How To...Join Networks

What would Martin Luther King have been without his flock of millions of followers? What would have become of Gandhi without the masses of underprivileged Indians who joined him in peaceful protest? Where would Grace Armitage have taken us without the countless thousands of older people who joined in her calls to act now on climate change?

Who is Grace Armitage? It could be any one of you out there, with an idea, a passion, a desire to change the direction we are veering in; but with no-one who will listen to you because, although so many people feel the same, they also have no idea what to do about it. If a strongly held belief is to be heard, a single voice is too quiet. Green Seniors need to join together to be heard.

There are many special individuals out there who can make changes on their own, and we completely respect the wish of those of you who are content to find out more, and do your own part as a letter writer, political lobbyist, spreader of good ideas or whatever you want to do to help make the environment better. You are welcome at Green Seniors, and we hope you will stay.

We do believe, though, that for every individual action that makes a difference, there are many more actions taken by a group of people with a similar purpose, that make a much bigger difference. The logic is simple : it is easy to ignore one letter, much harder to ignore a hundred; it is easy to ignore a lone protester at the factory gate, much more difficult to ignore a thousand people blockading the entire factory; it is easy to say one vote doesn’t matter, impossible to say 10,000 votes don’t matter.

Group action works because groups of people cannot be ignored.

But groups cannot be run on the basis of a single individual’s activities; they must be well organised, be able to cater for a range of opinions, and in most cases have the necessary funding to be able to provide services to a large number of people. Unless you already have a group in operation, or are a remarkably organised individual (and there are quite a few out there), then your best course of action to make a difference is to add your voice to an existing group.

Some groups use their membership as a single voice rather than a large number of individuals, and we won’t rule out listing one on that basis; though we prefer groups that want to mobilise their members in an active way, in letter writing or direct action, for instance.

We like to call these kinds of groups, “networks”, because they allow people to work collectively, as a network. We especially like those networks that want to join smaller groups and networks together for a common purpose, for these kinds of organisations have huge potential power.

At Green Seniors, we aim to take much of the confusion out of finding a suitable network to match your requirements. The links on the left hand side largely contain specially selected groups and networks that fulfil our basic criteria:

· They are of a broadly environmental nature, e.g. preventing climate change, preserving forests, reducing consumption.

· They are in line with the main body of scientific thinking, e.g. they are not climate change skeptics.

· They are not overtly commercial in nature, i.e. they don’t exist just to make money for someone.

· They are not funded by companies or bodies that contradict the aims of the group, such as oil companies, coal mining firms or aircraft manufacturers.

So if you are keen to take part, then use the links on the right, and find out more about something in your area, or further afield – you may find you have more in common with networks in another country than you realise.

And if you have a group that you want us to recognise, then drop us a line on groups@greenseniors.org - we are always willing to spread the word.

Comments

[Roland Dawson]

I am retired and living in Hungary but do not know where to begin, could I be of assistance ? I would love to get involved.

[Dr.R.L.Symonds]

Glad to help. Are there green senior groups in UK? We are in Isle of Thanet, furtherst East in southern England.

[Keith Farnish]

Dear Dr Symonds

We are trying to collate lists of environmental networks all over the UK. I happen to hail from Margate and know that it is a bit of a "desert" in east Kent. It is clear that there is a great need for environmental groups that are "senior friendly", which is why we have started this venture.

Keep watching the site, especially the UK Networks links, and we will post any appropriate items that we come across.

If any readers are aware of groups or networks that cover Dr Symonds' area, or any area, then please drop us a line.

Keith

[Keith Farnish]

Dear Roland

I have sent you a personal mail, but for anyone else who would like to help, please feel free to contact us.

The best things anyone can do to help us at the moment are:

1) Link to us from other web sites and spread the word
2) Provide us with details of green networks, particularly those related to seniors.

And of course, carry on campaigning for what you believe is right.

Keith and Joyce.

[Ann Rogers]

Just found the GreenSenior site after monitoring the news on Energy Bulletin. Would like to be on any sort of world-wide mailing list, and would circulate info locally.
Our local enviro groups have just convinced the city of Traverse City Mi to pass the Mayors'
Climate Protection Agreement. This was started by Sierra Club and has over 340 signatures. Now the real work begins.
Please sign me up for any list available.
thank you

[Keith Farnish]

Hi Ann, and congratulations on your excellent work.

We had not thought of having a mailing list, as Green Seniors is not a membership organisation, however a regular bulletin would be an excellent idea and I will create a "sign up" link very soon.

Please send your e-mail address to keith@greenseniors.org and I will add you tonight.

Keith

[Linda Brooking]

Can you tell me please if you know of any contacts in France that I could link up with?

[Keith Farnish]

Hi Linda

We have certainly had people from France visiting the site, but no-one from France has contacted us yet. We will do a little research and contact you directly when we find something.

Keith

[m.mufaiz ahmed]

i don't know about this website please tell clearly about this just tell how to join in this

[Donna Cunningham]

As a Pacific Northwest resident, I have been sickened at watching the forests clearcut. I am the author of many books, and five years ago, I decided to only publish in ebook format to do my part to stop deforestation. It has been an unpopular decision among my long-time readers, and book sales have been very slow, despite lots of promotional work on my part. Tonight I was feeling very disheartened and questioning if I could go on with this campaign. Then I picked up the AARP magazine and the first thing I saw was an article about this site. It seemed the answer to a prayer. Thanks for being there!!

[Keith Farnish]

Good move, Donna. I will be doing the same, at least for the majority of copies of my book (I still buy 2nd hand books, though, and some people cannot use e-books).

It's good to see Green Seniors is helping people.

Keith

[Meria]

I have been working on environmental issues for decades and have many experts on this topic in the library of shows on my site at www.Meria.net
It is #2 in importance, only to real nuclear danger.
Without a clean planet, we have no place to live.

[bob]

Hello,

I am a student trying learn more about "green seniors" and what problems they face in their everyday lives?

Also, what changes would they like to see happen in the near future involving energy and electricity? As well, what portable renewable energy applications would benefit this group?

Thanks for your help in advance.

Bob

[Keith Farnish]

Dear Bob

Please see my response in "How To...Find Information"

Keith

[Teri@planetaid]

Hi Folks!

If you live in New England or the Mid Atlantic, one way that you can help is by hosting a Planet Aid Recycling Box at your business, place of worship or civic organization.

Planet Aid is a non-profit organization that recycles clothing, shoes, and other textiles and donates the profits to various local, regional and international charities. In 2008 we recycled 102,000,000 lbs. The boxes can be placed anywhere on the pavement at your location or on the grass if parking is an issue.

We collect the clothing weekly. The boxes are fully insured, tamper resistant, fireproof
and waterproof. There is no obligation. The box will be removed if you don't like having it there!

The boxes will definitely attract new customers to your location!

If you are in New England, please contact me @ tbeers@planetaid.org if you are interested in assisting us with our environmental and humanitarian efforts. Those in the mid-atlantic can link to www.planetaid.org for more information.

Thank you and here's to living green!

Teri