environmental ignorance

Using x +/- 2 proportions block on the compound miter saw

The world these days is plagued by environmental ignorance. Of the entire field of Republican presidential candidates in the US, John Kasich is the only one not in lock-step with the climate change deniers.  Yet even though he appears to accept that climate change is real, he still insists that we do absolutely nothing about it.

I am praying fervently that young people show up at the polls, and put stupidity to rest. It is amazing how the candidates are so engaged in their twitter feeds, cell phones and digital apparatus but then deny the validity of the science that made it all possible. Very few scientists question of the reality of climate change and its causes and effects except those who want the polar ice caps to melt so that they can get at the riches they hope to find under the ice, come hell and high water, both.

Demonstration box in process.

Is this what we get for pushing kids into abstract learning when they should have been afoot in the forest, and in the wood shop exploring the nature and spirit of reality? More about this in tomorrow's post.)

I have learned of a couple good books that should help to change the way people think about the outdoors.

One is How to Raise a Wild Child: The Art and Science of Falling in Love with Nature, by Dr. Scott Sampson. Like Richard Louv's book, Last Child in the Woods, it points to the necessity that children become fully immersed in nature. Another book, that's even more up my alley has not yet been published in English, but has been a best seller in Germany. The Hidden Life of the Trees by Peter Wohlleben reveals that our forests are alive and interconnected in more ways than any but mystics have been able to see so far.

I have previously mentioned the early history of Freidrich Froebel, and that he had been a forester's apprentice long before going to university, and several decades before inventing Kindergarten. What he hoped to teach and awaken through his model of education was the sense of wonder that led children to discover their own inter-connectedness in the field of all things and all life. Sadly, that kind of mystical wonder has been pushed aside in education to make room for statistical analysis and standardized tests. And so when I use the term environmental ignorance, I wish I were doing so in jest rather than so directly to the point.

As you can see in the photos, my demonstration boxes are evolving nicely.

Make, fix, create and extend toward others the opportunity to learn likewise.