Photo copyright Fiona Stewart

What I’ve learned is that every summer season – roughly December through February – is vastly different here. And every day is vastly different too. What is not changing is that during the past fifty years, most noticeably during the past decade, air temperatures along the Peninsula have warmed more than anywhere on the planet. The impacts of warmer temperatures are evidenced everywhere, from loss of ice cover to changing wildlife habits. The ability to take a close-up look at that evolution is a great chance for me.

This morning I spent the morning among the Yalour Islands, near the northern end of the Grand Didier Channel, zipping by Zodiac around icebergs of a variety of shapes and sizes. Initially the skies were bright and blue, the first such we’ve seen in a few days. Actually, the last blue skies were accompanied by hurricane winds, which blew every cloud in the sky out of the way. But as is typical for Antarctica, things changed rapidly today as a fast-moving snow squall blotted the sun and turned the idyllic scene quickly more ominous, a whiteout, impossible to see the shoreline.

We passed through these islands eleven months ago by kayak and the difference today is dramatic. Because we were going to travel along the Peninsula by kayak last January, for many months I had started each morning checking out http://www.polarview.aq/and its satellite images of Antarctica’s ice.

Each year more than seven millions square miles of sea ice freezes around the continent, growing the continent to twice the size of the U.S. And each year that pack ice breaks up and melts in different patterns and stages dependent on how warm the temperatures are, how big are the winds. Thanks to a colder-than-usual winter last year the continent was ringed by frozen sea ice until late in January, even the Peninsula, which is generally the first Antarctic region to lose its ice.

By comparison, this season the Peninsula is amazingly clear of pack ice, less than anyone can remember seeing.

Perhaps most telling: Yesterday at Cuverville Island, on a rocky, north-facing slope we spied something very new to Antarctica: Grass. About twenty feet off the sea, two small patches of just-greening herb sprouted, fed by summer sun and warming air temperatures, clear evidence the Peninsula is warming.

- Jon Bowermaster

National Geographic writer, filmmaker and adventurer Jon Bowermaster has spent the last 20 years exploring remote corners of the globe and documenting his experiences for a variety of national and international magazines, as well as in his own books and documentary films.  Updates on Jon’s Antarctic adventures can be found on his own blog, and we’ll be following him here on Earthkeepers as well.

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Holiday “R’s”

• Replace conventional tree lights with energy efficient LED lights. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that if everyone did this we would save enough energy to heat 200,000 homes for a year. LEDs also release little heat, making them safer as well.
• Recycle scraps of fabric, ribbon, buttons and other materials into unique holiday decorations - a fun activity for children.
• If you are giving a gift that requires batteries make sure they are rechargeable.
• Reuse. Save packing cartons and shipping material like peanuts and shredded paper for later use.
• Reduce energy. Turn down the heat before the guests arrive. You’ll save energy while the extra body heat of your guests will warm up the room.

Celebrate the Earth

• Walk or carpool to parties and family gatherings to save fuel.
• Plan serving amounts ahead of time to avoid food waste; if you still have leftovers, freeze them for future meals. Or, give a gift to your garden and compost them instead.
• Create romantic (and flattering) ambient light with groupings of votive candles in attractive cups; they’re long-burning and efficient.
• Give your tree back to the earth. If you choose a cut tree this season make sure you recycle it. Check Earth911 for info on recycling in your area.
• Prune evergreen shrubs and trees and use them as decorations for your holiday table or sideboard.
• Plant some new trees to replace the one you use this season. Visit American Forests to learn how.

Creative Gifting

• Free your inner artist, and make your own gift cards from recycled post cards, magazines, photos or note cards.
• Make the wrapping part of the gift - put personal care items in a new bath towel, gardening supplies in a tote bag, homemade cookies on a beautiful wood platter.

For his Oceans 8 project, Jon spent the last decade traveling the globe by sea kayak and investigating the local cultures, histories and environmental issues of those living along the world’s coastlines.  We were fortunate to catch up with Jon recently, and in the video interview below, he describes his Oceans 8 adventures, discusses the perceptions and realities of climate change he’s observed, and talks about the next step in his journey.

