You've had the opportunity to reflect on what the Earth means to you--from what you feel about the planet as a whole, and about your most memorable experiences with nature. But what about the planet in and of itself? Do we have a responsibility to the Earth? Do we have obligations to life that shares our home?

There's been a great deal of news recently about everything from global warming to a threatened energy crisis to the struggle of the oceans and the decimation of all manner mammalian species. And while this is only one side of the planetary story, it is the one the media tends to focus on. What comes up for you when you think about this? What do you believe about these reports? Do you find yourself avoiding the topic? Does it make you sad? Angry? Or are you inspired by how these problems are call to purpose and a new way of living?

While the media tends to focus on dramatically negative environmental news, it's also true that there's an extraordinary amount being done by people and organizations and communities and businesses who care, and who are acting to change things for the better. There are hundreds of companies--large and small--who act in environmentally responsible ways and who hold themselves to high ethical standards. Unfortunately, though, they're not often talked about. What do you feel is the best way to enourage these businesses? How can we best support them?

"That's here. That's home. That's us. On it, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever lived, lived out their lives. The aggregate of all our joys and sufferings, thousands of confident religions, ideologies and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilizations, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every hopeful child, every mother and father, every inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every superstar, every supreme leader, every saint and sinner in the history of our species, lived there on a mote of dust, suspended in a sunbeam." 

-- Carl Sagan.

It's Earth Day. Here's a larger picture of our little planet--the only home we know. What do you feel when you see this? What does it bring up for you?

Green is big these days. From Wal-mart's emphasis on reduced packaging to the growing popularity of carbon offsets to the rising interest in electric cars, environmentalism has gone mainstream. It's getting more and more easy to find ecologically responsible products and to make steps to lessen your impact on the planet. Where do you fit in? Do you care about the Earth? What does being "being green" mean to you?

How can humanity both continue to provide lives of dignity for its billions while concurrently living within the resource-means of the planet? What does sustainability look like in different cultural contexts? What are your most hopeful images of sustainability? What changes can we make, and what must our leaders make?

(This week is Conversation Week 2008, and in hopes of encouraging discussion around these "most important questions in the world" and connecting people worldwide in these dialogues, we'll be participating through the QaRs. Answer here, but think, too, about asking those around you the same questions, or inviting not-yet-friends to offer their thoughts.

You can find out more about Conversation Week here. Also, please consider this week, and these questions, as a way to connect through our own in-person Gaia Gatherings!)

And not to worry. At the end of the week we'll be back to our regular programming. :)