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For members of the Portland community who are engaging in a more peaceful, just, and sustainable world. This group includes organizations and individuals who are participating in The New Narrative: Local Voices for a Global Future. Portland Portal is a gateway to resources on Wiser Earth that serve the Portland region. ...learn more

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Created: Feb 06, 2009

Updated: Sep 29, 2009

Membership: Open

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Created: Apr 28, 2008
Updated: Jun 16, 2008
Viewed: 9 times

Irene Schleining

Cyberstarlet
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User Info 

Address: London
United Kingdom
 
I Speak: English, German, French
 
I Am: Artist
 
Member Since: April 28, 2008
 
Local Time: Sun Nov 22 08:27:24
 
My Groups: Whale of a Time

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Areas of Focus 

Endangered Animal Species Protection (1609 people)  |  Animal Welfare and Rights (1381 people)  |  Wildlife Ecology (1652 people)  |  Wildlife Habitat Conservation (2366 people)  |  Wildlife Law and Policy (686 people)  |  Wildlife Management (827 people)  |  Art and Sculpture (1681 people)  |  Biocultural Diversity (1744 people)  |  Biodiversity Conservation (3173 people)  |  Seed Conservation (1630 people)  |  Youth Education and Empowerment (3870 people)  |  Marine Ecology and Conservation (1125 people)  |  Community Participation (3626 people)  |  Conservation and Recreation (1192 people)  |  Conservation Biology (875 people)  |  Conservation Policy (743 people)  |  Wilderness (1759 people)  |  Evolutionary Ecology (1103 people)  |  Natural Resource Education (1212 people)  |  Sustainability Education (4200 people)  |  Public and Government Education (942 people)  |  Environmental Resource Center (934 people)  |  Environmental Education (3381 people)  |  Education, Government and Sustainability (2053 people)  |  Access To Education (2285 people)  |  Green Schools (2365 people)  |  Sustainable Fishing (979 people)  |  Sustainable Energy Development (3885 people)  |  Energy Efficiency and Conservation (2436 people)  |  World Marine Fisheries (386 people)  |  Global Food Supply and Sustainability (2436 people)  |  Hunger and Food Security (1324 people)  |  Local Food Systems (2853 people)  |  Malnutrition, Diet, Disease, and Education (1161 people)  |  Climate Change (4722 people)  |  Sustainable Production (2465 people)  |  Recycling and Reuse (2588 people)  |  Natural Resource Management (1319 people)  |  Environmental Toxicology (579 people)  |  Green Hospital Movement (694 people)  |  Environmental Health (1495 people)  |  Indigenous Peoples and Cultures (2789 people)  |  Indigenous Rights (1677 people)  |  Indigenous Lands (1198 people)  |  Water Pollution (1346 people)  |  Toxic and Hazardous Substances (686 people)  |  Pollution Remediation (585 people)  |  Pollution Prevention and Reduction (1167 people)  |  Petroleum in the Environment (521 people)  |  Light and Noise Pollution (542 people)  |  Hazardous Solid Waste (535 people)  |  Global Pollution (1153 people)  |  Energy Pollution (754 people)  |  Chemical Pollution (732 people)  |  Waste Management (1254 people)  |  Sustainable Materials (2034 people)  |  Sustainable Building (3011 people)  |  Social Development (1975 people)  |  Biological Development (672 people)  

About

Dear Friend,

I started Whale of a Time ( www.whaleofatime.org ) in May 2007 at the time when the International Whaling Commission was held in Alaska. My inspiration came from a book called “Going Going Gone” which covers 100 representatives of different species that have been known to be endangered. As I flicked through the book at a bookshop, I was looking for some inspiration to work out a lesson plan for my English classes. The animals' faces caught my eye and filled my heart with sadness when I read about the fact that all these animals were close to extinction if we don't do something about it. For a brief moment I couldn't believe what I read and then a deep connection and responsibility filled my heart towards protecting and ensuring that those animals receive the respect they deserve and the right to live and share planet Earth together with the human race. Being a passive watcher or an activist was not hard to decide and I made it my mission.

One can only appriciate and love something when one understands what one has and what one is loving. Sometimes I felt such pain that I thought this is gonna put me down and I wouldn't be able to see the world with happy eyes again, but then I moved on and turned this passion and love into something postive my mission turned into a Whale of a Time!

My passion, my love, my believe, my trust, my graditude make me fly deep inside my soul where I discover the beauty and precious life. Time is endless when you live your dreams in reality. We all have responsibility for one organism that we're all part of - planet Earth. I'm proud being here as a result of millions of years of evolution. What's the meaning of life? Why am I here? I would like to inspire every person in the world and help them realise their creativity and potential. There is a lesson here to learn. Can you use it for anything? You are nothing without.

When you look at nature you find all the answers you need. If there was nothing that I could say I'd not find the secrets that make my heart beat and my spirit breath. I live inside this place and outside I'm surrounded by the art of nature. Please don't destroy it. Love it and hold it as long as you can. Breath in it and live with it - its not because it is, but because we are one.

Whales and dolphins are perfect creatures and show great compassion for each other as well as their environment. They are having a whale of a time! Scientifically we don't know a great deal about these creatures. We only found out in 2007 that whales can reach high age up to 140 years and from Inuit's knowledge we know that whales live twice a human lifetime. These are scientific facts that were difficult to prove. The whale killed in 2007 had a harpoon from the 18th century inside his body. Are we right to kill creatures that outlive us humans by double the lifetime? Are we right to kill creatures that weigh 2,500 times more than we do? Are we right to kill beings that have a lower birth rate than we humans have? Is this sustainable?

If we're going against nature we are going against our own nature. Japanese whale hunters slaughter our friends of the oceans for the so-called "scientific" research, but to really understand a subject fully one has to understand its feelings and purpose in life. It hit me when I found out that the Japanese, Norwegian and Icelandic government are pushing through to lift the ban on international whaling which has been in place since 1946 when an estimated 10% of most whale populations was all there was left after a 200 years slaughter to the immeasurable extent to threaten the existence of these giant mammals for the future. Can you imagine if the whales would disappear from the planet after they have evolved over a period as long as 18 millions of years, which is 13 millions of years longer than the human race has evolved? What is intelligence?

So what do we really know about our environment and our success? Should we go down in history as the species that managed to drive most species to extinction at the very best or should we shake it all off and start reorganising ourselves to change our journey to a more positive and harmonious future?

How could we achieve for our culture to make that shift to a sustainable future? If you have any ideas please let us know, as we would like to hear what you’ve got to say.

Every thought that is a positive one is a step closer.

Read more at www.whaleofatime.org


Cyberstarlet

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