We’ll feature future updates from Jon in his travels here on Earthkeepers … in the meantime, you can also follow his adventures through Dispatches on his website.

In the spirit of the holiday, we give thanks for all the things in our lives that make us feel good and are good for our environment (eating locally-grown food, riding a bike, the uniquely satisfying experience of planting a tree).  Simple pleasures like these make Earthkeeping easy.

And then there are the things that make Earthkeeping not so easy – not for lack of good intentions, but of good judgment and execution.  Timberland’s Director of Corporate Communications, Robin Giampa, shares the following Turkey Awards:

I don’t like to waste stuff:  time, paper, money, whatever.  I’m not a perfect role model for environmental responsibility, but in this time of dwindling resources (both financial and natural) you can’t help being mindful of your consumption and how you dispose of things.

And so I get irritated when inexplicable choices are happening on a large scale, and at a corporate level.  I know that the bigger the organization, the harder it is sometimes to make change, but I’m not even talking about big things.  Case in point:

• I received an award in the mail last week, given to Timberland by a socially-conscious organization for our socially-conscious behavior.  Imagine my surprise when I opened an enormous box filled with Styrofoam peanuts (and no, not the corn kind), surrounding a crystal statue.  To make matters worse, apparently many awards in the first “batch”  mailed out were broken;  when we learned they wanted to send a replacement, we gently suggested that wasn’t necessary — we were happy enough with the verbal recognition.  Two months later, the replacement award – and its packing peanuts — arrives.  No doubt, the intent was right-on: reward and encourage ethical behavior.  And I was thrilled that the company was bestowed the honor.  But I’d be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge my disappointment in the way it was bestowed.  How is as important as what.     
• Here’s another example: we have an electronic system for submitting employee expenses.  BUT — you have to print a hard copy of the form as well.  Then, you have to put that hard copy in an envelope (new envelopes only, please – used inter-office envelopes are not accepted) and submit it.  Yes, you put your previously-submitted-online expenses in a brand new envelope and then into a central bin where they are (mercifully) collected together and mailed in one shipment.  I’m certain there are good reasons for what I perceive as bureaucracy, but I bet there are ways to simplify it, too.  
• Unrelated to the physical waste in those two examples is what happened when I tried to get a new light bulb recently.  We use a well-known office supply company and we order online from a list of pre-determined choices.  Not being overly familiar with the ordering system (or the fact that apparently we’re not supposed to order light bulbs at all, but get them from our resource center) I asked a colleague to order me one CFL bulb for my office lamp.  We ordered the one and only option available – for $26.  I thought surely Timberland has vetted this and it must be one fantastic bulb that would last for decades, but in fact it looks exactly like the one I bought at the eco-fair in our cafeteria last week – for a dollar.  Of course, I’ve raised the silliness of this and it’s being rectified, but how long has this $26 light bulb thing been going on?  Could I seriously the first person to notice?

It’s not even a question for me that in each of these cases, we’re all just trying to do the right thing – but sometimes I think it’s easier to say “not my job” and keep going.  What if we all considered the choices we make in the course of a day and took notice of the places we can improve things?  Maybe we’d be able to tread a little more lightly.

We move out early again for a full day of tree planting, which I’m really looking forward to. Our destination: Gabo Desert, just half an hour from the hotel.

Horqin dunes in the early stages of greening

The bus stops at the beginning of a dirt trail and we clamber 3 apiece into small Jeeps which will take us to the main tree planting areas. The back of the Jeeps are too small to sit, so we stand in a row holding the helm. The wind works up the cold in our faces and we watch the barren landscape give way to expansive fields of green grass and gold sunflowers and a sinuous sky of blue ice, against a faraway backdrop of layers and layers of swelling hills that seem to continue forever. We pass maize fields, rice fields. We see sheep, cows and tractors. It’s the pastoral life at its flourishing best and it’s stunning.

