Early this month I was at a lecture on environmentalism, and one of the speakers pointed out that the word "tree-hugging" is faulty because environmentalism is not just about nature; environmentalism overlaps with a multitude of issues, such as sweat-shops, vegetarianism/veganism, and urban development, to name a few. There is also the echoing sentiment among activists and eco-conscious individuals about the precarious state of the future of generations to come. In this way, caring about the environment is more of a "people-hugging" than anything else, an idea which I absolutely love. It seems so simple, to look at eco-friendliness as a gesture of human-friendliness as well, but I think it's a truism which gets lost in all the minutiae of recycling, reducing, and reusing. Otherwise, wouldn't every parent of generation-Y and Z (or anyone who likes children, for that matter) be scrambling to separate the glass bottles from the plastic for the sake of their kids and grandkids; wouldn't less of us scoff at the idea of public transportation? Maybe Ralph Nader and Al Gore would've seemed like more appetizing leaders to a larger percentage of the population.
Unfortunately, nothing is that simple, but as Plenty Magazine points out in their April/May issue, we are getting better at giving a damn. Take Earth Day, for example. When it was first started in April of 1970, 20 million people celebrated. 30 years later, ushering a new millennium, 500 million people celebrated, a number which is growing with every year. True, the population has almost doubled in the last 30 years but we here at Millen-Neo believe in looking at the bright-side. There are less lead emissions now than in the 70's and more legislative action to ensure that greenhouse gas emissions are reduced. More awesomely, this millennium has seen some technological advancements and impressive inventions which endeavor to create more sustainable lifestyles. As Discovery Channel's mini-series "Eco-Tech" showed, the best minds of our times are acknowledging the issues and taking action.
That's why the idea of "people-hugging" makes so much sense to me: as much we collectively show a lack of foresight, we are some amazingly innovative and imaginative creatures. We have the power to use our creativity and knowledge to improve on our advancements as we clean up our messes. And that's what inspired the name Millen-Neo: as we exert our energies on making the new millennium a cleaner, more sustainable epoch, we move away from old problematic habits toward new solutions and fresh vision. Moreover, I believe that we can aspire to live "hippie" ideals without sacrificing style and aesthetics; I assert that we can live in a Millen-Neo "hip" way.
It's one great, stylish way to give each other a big, huge hug.
PS: Many thanks to the many people who helped launch this site; it's been an amazing, creative process. Millen-Neo is indebted to Norma Anica, Sarah Lee, Soojung Choe, Crystal Kim, and Christine Dominguez. But the biggest thanks goes to the talented R. Brian Baker whose help and time has made Millen-Neo.com possible!
