To say that things have taken a bizarre turn in the last few months would be an understatement
Climate change, pollution,
glyphosate, plastic in oceans,
civil unrest, pandemic.. where to look next ?
Warning! This reflexion is just what it says it is, a thinking aloud I wanted to share with you and initiate a healthy debate- please note, I said HEALTHY debate, meaning if you come over with frantic screams, political agenda, hate for this or that, you will be asked to do so elsewhere
However, in the face of crumbling governments and conflicting interests fighting each others at the throat, or pretending to, there is ,it seems a ground swell movement of citizens beyond artificial countries boundaries who are growing a genuine thirst for alternatives, be it in their environment for, conservation efforts and the most promising rethinking a social structure not based on a destructive binary polarity.
This ground swelling movement however is poorly connected.
And often invaded by exterior agents whose sole objectif is destabilizing the fledgling reflections.
Some are embodied in the culture of non profits which try assets they can to tackle a single issue and change thing on a very local level – there where “authorities” try to wreck the greatest havoc
And getting involved with non profit again more in depth recently led me to reflect unjust that question
What is the role of non profit in a genuine renaissance of world views, habits, actions, fostering a real change, wherever possible?
How could we help Non profits , grassroots structure to become more visible ?
I am fully aware of many people’s view point that ecological transition is no longer a possibility ,
that, we, as a species as a planet have entered a no return cycle of self destruction and I certainly would not say I am not heavily leaning in that direction,
However, 2 things are to be taken into consideration:
- Impermanence – everything that appears, is born will come apart, die, eventually recombining in different apparent forms in endless cycles.
- One should not drop the arms even whilst realizing the first point. There are elegant ways to transform and horrible ways to do so. What’s the difference would cynic critics ask? Probably the “awareness “part of us which leaves a legacy , an imprint seldom understood. So even in a destructive part of a cycle , you can be a fully blossoming part of care, empathy, deepening of our understanding of this mirage world we live in , even though it may appear futile, outdated, useless . It certainly is no less meaningful than when we think everything is hunky dory and yet is subjected to the same impermanence ..
So back to the points which Brought me to ask this question about the role we small non profits are really playing in that transition that, for argument sake and without creating one, I call “ecological” transition?
1- We first had a year full of “protest”and popular movement decrying climate change and demanding new measures
How genuine were the protagonistes ? Difficult to say in a world dominated by carefully orchestrated media
Themselves controlled by powers in the shadow of public life but definitely not in the shadow of manipulation.
- Climate change yes but demands rarely hit the core f the issues
- Yet it’s a habit of the human race to skim on the surface and forget the roots
- So much so that we have cut our own roots with the natural world, and by extension with the way we need to live with it
- We loose the sense of interconnectedness and how issues come about
- Organizations are born often with genuine goals but bow do they develop ?
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Others are from day one or rapidlycontrolled by the powerful lobbies they are supposed to fight
- Meanwhile poisoning of food, air and water leads to a leveling of our ability to think, analyse and comprehend the mechanisms of destructions we are unwittingly sponsoring
2- I dont know about you and your experiences in your non Profits whether you are founders, members or spectators but I feel a greater urge from a portion of the public to become involved – to get heir hands in something they can feel, see, especially when there are local issues they can get involved with or life threatening issues they are suddenly discovering the inescapable impact they have on their own lives
Granted there is a divide- those who sink into indolence, or blame game waiting for “someone”somewhere to fix the problem whilst not been ready to give up the life style that brought us all into this apocalyptic mess.
In this public, the ability to connect the dots seems to have been totally lost- or never awakened in the first place.
Results of polarized education, of foods without nourishment and even worst systematic poisoning of all kinds.There are more points I think could be called upon in a discussion , but in this initial post, I wanted to just throw a couple of ideas in the pot to start a discussion and invite you all, actors and supporters to express what you think is going on with the role of non profits in the so called “ecological transition”.
And sure, we should keep in mind that even small non profit have a real impact in communities life and well being. They provide work and pay wages, but they also buy goods in amount not always realized (
I invite you to do so in the comment below
Liane Montagne
PS you are running or helping a non profit ?
You may want to watch the replay of a webinar
I held a while ago to exactly help them become more visible
Link is here . Feel free to pass it on to organizations which can benefit from the information !