For all the challenges we face in ecology, I think it’s good to step back from time to time, put things in perspective, and examine the good news as well.

So here are a couple of good news items for you.  Did you know we actually use less energy per person today than we did in 1978.  And that’s in spite of an increased standard of living.  How much less energy?  About 9%.  That’s significant.  Even more striking is our reduction in energy use to produce goods, which has dropped a whopping 53% from 1970 to 2008.

So as 2010 ends, lets take pause to appreciate this.  Ecology doesn’t have to always be doom and gloom. Indeed, I think the movement does itself a diservice with this attitude.

Sure, we have much more to improve.  But it’s clear that we have the ability to move the needle in our ecological endeavors.

Wishing you a Happy and Green New Year – J. Daniel