'Shoulders' by Shane Koyczan and The Short Story Long

((Mods: I know this should probably be in a different forum but I think this one fits best because this topic is after all about our fragile Earth))

This is a spoken word poem by Shane Koyczan. At the bottom of my post will be some information on Shane Koyczan for those who want to know who this guy is.



Another great spoken word poem by Shane Koyczan. Everything he said was so true, we are Atlas, together we can make a difference. We have to be like the seed, not knowing the end result but doing it anyway. Many of us may not live to see the change but that doesn't mean that we shouldn't get started right now. We NEED to start implementing better systems, cleaner ways of doing things. We can start with Aquaponic food farms, start building those all over the world. This is also another thing we can be doing so that we don't have to be eating the poisonous genetically modified foods: How existing cropland could feed BILLIONS more

Like Shane said "Don't f*ck with the bees!!" Fipronil, imidacloprid reduce honeybee mitochondrial activity and Bee foraging chronically impaired by pesticide exposure

Even our ocean is in trouble: Ocean Acidity, Impact of Deepwater Horizon oil spill on coral is deeper and broader than predicted and we could use this to help Water 'microhabitats' in oil show potential for oil cleanup: Extremophilic


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Now for the info on Shane
I don't know how many of you know about Shane Koyczan, I hope anyone from B.C, Canada knows of him and I hope a good chunk of Canadians know of him. For those who don't know, Shane is a brilliant & profound spoken word poet. I first heard of him when he was doing slam poetry back in 2005 and he was on tour.

He became the first Canadian to win the Individual Championship title at the National Poetry Slam. Shane has published three books, poetry collection Visiting Hours, Stickboy, a novel in verse, and Our Deathbeds will be Thirsty most recently in 2012. Visiting Hours was selected by both the Guardian and Globe and Mail for their 2005 Best Books of the Year lists. Shane's "We Are More" and Ivan Bielinski’s "La première fois", commissioned by the Canadian Tourism Commission, were unveiled at Canada Day festivities on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on 1 July 2007. He performed a variation on his piece at the Opening Ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. In 2012, Shane Koyczan released a full-length digital album entitled "Remembrance Year", which "tackles abuse with courage and displacement with inspiration" In February 2013 Koyczan released an animated video of his spoken word poem "To This Day" on YouTube and at the TED Conference. The poem focused on the subject of bullying that he and others had received during their life and its lasting effects. "To This Day" went viral shortly after its release, with the video receiving over 13.9 million views as of August 2014. ((If you haven't seen it, you should))

a reply to: Sabiduria

S&F

Thanks Mini for using some of my articles in your post.

It's such a great video by Shane and I hope that it inspires generation Z (anyone born after 1995) to want to begin the process of change. If they get inspired, they will help kick the rest of our butts into gear & if not, because they seem to be innovators, they will come up with a way to get started without us.

a reply to: knoledgeispower

Your welcome Kira

I picked your articles because they are a good starting point for things we can begin to implement. You are right that it seems like our generation is a lost cause for getting things started. I hope Gen Z will step up to the plate, I wonder if I can find that article I was reading in the National Geographic at the docs office?....

a reply to: Sabiduria

Absolutely beautiful and thought provoking, we are responsible.

Loved the incorporation of Pale Blue Dot by Carl Sagan.

It has been said that astronomy is a humbling and character-building experience. There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world.
To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we've ever known.

Thanks for sharing!
*goosebumps*

Here is what Shane said today about the piece:

For the people concerned with the use of language in my latest video... I understand, but can't apologize. Our situation is dire, and this is the word that fits. As a spoken word artist, a great deal of thought goes into the words I choose. The word was not used with disregard to the public... I was actually quoting a friend, who completely hit the nail on the head by saying it. The word is used specifically to shine a light on the problem, and has caused exactly the intended effect. Yes, I could have changed it to 'mess with' or 'screw with'... but do either of those options make the line stand out? No. The fact that the world is more concerned with a single word over the fact that our planet is in crisis, just shows how completely lost we are. Everyday we are subjected to images and articles of intense violence... but still we choose to object to a word that describes our feelings about the situation, rather than the actual situation itself. Our planet is dying... I can think of no more appropriate time to use this word... I can think of no better word to describe the immeasurable scope of despair and frustration I feel toward our treatment of the planet. Share the video or don't... the choice is, and will always be yours... I am forcing no one to watch it. This campaign is a call to action... real action is what's needed to save our home... our survival depends on the participation of all. Please don't think that the omission of a single word is the action that's going to make this world a better place.