Photo

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26862761@N03/