Somehow, after reading the first half of
Oil and Honey, Bill McKibben makes jail seem not so bad. In the first half of his book, he describes how his involvement with climate change came to be on a more intimate level. The doom that defines the pages of
Eaarth is still there, but there is more at work in his words. McKibben has come to be a leader of change and while reading this book it is quite apparent that he is fit for the job. He knows his audience and utilizes his resources better than nearly anybody else in the climate change movement. All of his skills helped to lead two weeks of consecutive protests on the White House, resulting in 1,253 arrests and a couple nights stay in jail. Throughout, he admits his concern about the methods they are choosing to get their point across and doubts the ability of small grassroots movements to excite any change. Despite his doubt, his organized protests sparked a wave of protests all across the United States and even overseas. His personal climate change organization,
www.350.org, has reached out to people in countries all over the world and has been wildly successful in getting its message across: we want our atmosphere back! His concern about grassroots movements is no longer necessary, as this has now become a global effort. McKibben himself constantly remarks at his surprise at how effective his work has been.
So why is this story personal for McKibben? Throughout his travels across the globe, he reflects on his desire to return to his home in Vermont. Working with a local beekeeper, Kirk, he discovers a new connection to the Earth which helps him to find meaning in his work. Though he misses Vermont, he realizes why his work is absolutely essential -- he has to fight for this cause to save the land he calls home. He talks about his decision to purchase a plot of land as an investment to leave for his daughter: "Given what I knew about climate change, the gift of productive land seemed like the best thing I could hope to pass on to her, an insurance policy worth more than money in some account." McKibben cares for nature and wants to do what is right for its survival, and, in the pages of Oil and Honey, he argues that we should too.
It is pretty amazing how much McKibben has been able to get done. You can certainly tell that he is passionate about the topic. Leaving land to his daughter is a great idea and shows that he is still optimistic about the future.
ReplyDeleteI'm jealous you're reading another McKibben book again. Although Eaarth was doom and gloom I did like his style of writing! This book seems really interesting. I love the cover art for it.
ReplyDeleteThe title/cover of this book is very clever, symbolizing the compelling forces in nature. I don't know if you remember this quote from Eaarth but it came to mind after reading your blog post, "For a hundred years we've substituted oil for people, which is why we have more prisoners than farmers in the United States" (McKibben "Light, Carefully, Gracefully"). I guess it shows what the America's main focuses are, they don't know what's important.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like you really put into context how much McKibben is willing to give for this cause (as if Eaarth did not convince me enough). I can relate to him with the idea of wanting to be back home, even though traveling is awesome.
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