So I've been thinking... a lot

So many thoughts and so much to think about.

Some were generated while sailing aboard Northern Light with my aunt and uncle Deborah and Rolf. I read many good books, learned how to sail (somewhat) saw some amazing things, and had a great amount of time to just be and relax. When I got back to La Paz through some serious events, traumatic and beautiful, I took more time to recognize what was going on within. Then I read Cosmic Trigger and my mind was opened to some other possibilities.

But let's talk green for a second.

La Paz is a city of extremes. Up and down, poor and (moderately) wealthy, but like any city or civilization considered modern, La Paz has a pyramid shaped demographic. So many of the people here are on the low end of an economic slope that is traditionally unclimbable, that survival needs have dictated a sustainable lifestyle, and it's only those few on top who are riding the western wave of SUV's and waste.

Now that's not to say that there aren't sustainability problems that saturate life for all in La Paz, but it's just less likely that someone making less than a dollar a day will waste anything. One big problem here is plastic and other non bio-degradable waste and litter. The city has novel approaches to this problem, but recycling and reusing of typical disposables is needed here in a big way. There is some recycling but nothing universal or consistent throughout the city.

So what would it take to make a city like La Paz, where so much is already reused, recycled, and run down? Clean energy, and a local and less polluting fuel source for vehicles. Elimination of the ubiquitous plastic bag (that is a certain part of the economy here), and education. It sounds like a lot to do but it's nothing! Really! Compared to what we must overcome in countries with the horrendous and despicable consumption problems like the good ole' USA, Bolivia could be the first, and best country in sustainability with much greater ease.

What does this mean? Globally, and here, where I sit, in La Paz, Bolivia. Perspective shift. Change of vision. New Vision, and no programs. The people of Bolivia are some of the most mobile minded people in the world. They have had 30 changes of power in 25 years, and for the first time they have a president who is loved by the people, respected by his peers, and unafraid of pressure from outside.

I say it now, Evo Morales, you have a chance to be the leader of the world in National Sustainability. How would that feel? For one of the poorest countries in the hemisphere to lead the world with vision?

Amazing. Great. Proud, and above all, hopeful.