In about 10 minutes, we’re back in the desert. We disembark and Mr. Kitaura rounds us up to explain what we’re here to do: build a grid of squares using hay, called Si Fang Ge (literal translation: 4 sided box); the grids help to block the wind and hold the sand in place. Poplars are then planted within each square and the grids ensure protection against the elements and an increased chance of survival.

He speaks briefly of the severity of desertification.  The past saw the threat of invasion of proud warriors on armored horseback. While this may no longer pose a threat in modern times, the mainland and Japan are now seeing a second invasion, this time in the form of sand. The desert is dramatically expanding at 10,000 square km per year and affecting the quality of life of the two said countries, evidenced by the apocalyptic sandstorms from the north that assault both Japan and China, especially during the summer months.

He demonstrates making the grid:  First shake off the excess flyaway strands of hay, then lay the hay in a straight horizontal line, grab your spade, aim at the epicentre of the line and push it through. Ta-da! The hay springs up like freshly grown grass! Timberlanders get down to work and in an hour, a 10m by 14m grid materializes.

Volunteers build a grid of hay to protect plants against the desert wind

It rains a little as we move to plant trees. It’s back-breaking work and Mr Otaki and I chat a little during a break. He sighs and tells me it’s a sheer waste that this beautiful piece of land has become so desolate. “Feel this,” he says as he digs a couple of centimeters into the sand and puts a clump of sand in my hands. It’s wet. The soil is actually superbly fertile and suitable for crop growing. “My greatest wish is to transform this land back to its full potential, to the mysterious grasslands of our forefathers.”

He speaks of the merits of large scale reforestation and the importance of having both governmental and grassroots support, which will enable the movement to be better recognized by locals and from which economies of scales can be reaped in terms of reduced supply and labor costs.  This also helps to create infrastructure and development of community, involving and educating a ‘village’ unit.

 We get back to work planting. Three hours and 200 trees later we form human chains, bringing the source of life from the hose to the fresh plants. It’s like a game, and the team shouts exuberantly with each passing, in the spirit of camaraderie.

The “human chain” waters freshly-planted trees

A feast awaits us when we emerge from our rooms, freshly showered and re-energized. A film strip plays on the projector, flashing pictures of the last 3 days. A disembodied voice sings in mandarin as the reel plays and I feel nostalgic already. We exchange and relive the stories and foibles, bubbling over hilarity as we strike silly poses for the camera. Too quickly, and like all good things, the trip comes to an end. It was highly educative and inspiring, and I hope to be back next year.

After a breakfast buffet of Chinese staples (fried and steamed pancakes, rice and millet congee, eggs and pickled vegetables), we set off for Agura Desert, where the bulk of the “Timberland Forest” stands. 

The road to Agura is lined with tall poplars designed to “catch” strong winds from blowing into the desert.  Beyond that, we see wide open sand spaces. There is some beauty in its desolateness.  

Tree planting volunteers in the “Timberland Forest” in the Horqin Desert.

Upon our arrival we are welcomed by Mr. Otaki and Mr. Kitaura, two guides from Green Net.  Established in January 2000, Green Net is a Japanese non-profit organization that has undertaken the uphill task of reforestation and education in an effort to reverse the desertification process.  Timberland has partnered with Green Net for the last 8 years.

Mr. Otaki and Mr. Kitaura outline for our group many of the factors that have contributed to the region’s desertification:

• The population in Inner Mongolia has increased four times in the last 10 years and livestock has increased three hundred times, leading to insufficient land and agriculture to meet the needs for food and mercantile transactions.  This has led to the overuse and abuse of land for both food and commercial purposes.
• Little education to farmers about the importance of crop rotation or harvest rotation so as not to deplete the land of resources.
• Government rewards agriculture in monetary terms, as it provides much revenue from export and deems environmental activism impractical.
• Farmers use what little land remains as feed for rearing animals like cows, horses, for export, which again provides a valuable source of income.

