Living on Earth as if we Want to Stay

Friday January 23, 2009 – 7:30 p.m. at the Almonte United Church Social Hall

Speaker: Mike Nickerson

Topic: Living on Earth as if we Want to Stay

Synopsis:

What do climate change, high gas prices and the financial crisis have in common? Mike Nickerson will explain how these problems all result from the maturation of the human species. After thousands of years of apparent abundance, we are now finding limits to the availability of some natural resources and limits to the amount of pollution we can tolerate. Economically, we are finding limits to how much real wealth the Earth can provide to back up exponentially expanding economies. Physical maturity in our own lives provides us each with the foundation for the relationships, talents, skills and adventures that make our lives rewarding. Similar opportunities await society if we can let go of our societal adolescent growth and plan for sustainability.

Speaker’s Profile:

Mike Nickerson has spent 35 years studying cultural evolution and communicating the sustainability message. His writings include: “Bakavi; Change the World I Want to Stay On” (1977), “Let’s Talk About Sustainability” (1987), “Planning for Seven Generations” (1993) and the newly released “Life, Money & Illusion; Living on Earth as if we want to stay.”

With “Life, Money & Illusion” in hand to provide details, Nickerson is now on a cross country tour introducing the Question of Direction. The program encourages people to think and talk about changing our present customs and institutions into ones capable of maintaining long-term well-being while decreasing impacts on the planet and each other.

Along with his wife, Donna, Mike lives in Eastern Ontario. They have five grandchildren. To support his studies and writing Mike designs and builds custom furniture.