Prior to Tuesday's class, I had not heard Leo DiCaprio's UN address in it's entirety -- bits and pieces, sure, but not in full. Honestly, I was quite impressed by it. I mean, I don't want to just give him a bunch of credit for giving a damn about things everybody should give a damn about, but he seems to hold legitimate stakes in environmental issues. He knows what he's talking about, he made many legitimate points, and most of all, he showed genuine passion.
I mean, I know he's an actor. He gets paid to be ingenuinely genuine. Whatever, it's fine.
His mention of industry is something that really resonated with me, and that's what prompted me to draw this picture. As we become eco-literate, we should become more and more aware of what is really happening in the world. We should become more critical of what we buy and where/who we buy it from. With "Eco-Friendly" becoming a huge buzz word, more and more products are boasting about how they're the eco-friendly-est. But what does that even mean? What is the minimum effort that has to be put in before something can be called "Eco-Friendly"? Who decides the criteria of eco-friendly products / companies?
This makes me think of the SK based company Ten Tree Apparel who boast being eco-friendly by planing 10 trees for every article of clothing that is purchased. This is a pretty cool idea, and if they really have planted 4.5 million trees, as their website claims, then that's awesome. That being said, the folks who started the company have no issues hopping on a private jet to fly to Las Vegas. Hey, that's their thing, right. They're not the only ones who have, do, or will fly on a private jet, but when their company is promoting eco-friendlyness, flying across the continent doesn't really refelct those ideals.
Jon, thank you for the straightforward ways in which you express your ponderings, opinions, and question-posing. I was especially drawn to your skepticism of the prevalent concept of 'eco-friendly', with "What does that even mean?" Identifying in this way is different than considering oneself as eco-literate, I would suggest, especially in light of claims by companies. Have you heard of 'green washing'? This might be of interest to you, http://sinsofgreenwashing.org/
ReplyDeleteAlso, I appreciate the simpleness of your creative, visual representations which complement your writing. Looking forward to your future posts. ~Audrey