For the past 10 years, Green Net has worked not just to plant trees, but also to plant the seeds of environmentalism through educative reforms with the villages and through schools to sustain their efforts — but this has proven an uphill task in the face of commercial bureaucracy. It’s pretty much a staggering organizational effort.

Not all of their efforts are in vain. They have also initiated successful programs in schools and allow students to earn credits when they take part in environmental projects.  They have also the backing and long term commitment of several partners, who help in activity, in communication and in donations to help sustain this initiative.

We travel as far as we can in our large bus, then hop into 4-wheel drive vehicles for the final leg of our ride through the desert.  It’s a pretty hard ride, and we are bouncing up and off the seats. Finally, we disembark for a short walk into the Timberland poplar forest. It’s beautiful, watching the wind comb through the leaves.

Mr Otaki tasks us with trimming the low-lying branches which are fighting for nutrients with the main tree, lowering its chance of survival. Armed with gloves and gardening scissors, we stoop down and get to work. It’s much more difficult than it looks and progress is slow but satisfying. At about 3 pm it starts to get cool. I look up from my work, and for a while watch the poplars sway with the wind in some kind of mesmerising dance against a mid-blue sky. 

The Timberland forest currently has 680,000 trees.  The survival rate of the trees has dipped from 50% to 45%, due to the recent increase in rewards farmers obtain from the government for their produce and increase in number of penalization rules for conservation efforts. Still, our aim: 1 million hectares, 1.5 million trees by 2011.

The Horqin Desert is located in North China’s Inner Mongolia

Timberland’s marketing manager for Singapore, Cheryl Kow, was among the Horqin volunteers during the annual tree-planting trip in September and agreed to share her thoughts and experiences with us here on Earthkeepers.  Below is the first entry in Cheryl’s Horqin Chronicles:

Two colleagues and I touch down at the Shenyang Airport at around 11am via Beijing and meet the other Horqin volunteers from Taiwan.  Together we pile into a small van which will take us through Shenyang into Tong Liao province in Inner Mongolia, where the tree planting activities will take place.

It’s a 4-hour ride into the sprawling metropolis of Shenyang in Northwestern China.  I am surprised by its modernity.  Extensive, multi-storied shopping complexes peer out at us as the van navigates new and sophisticated highways.  The familiar red and blue Carrefour insignia whizzes past us.

The urban skyline falls behind the horizon, giving way to a deserted and rustic city as our van pulls up a dusty road to the hotel where we will set base for the next three days. After a quick check-in, we’re on our own until dinner, when the Japan team will arrive.

A colleague and I take a walk around the dusty town, wandering past dilapidated buildings and a couple of new construction sites.  A recently-built amusement park helps bring some tourists, which explains the surge of newer hotel establishments, but we still wonder about the lack of people walking the streets.

Our entire group meets for dinner at the hotel, chatting among ourselves about the next two days.  We are all anxious and excited to get to work in the Horqin Desert.

Saturday, November 8

The last day together has come.  Eight days ago it seemed as though the week would last an eternity.  Today being our final day together, we sit and wish it could be longer.

Tonight I felt completed in our efforts from the week.  The families from Hollygrove cooked up a buffet of local cuisine and soul food. We sat in the NOFFN building, surrounded by smiling, proud and loving people from the neighborhood.  Alongside the sounds of laughter, local musicians playing trombones and singing, there we were.

It was so nice to come together for good food, good music and good people.  We spent a final evening with the familiar faces from the week and faces we had never seen but still had a familiar feel.

We ended the evening with the musician announcing that he would sing one final song … one he felt he might never feel honored and inspired enough to sing again, but after all that has happened of late, he felt proud enough to sing the words.  He began singing the Star Spangled Banner and the entire room got on its feet and began singing along.  There was such passion and love in that room.

This week brought me personal challenges and pushed me outside my comfort zone in many ways, but the final product from all that I saw and experienced FAR out weighed any possible downsides. 

This week we helped to create a community in New Orleans; most importantly we created a community within ourselves.  This “In Good Company” group will leave as partners in the business sense and friends in the personal sense.

