We live during an exceptional moment in history. Human beings' unprecedented levels of technological development and resource extraction have put us on a collision course with the survival of life on this planet, threatening all our relations: millions of other living species. Furthermore, our window of opportunity to prevent the most catastrophic consequences of global warming is closing fast: we have less than ten years to avert the disaster of runaway climate change.

The American and global economic system as currently structured serves only a small fraction of human beings to such an extent that it really serves no one: neither humans nor our larger extended family of living things. The current economic system is premised, like a kind of global cancerous tumor, upon limitless growth, and justified by ever-greater short-term profits for an ever-dwindling privileged few. The current system also distributes opportunities unequally according to hierarchies of power and privilege according to race, class, gender, and every other dividing "ism" invented by the defenders of the status quo, which prevents us from seeing ourselves as unified by a common purpose.

Despite the many valid reasons for despair, we must remember one thing: it is always darkest and coldest just before the dawn. I count myself as incredibly fortunate and blessed to find myself surrounded by a community of individuals working tirelessly and hopefully for the coming dawn. It is members of organizations such as the Greenlining Institute and Bay Localize, who give me reason for more hope than ever before. Once you start looking, you can't help but see undeniable signs of hope and positive change.

In the spirit of thinking globally and acting locally, the potential of what can be accomplished in the Bay Area and in California is stupendous. The Sustainable Communities Strategy mandated by SB 375, a state law which requires every metro region in California to adopt goals for greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions through changes in urban planning and transportation systems, may represent one facet of the coming dawn. Here in the Bay Area, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) are jointly responsible for establishing regional GHG reduction targets, which will ultimately be approved by the California Air Resources Board (CARB).

An informal coalition of well-respected organizations working broadly for justice, equity, and sustainability has come to the decision-making table demanding representation as equal stakeholders in the process. Collectively, these groups (including Greenlining Institute, Bay Localize, and many others) are arguing that the poor and people of color are the 21st century canaries in the coalmine of our present collision course with economic and environmental limits.

Together, we are arguing for mutual aid and localization as the highest manifestation of values which can be traced back to those espoused by America's Founding Fathers: independence, self-reliance, democracy, and freedom. Together, we are asking for energy independence from fossil fuels by relying instead on the abundant renewable energy we can harvest from the sun, the earth, the wind, and the water for free. We are asking for regional self-reliance with closed-loop systems of consumption and production that support both human beings and other species' survival in a web of mutuality and interdependence. Together, we are arguing for authentic democracy: not just in our political systems but in our economic systems as well. Together, we are working for a Bay Area region that can, and must, meet its needs locally, in turn providing a dignified and healthy livelihood for ALL members of our communities.

We need a new economic paradigm, premised not on struggle and competition, but on cooperation and mutual aid. Not on scarcity, but on abundance. Not on bust-and-boom cycles of resource exhaustion driven by short-term gain, but on resilience and long-term sustainability. Not on unfettered corporations with more rights than individual human beings, but on worker-owned cooperatives grounded in principles of equity and democracy. Ultimately, we must remember that we invented our economic systems to serve us, not the other way around.

With our Federal and State governments mired in horse-trading politics and short-term advantage, we must heed the call of Bolivian president Evo Morales, who during the recent Peoples' Summit on Climate Change implored civil society and governments to join hands and work together for a paradigm of Climate Justice that respects the sanctity of life itself, and of human beings as equal members of the family of living things.

In considering our priorities and deciding between economy and nature, we must also remember that the project of civilization and of our entire human enterprise, including our economic systems, are a smaller subset of Nature, not the other way around. In valuing diversity, we must value every facet of human diversity: race, class, culture, religion, gender, sexuality, ability level, religion, ethnicity, and nationality.

A regional Sustainable Communities Strategy that takes only transportation and urban planning into consideration is already doomed to fail in fulfilling the full potential of its lofty title. The City of Oakland, having already developed an Energy and Climate Action Plan that sets goals for true sustainability in the areas of waste, transportation, buildings, water, and energy, is setting a positive example for such a regional plan. Further systems to consider when designing a Bay Area that meets the needs of all members of our community and that prioritizes justice and equity as central tenets should include: education, health, finance, communications, media, outdoor recreation, arts, culture, political representation, and access to clean land, air, and water.

Ultimately, the crisis of our planet depends on us deciding — collectively as a species — to tell a different story about how we relate to ourselves, to each other, and to life itself on our one and only home, our Mother Earth.

Take Back the Mic Features Community Voices
Bay Localize and Allies Kick Off National Storytelling Campaign

On May 20th, Bay Localize, CommuniTree, and Destined Nation Media presented Take Back The Mic, featuring Afropolitan groove band Soulfège, Audiopharmacy, Seasunz & Ambessa FiyaPowa, the Aaron Ableman Ensemble, and Rise Up. About 200 people came through Ashkenaz to enjoy music, community storytelling, and live art, kicking off a National Community Storytelling campaign.

Beginning early next year, Derrick Ashong and his bandmate Jonathan Gramling of Soulfège will train community groups in five cities to tell their stories. And the first location will be the Bay Area! Lead-up events in each city will offer opportunities for community participation. The events and the trainings will be filmed and a documentary on the campaign will be released in 2012. For more information on Tack Back the Mic, visit our Facebook fan page.