The SuperForest Humanifesto

What is going to save the human race?

Please.
Thank you.

Three words that will totally change this planet.
More than solar power. More than recycling. More than wind energy.

Why?

Because if we all started treating the people and things that we interact with every day with respect and compassion, the effects would ripple through every aspect of our lives, transforming society.

Our parents taught us the manners “rule-sets” that we use every day, and as a result, we feel that we have (through years of introspection) begun walking the path towards enlightenment. Our manners dictate the way we treat the external world, the Environment. We feel that it is primarily our manners that dictate our success as humans.

Folks talk about wanting to save the “Environment”, and that conjures up images of bubbling brooks and unspoiled forests. But “the Environment” isn’t just greenery and pretty scenery. It’s our slums, our airports, our houses, our supermarkets.
The Environment is everything that disappears when you close your eyes.

If you want to improve it, you must begin with what you see and encounter every single day of your life.

Before we can set about elevating our present society from a carbon-based one to a solar-electric one, knowing full well that solar-electric decentralized power means a higher quality of life for all, we must first pause and ask ourselves: Why? What is worth saving?

Human Consciousness.

Our gift and curse as humans is our incredible consciousness. We are aware, and that is the greatest and worst thing we’ve got going for us. Because we can clearly see how well we could be living, how politely we could be treating one another, how incredible life could be; we feel it is our duty to delight and inform our fellow humans in the hopes of a better world.

There is no reason every human on Earth could not have access to:
Clean Water
Nutruitious Un-modified Food
Shelter
Education
Open Source Communication
Freedom from Oppression and Fascism

But, as is painfully obvious, most humans don’t have those things.
Most humans don’t have two of the six!

They could, but they don’t.

Why?

Bad Manners.

Nearly every religion this planet has yet produced has as one of its tenets the idea that to be happy, you must treat others as you yourself would hope to be treated.
A failure in this respect is simply bad form.

When a company decides to dump its waste into a river that others downstream use for drinking water, that is bad manners.

When a society chooses to isolate its citizenry in prisons and not offer any chance at rehabilitation, that is bad manners.

When a person decides to walk into a school and open fire on their classmates, that is extremely bad manners.

That is why we MUST START NOW.

All new generations must be schooled in the art of good manners if we are to survive, let alone flourish, as a species.

Try your hardest to treat others as you hope they would treat you, and actively look for ways to help the people around you. Do this from a pure place within you and watch the effects ripple outward!

Why?

Because so few are doing it.

Good manners make you stand out like a struck match in a dark room.

Three Essentials:

Make eye contact with anyone you interact with. Smiling is optional but highly encouraged.
Use the words “Please” and “Thank You” as often as you can.
Seek out ways to improve the lives of others. This can be as small as carrying someones bag up a flight of stairs, or holding a door open.

Do these three things and your life will change immeasurably. And you will begin to change the lives of those who come into contact with you in a measurable and positive way.

We are filled with optimism and hope.

Thank you for reading this.


Team SuperForest

Jackson, Niki, Andrew, Alex, Taylor, Jaell, Julius, April, Jordan, Spoon, Carla, & Iman

Contest!

Wow! A contest!
What shall we title the image above?
Submit your ideas in the "comments" section below, and come the New Year we* shall pick a winner!
The winner gets a nice, big glossy print!

Love,

Jackson

(*And by "we," I mean me.*)
((*And by "me," I mean a robotic commitee of enchanted elves.))

Just Got Back.

Hello All,

I was away from my computer for a few days, as our little team just returned from delicious fact-finding expeditions.
Team? Fact-finding? Expedition?
All will be revealed.
I am tired and my brain is fuzzy like an angora sweater.

In the meantime, I've been working on a sweet new image for the SF blog. I gots a bit more work to do and then it'll be up.

Yay hooray!

Jackson

p.s. Here's what I like:

Double CAPPUCCINO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Water, water, everywhere...

The headlines say it all:
"Study: Climate change will sap NM water supply!"
"No truce in tri-state water war!"
"Ramona residents back home – without water!"
"'No water = no Beer'!"

When futurists talk about the change to a Hydrogen economy, I'm not sure this is what they had in mind.
Remember the movie "Ice Pirates"? Basically it was about the future, when water is so precious that people happily fight and kill for it. Well, that time is here.

Here are three simple ways to reduce your water usage and save some of that sweet di-hydrogen monoxide for making ice.

1.) The Aqus!
From Watersaver Technologies: This marvy little device sits under your sink and collects the water when you're brushing your teeth, then it filters it and sends it over to your toilet tank to help flush the nasties away. Smart.
watersavertech.com


But, your commode wouldn't need water if you had one of these sweet babies!

2.) The BioLet 60 XL!
From BioLet. It's an odorless, waterless, composting toilet. Everytime you flush, 1.6 GALLONS of fresh water enter our sewer system. That's more than your average African gets to drink in a day. Every. Single. Flush.
Not with the BioLet 60 XL!
biolet.com


And finally, if water is scarce, just make your own!

3.) Rainwater Catchment Systems!
From various suppliers. Unfortunately, few companies (that I could find) in the U.S. are providing complete systems for capturing, filtering and utilizing rainwater. But the D.I.Y. spirit is as American as apple pie! And many places supply the individual pieces one would need to set something up.
The idea is simple: lots of clean water falls from the sky every year. Your house could store it for you to use at your leisure. Water for showers, the garden, pets and popsicles!
rainharvesting.com.au
grannystore.com



There are answers to every problem out there, if we work together and use our collective smarts.

Hooray!!!

Eco-Math

me wantee!

