getting down to the real work . . . .

I recently read this article about Stephen Hawking and his opinions about our survival on earth - check it out if you get a chance. And then I read something about Occupy Wall St. and how it needs to move from being a ‘disrupter to a builder’ - interesting article, link below. El-Erian is saying that the movement doesn’t really have a leader yet and hasn’t developed a clear sense of it’s core principles. Thinking about the end of our planet and the energy stirred up by OWS inspired me to put down a list of what I think we really need to do to ‘save the world.’ I don’t know about you . . . but I’m not interested in moving to outer space any time soon.

Stephen Hawking: Space Exploration Crucial to Human Survival

OWS: From Building Awareness to Building Momentum

* confluence of environmental awareness and economic benefit - smart business = economical/environmental/innovative technology. instead of working harder we will work smarter and make the most efficient and generally beneficial use out of all raw materials as we fashion them for specific purposes. instead of fighting about which government programs to cut or keep or add - why don’t we work on what we have and make it better.

* continual development of systems - invest in and develop technology based on actual human work flow trends - how to automate mundane tasks and make them safer - how to improve quality of life. when thinking of investing money in the economy - the best way to invest is in changes that create real and actual growth. we need to develop ways to measure this born out of a new respect for the complexity of the human experience. In general, the effectiveness of these systems will be measured in short-term feedback thereby allowing us to tweak them and ensure our possibilities for success in reaching goals.

* pro-active community engagement - we love our country and we’re proud of it and that’s why so many people are so upset about the current conditions. find ways to actively engage community members in improving quality of life - communicating about political decisions - and implementing effective systems. we, the people, are what makes this country great and we are the people who will continue to make it great. this is a call to action to think, communicate, and ultimately engage in creating our collective future. This might include things such as sharing our skills via time banks, organizing events and intiatives, or sharing useful information, ideas, etc. if we, as ‘americans’, want to remain world leaders we have to continue on with the spirit that started this country and actively exhibit that we remain committed to those ideals.