| The information age has landed with a head | | | | doorstep that really caught my attention. |
| bursting thump. In fact it has not only landed; it | | | | My local African potatoes are only a reflection of |
| has planted roots and made a firm home for itself | | | | a much wider problem. "Approximately 20-30 |
| within our society. On a daily basis we have the | | | | percent of plant and animal species assessed so |
| opportunity engorge ourselves with new | | | | far are likely to be at greater risk of extinction if |
| information - magazine articles, blogs, pod casts | | | | increases in global average temperature exceed |
| and e-books. And yet as we revel in this golden | | | | 1.5 to 2.5 Celsius" . Water supply and drought are |
| age of information, we manage to casually face | | | | not the only problems, some species of plants |
| our biggest ever challenge as a species, and note | | | | and animals are temperature sensitive for |
| it down on a virtual to do list for the future - | | | | reproduction. With the onset of global |
| "global warming, fix next week". | | | | temperatures; botanical gardens around the world |
| Just this evening while discussing the topic, my six | | | | have noted that plants around the world are |
| year old daughter dropped her shoulders rolled her | | | | booming ahead of their normal schedule . |
| eyes and moaned "not that again!" Too much | | | | We are reminded that global warming was |
| information can be as bad as too little, as we run | | | | created by factors such as industry, traffic and |
| the risk of desensitization setting it. What's more, | | | | agricultural practices to name a few, however |
| information without experience to help us | | | | when we follow the road to the source, these |
| internalize it does little good. Experience enables us | | | | contributors come down to one place -the place |
| to assign an emotion to the new information; this | | | | you call home. The quandary with global warming |
| is what makes it meaningful. | | | | is the name itself. It evokes a sense of |
| This being the case, I am not here to overload | | | | "globalness" or if you prefer, a sense of bigness |
| you with facts about global warming, there are | | | | that is hard to equate with the day to day hustle |
| multitudes of pages about it on the net and the | | | | and bustle of the family home, its hard to absorb |
| "almost" US president Al Gore has adequately | | | | it, and say, "It's my problem". You may wish to |
| illustrated the threat of global warming in his | | | | test this yourself; what is the first image that |
| award winning film, The Inconvenient Truth. My | | | | enters your head when you hear the term "global |
| interests are more to do with the effects of | | | | warming"? |
| global warming on plants and more specifically the | | | | With the home in mind let's avoid the multitude of |
| plants that live within my direct human experience. | | | | tips available to reduce global warming and |
| How will the increase in average global | | | | consider what experiences we can have that will |
| temperature affect the plants live around you? | | | | help us to internalize this mass of information and |
| The question was sparked by the unprecedented | | | | make it real. Experiencing means processing our |
| dry summer we have just experienced in | | | | world though our five senses, perhaps it's the |
| Johannesburg. After a season of unrelenting heat, | | | | time you take to brush your teeth while leaving |
| punctuated only by two meager rainfalls, | | | | the tap running and saying a sad farewell to those |
| Johannesburg's surrounding grasslands turned from | | | | water drops that not even your grandchildren will |
| green to brown and then shortly after to black as | | | | gain any benefit from. Perhaps its taking a walk |
| the inevitable veld fires started. These savannah | | | | through your local botanical garden as if it was the |
| areas are rich in medicinal plants including the | | | | last time you could do it, or perhaps it's as simple |
| hardy African Potato, Artemisia and a host of | | | | as taking the time to notice what it feels like for |
| golden savanna land grasses. While these areas | | | | your body to experience thirst. The fact remains |
| often burn in winter, the unseasonable fires | | | | that until information about global warming |
| arrived at the wrong time during the plants' | | | | becomes real and experiential to each and every |
| growth cycle. Consequently some plants were | | | | person, we can expect a good few very dry |
| badly damaged, while many did not survive at all. | | | | summers to come. |
| It was this experience that happened on my | | | | |