So, it's like, a human powered car.
"row" with your bros on the flats, use the stored braking power to whisk you over the hills... Creamy.
Fossil fuels, get ready for the biggest pwning.



humancar.com
youtube.com

SFNYC - Day 4 - Changing the World is Easy

Changing the world is quite easy.
Don't believe me?
Pick an object near you. Move it to the left or right an inch. Observe. You've just changed the world.

You see, when most people say "changing the world," what they mean is: changing people's minds.
Changing someone's mind is extraordinarilly difficult.

I'm not joking when I say that it would be FAR EASIER to force a hydrogen atom to implode upon itself than it would be to change someone's mind.

So I've given up on changing people's minds.

Now, I'm far more interested in INFLUENCING people's choices. Far easier.

For example: everyday, someone buys fabric softener. They go to a store, buy a brand, take it home and use it.

Ah ha! But WHICH store? WHAT brand? HOW do they use it?

If, by talking on this blog about how much I adore Seventh Generation cleaning products, not just for their environmetal progressiveness, but for their clean packaging design and future-proof mission statement, and I post endlessly about how, by using Seventh Generation products, you are sending a message that your dollars will be spent on green-friendly goods, and by spending those dollars, showing the world that you care about the survival of your fellow human beings, then I have elicited change by using influence.

Influence is a small thing, but influence is the ring in the nose of the Bull that is Change.

Influence determines what is "cool." "Cool" then becomes what most strive to be. Influence equals change.

And so the game is: in every interaction you have, NO MATTER HOW (seemingly) INSIGNIFICANT, there is a golden opportunity to influence.

Tip your cabbie well, he smiles and remains smiling when the next fare gets in the cab. That fare, seeing the cabbie's friendly smile, tips him more. The future is going to be about focusing on the smaller things. Like the people around you.

If you woke up feeling bad, and you let that energy spill onto everyone you encounter for the duration of your foul mood, it is the equivalent of an oil tanker leaking sludge onto a beach. The effects of your bad mood will radiate outwards, influencing everything you interact with.

Here's the great thing: There is so much Bad Mood out there, that ANY Good Mood you put forth is far more powerful.
Like a match in the dark, positivity can illuminate and inspire, while negativity can only subdue and lessen.

Here's to the New Optimism - We can change the world, create a new Paradise, simply by radiating positivity at the people we see everyday.

-Jackson

Go here! If you need cleaning products, buy these!

seventhgeneration.com

String Theory in Two Minutes or Less!

Ooooooo!
If you're like me, then you like sciencey stuff. But who can make heads or tails of complex theories or explanations?
The clever chappies at Discover Magazine held a contest! Who can accurately (and succinctly) describe String Theory in two minutes or less?
Many brave science folks have answered the call!
The mini-movies are so simple a soybean could get it, and guaranteed not to take more than 120 seconds of your precious life!

Here's my favorite: String Ducky

Peep it here!
discovermagazine.com


Science! Wheeeeeeeeeee!

Paolo Soleri - History will judge this man kindly

I only recently became acquainted with the works of architect Paolo Soleri, but all that I've learned has thrilled me.

For nearly FORTY years, Paolo has been hard at work on Arcosanti, a miniature city-state dedicated to the ideals of maximizing human contact with nature and each other, while minimizing impact on the land around them.

From Wikipedia:
"Arcosanti is a planned community for 5,000 people. Under construction since 1970, Arcosanti is located near Cordes Junction, about 70 miles north of Phoenix and visible from Interstate I-17 in central Arizona. The project is based on Soleri's concept of "Arcology," architecture coherent with ecology. An arcology is a hyperdense city designed to maximize human interaction; maximize access to shared, cost-effective infrastructural services like water and sewage; minimize the use of energy, raw materials and land; reduce waste and environmental pollution; and allow interaction with the surrounding natural environment. Arcosanti is the prototype of the desert arcology.
Since 1970, over 6000 people have participated in Arcosanti's construction. Their international affiliation group is called the Arcosanti Arcology Network. As of 2005 Arcosanti stands an estimated 3% complete."



Boil it all down and this great man is designing beautiful, healthy spaces for humans. The best part of the Arcosanti Project is that ANYONE can be a part of it. Go to: http://www.arcosanti.org/, sign up for a workshop, buy a plane ticket (or better yet, caravan with friends in a veggie-oil car), and you too can learn the ways of building eco.


photo by Chris Ohlinger, General Manager of Cosanti Originals, Inc.



For further intel: wikipedia.org,
arcosanti.org

Day 2

Good Morning.
I just added a little piece on e-paper, which I believe is going to completely alter the way we relate to the printed word.
I'm spending the morning at home, trying to work the kinks out of this blog.
I'm drinking a hot cup of tea, the dog is asleep on the couch, and the compost heap in the backyard is slowly turning my kitchen scraps into rich, living, soil.
Life is good in Superforest.

-Jackson and Baloo

Bridgestone's e-paper

"Japanese tire manufacturer Bridgestone is producing these e-paper price tags as part of a new billing system being rolled out to Japanese retails stores. Using 'Electro Liquid Powder,' the displays have a quicker refresh time than earlier-generation e-paper solutions and are able to be printed on a substrate just 0.12mm thick."
For further intel, check out:

E-paper @ gizmodo.

Happy Happy Happy!

Day One! (give or take)

Hooray!
The first day of Superforest!
This is a place to come when you feel like hope is lost, as Superforest is a catalogue of people and organizations working hard to improve life for everyone.
Today I am getting my computer set up, trying to figure out how exactly my "work flow" is going to operate, and dusting.
Lots and lots of dusting.

It is good to work hard at achieving ones goals.

Lots of Love,

Jackson and Friends