Ken Christenson
Author's posts
Mar 13
Hope in Confronting our Individuation
Climate Change is an existential threat, and many of us don’t know what to hope for any more, or even whether we should hope at all. My feeling is that if hope means anything in this case, its roots must run very, very, deep indeed. Here is Essay FORTY-ONE from the book, Darwin, Dogen, and …
Jan 20
Confirmation Bias is the Opponent Climate Activists Must Defeat —Within Our Own Ranks
Sir Francis Bacon: “The human understanding is no dry light, but receives infusion from the will and affections; whence proceed sciences which may be called “sciences as one would.” For what a man had rather were true he more readily believes. Therefore he rejects difficult things from impatience of research; sober things, because they narrow …
Jan 11
Optimism is a Political ACT
Thought you might like to see the text of the reading we did at the end of our new year, new decade, walk in Parry Sound. It is not, in fact, the message seen in the above image, but was condensed from the document: ‘In 2030 we ended the climate emergence. Here’s how’ — by …
Jan 03
Climate Action Parry Sound
We are taught to think of humans first. When we look at this photo we see a human tragedy unfolding due to a ‘climate emergency’ that threatens ‘the world as we know it’. In this New Year, the first of a decade during which the science tells us we have a last chance to mitigate ecological …
Dec 08
FELLOW INTELLIGENCE: if Sexual Selection is the Language of Nature
…“Believe me,” said Horton. “I tell you sincerely, my eyes are quite open and I see him quite clearly. I know there’s a person who’s out there beyond us, and a person’s a person, no matter how humongous. — apologies to Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who. Excerpts from Darwin, Dogen, and the Extremophile Choice. …
Nov 19
Please Understand!
Please understand: The power of Greta has nothing to do with who she is or even with what she says — “Listen to the scientists, not me”. The POWER of Greta is in what she represents: The raw cries of our children’s children from out of the silence of a depleted future world! PLEASE UNDERSTAND! …
Nov 02
What Constrains the Ecocidal Nature of Human Technology? A Deep Time View of the Climate Crisis
Frans de Waal: “… the survival of chimpanzees is quite dependent on tools … [and the great apes in general appear to use] a representational mental strategy, which allows solutions before action … but I consider us the only linguistic species.” — Chapter: Redefining Man. In an age of post truth media, finding something we …
Aug 27
Three Directions for Climate Activism.
A once and future self: “… some readers might understandably demur when I say nothing at all about burning issues like climate change. I can only respond that, as you will see, it is not my purpose, in what I hope will become a dispassionate Man and Nature conversation, to distract our minds with reflexive …
Apr 10
What Will You Say to Your Grandchildren? — a Guest Post by Jeremy Lent
This is a wonderful answer to those who feel it’s too late to mitigate climate change. I’ve got to tell you that I’m getting far more vehemently negative responses to the petition in the previous post (An Elders Appeal for Immediate Action on Climate Change) than I am getting positive responses. I prefer to think …
Mar 21
An Elders Appeal for Immediate Action on Climate Change
The following is my attempt at a fairly comprehensive synopsis of various exchanges with Frank Thompson, Merry Bridges, and Stephen Héder in Parry Sound Ont. (The formal petition with abridged wording is available for signing at the bottom) The petition, and this longer blog post, are meant to support both the Student Climate Campaign and …
