Dear Planet Earth. 🐘 💙

The California Blue Jay perched on a tree branch outside my kitchen window. The snail leaving a trail on my garden steps. The family of deer that take refuge in my neighborhood and the grayish-green bearded lichen that grows on my favorite cypress tree. These are just a few images that come to mind, as I reflect on World Wildlife Day. The theme for this year is sustaining all life on earth and yet, did you know that very soon, in our lifetime, one-fourth of all species will be extinct from this planet?

On this World Wildlife Day, Tuesday, March 3, 2020, let’s spread the word to younger generations about the role we all play in creating a future where we humans live in harmony with the wildlife that share the planet with us. It means staying educated and mindful. After all, we rely on biodiversity for our survival: the air we breathe, the food we eat, the energy we consume and the countless goods and services our planet provides for us. While it is abundantly clear that humans have a disproportionate impact on biodiversity, let’s turn our sights towards accountability. Whether you go for a hike in nature and inspire our younger generation to notice local plants, trees, fish species, birds, or animals that you may encounter along your way or by watching TV shows and documentaries related to wildlife conservation, you can be ambassadors in building a more mindful future where people and nature thrive.
 

By Theo Koffler, speaker, author and founder of Mindfulness Without Borders – a charitable organization that facilitates programs and workshops to strengthen social and emotional intelligence and secular mindfulness in youth and the adults that surround them.