I feel honored to have had this experience.  As I sign off from New Orleans, my wish to this resilient city is hope and strength to continue fighting the battle.  I hope you have enjoyed the ride with me and feel inspired to continue the ripple forward.

We thank Brianne Wood for sharing her experience in New Orleans with all of us here at Earthkeepers.  To learn more about the In Good Company initiative, please visit their blog.

Friday, November 7

Today I worked with the New Orleans Food and Farm Network (NOFFN).  This organization represents every element of community greening possible.

The area of Hollygrove has a 40% poverty rating.  Almost half of the residents are considered below low income and are officially in the poverty bracket.  It has been a longstanding and widely-known fact that healthy, fresh food is largely unavailable to the people in this neighborhood.

When Katrina hit, decimating most of this area, the neighborhood stood up and said they wanted to rebuild, but not just rebuild: rebuild green, rebuild healthy and rebuild strong.  They wanted to implement tools and resources to help their community be a better place. 

What started as the desire to help residents build backyard gardens turned into a grand vision of having a local food market and education center.  They are incorporating wonderful things such a rain-catch system to water their plants, green roof tops, an outdoor classroom and much more.

It was redeeming to see a community pulling together to make a stand and make a motion for positive change.

Wednesday, November 5

Today we partnered with Bayou Rebirth to plant and restore natural grasses and marsh plants.  We sat through a great presentation from Fish and Wildlife to discuss the impact and erosion occurring in the Delta and waterways of New Orleans. There are many issues surrounding why New Orleans got hit as hard as it did by Hurricane Katrina, followed by Hurricane Gustav.

Without going into the entire presentation, the gist was that there are a multitude of problems and very few solutions.  We need to find a solution to help the Mississippi River divert its water flow and silt deposits.  This will restore natural “speed bumps” to slow down hurricanes off the coast, contribute to the health and well being of the bayou, and most importantly eliminate unnatural land mass build up in the canals, which makes it impossible for the oil and trade industries to import and export easily.  New Orleans constantly has to dredge the bottom of the canals in order to keep it deep enough for transport, creating a sunken basin effect and putting New Orleans further below sea level. 

The question was raised as to why the city doesn’t allow the Mississippi River to run as it intends and wants to, or create overflow pathways which would eliminate the over distribution of silt and materials.  The answer was “people are in way.”  The best solution for the environment causes the most challenging solution for the people in and around the city.

Hmmm … I sat feeling torn.  Which side is right, which side do I support?

On one hand I spent the past two days helping a family rebuild the house and home they lost.   I felt pride and honor in knowing the ripple we were creating for the neighborhood.

Then I learn that unless affirmative actions are taken to restore the coast and create a natural shelf off the coast of New Orleans, hurricanes will have nothing stopping or slowing their path; the levees will more than likely be broken again and these same people will once again be in need.

I got my answer when we revisited Miss Linda Ebarb.  When I told her I worked for Timberland she told me her husband always wanted a pair of our boots but they were expensive and they couldn’t justify spending the money.  I told her to give me their shoe sizes and I would see what I could do, but couldn’t make any promises.  She broke down into tears and hugged me.  She said we had already given her so much, she couldn’t ask for anything else.  I knew in my heart then that supporting the Ebarbs and people like them is really what needs to happen, at least for the short term.  We need to give people back not just their houses but their homes and maybe we make things a little bit better, a little bit greener and give people a little more hope for the future.

What needs to happen is for pressure to be put on oil companies and other shipping companies to be part of the solution and not just part of the problem. That could have the potential to be our happy medium.  It wouldn’t be best solution for either party, but it sure would be a good place to start.

The great bayou debate will continue but for today, I did my part … I planted much-needed marsh grasses, got stuck in the mud and had a lot of laughs in the process.  This is my new favorite team building exercise; there’s something to be said for helping to pull your coworkers (sporting waist-high waders) out of a pile of stinky sloppy mud!

You can read more about the experience and impact Brianne and her teammates are having this week on the In Good Company blog.