A mail this morning from my friend Lynn Miller, at OrganicMania, made me realize I failed to properly close the chapter on all work that took place here on this blog, on critical issue of climate change:
I read your blog post on La M about the new direction, and really wanted to respond but felt like I should run this by you first….I am happy for you that you are on a path that excites you….but at the same time, I do really miss the old global warming focused La Marguerite. You were my main source of information and inspiration on global warming, and I felt a part of your community. I thought you were the top female voice on global warming, bar none, and one of the very top in the world (Ok, I really like Friedman, but you were up there!)
Will you still be writing about global warming under “social issues?” I felt like in your post you were a bit dismissive of the incredible work you did in global warming. I’m sure I’m not the only one who feels this way…
First, let me apologize for my haste and for appearing ‘dismissive’ of all the work that took place on La Marguerite, regarding raising awareness and looking for behavioral solutions to global warming. It is one thing for me to decide to take a turn. It is another to not properly acknowledge the community that formed and contributed so much. There has been many ripples from the discussions held at La Marguerite. Sharing of information that would not otherwise have made it into the mainstream media. Connections formed that led to enduring collaborations outside the scope of this blog. Acts of activism. Personal awakenings . . . Lynn is right.
Still, I am closing the climate change chapter for good. After eighteen months of being a voice and a community organizer for climate solutions, it is time for me to move on, and leave it to others to carry the torch. With the election of Barack Obama, I feel the stakes are different, and the path is more clear. What is needed now, more than ever, are new policies, quick, and the support of the people to pass these new policies.
I am very much looking forward to the opening of the next chapter on La Marguerite, as discussed in earlier post. My professional interests are now gravitating towards social media and social change ventures, and it is only natural for my blog to follow.
Let me end with a big thanks to all who contributed to the climate change chapter on La Marguerite. I wish you to continue your awesome work in the many venues available to you, both online and in the outer world.
I think it’s wise for you to move on to a more actionable subject matter, but I do want to share this one concern:
What I was wondering about lately is if you will be able to stand out with writing on “social media, sustainability, and social change.” as much as you did with writing on “green psychology”. Specifically, I was wondering if I would ever have recognized your unique way of thinking buried within posts on quite generic topics – generic to a web expert and blog junkie for me at least.
Then, I don’t know if you care much that I – possibly a quite random guy to you – have found you, and you may be happy to build some more mainstream connections (at least when viewed through a social media insider lens, this is all not truly mainstream of course).
If you do care about making connections on your blog based on the uniqueness of your personality, I think you should start by asking yourself (given your current tag-line) why you’re not Beth Kanter or Michelle Riggen. I could name several reasons, but I suggest you try to list them yourself. Try to make the sum of that shine through in your posts, and if possible in your tagline.
Then maybe you expect Twitter to be the main driver for new connections. For this I must warn you that many deep thinkers are not the most social types, and will connect through blogs more easily then through Twitter. Compared to the number of people who “get” blogs and online commenting, Twitter is really, really small.
To sum it up: The reason I’m commenting on this post is because I think I know (enough of) you, and the biggest reason that I got to know you was that you were showing off unique thinking on a barely touched but extremely important subject.
A great challenge lies ahead of you.
Hi Marguerite,
I’m glad we spoke and had an opportunity to bring some closure to this chapter.
I’d like to send my regards to some of the wonderful personalities I got to know through your blog…hope they see this: Jeff Huggins, Nadine Sellers, Kiashu, Jayma19, Meryn Stoi, Kyle, and Jason.
Hopefully we’ll all continue to meet again in your new incarnation of LaMarguerite blog. I know I’ll be here! As Jeff Huggins pointed out, we all need to eat!
Best,
Lynn
Meryn, thanks. I appreciate your thoughtfulness. What I am bringing is a feminine perspective to all these areas of life, to do with making our world a better place. I am convinced the feminine has a huge role to play in our future. The Obama movement was a start. I feel it is now up to us each to carry the torch, to the best of our abilities and interests. I am simply following my passions, the only way I know to work.
Lynn, thank you. You should know, one of my very dear friend called yesterday to ask me to thank you for helping me to bring closure to all the work done by the La Marguerite community on climate change . . . One more ripple for Lynn Miller.
That makes me happy!
the issue of global warming should be one removed away from the emotive politicking and celebritism, and focus on the facts. Scientific evidence SUPPORTS the fact that this globe’s climate is changing for the worse, your blog is spot on!As you said yourself, we need to discuss the scientific discoveries and go from there, which is why education about various regions of study for global warming should be a focus not just for the experts, but the general public as well. I came across a website about an expedition of the antarctic that is going to start this coming novemberhttp://www.transantarcticexpedition.com/expedition/. It’s aim is to do tests and educate the masses about global warming. Has anyone heard of it?