There is a beautiful story of an old man planting a fig tree. When asked if he really expected to live long enough to consume the fruits of his labor, he replied: "I was born into a world flourishing with ready pleasures. My ancestors planted for me, and now I plant for my children..."
This is INTERGENERATIONAL JUSTICE –
an understanding that today’s youth and future generations have at least the same opportunities and resources to meet their own needs as the generation governing today.
This is INTERGENERATIONAL JUSTICE –
an understanding that today’s youth and future generations have at least the same opportunities and resources to meet their own needs as the generation governing today.
Now is our moment – as older adults, as elders -- to plant our trees for the future so that the delicious fruits of those trees will be the sustenance for future generations.
We create intergenerational justice when as individuals we:
As citizens of the richest and most powerful country we also have the opportunities to act collectively, working together to impact our government especially as it affects the environment. We have a unique responsibility -- to ourselves as well as future generations -- to protect and preserve the bounty that sustains all life.
Jim Hansen, one our nation’s leading climate scientists and head of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies, recently spoke about this concept of Intergenerational Justice. He said:
It is my job, as a father and grandfather concerned about young people, future generations, and the other species that share our planet, to point out that the path the world is on, if we stay on it, guarantees that we will push the climate system beyond tipping points. This is a moral issue, a matter of intergenerational injustice.
Because of the inertia and slow response of the climate system, our generation burns most of the fossil fuels and reaps the benefits while future generations bear the costs. We, the older generations and our governments, cannot pretend that we do not understand this situation — we must accept responsibility.”
We have been fortunate, and have benefited by what has been given to us.
Now it is our time to plant trees for the future; and to participate in intentional acts of intergenerational justice.
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
We create intergenerational justice when as individuals we:
- create legacies for future generations
- mentor younger folks
- act as wisdomkeepers
- preserve the beauty and the richness of our precious Mother Earth
- build a caring and beloved community for all beings.
As citizens of the richest and most powerful country we also have the opportunities to act collectively, working together to impact our government especially as it affects the environment. We have a unique responsibility -- to ourselves as well as future generations -- to protect and preserve the bounty that sustains all life.
Jim Hansen, one our nation’s leading climate scientists and head of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies, recently spoke about this concept of Intergenerational Justice. He said:
It is my job, as a father and grandfather concerned about young people, future generations, and the other species that share our planet, to point out that the path the world is on, if we stay on it, guarantees that we will push the climate system beyond tipping points. This is a moral issue, a matter of intergenerational injustice.
Because of the inertia and slow response of the climate system, our generation burns most of the fossil fuels and reaps the benefits while future generations bear the costs. We, the older generations and our governments, cannot pretend that we do not understand this situation — we must accept responsibility.”
We have been fortunate, and have benefited by what has been given to us.
Now it is our time to plant trees for the future; and to participate in intentional acts of intergenerational justice.
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
- Courageously speak and act as a responsible citizen -- an elder who cares for future generations. Learn more at SAGE-ING International www.Sage-ing.org
- Learn more: read the pages of www.Elder-Activists.org
- Learn about other organizations: www.elder-activists.org/connecting-links.html
- Initiate a conversation with someone younger about their visions for their future
- Connect with others through the Conscious Elders Network
RSS Feed
