On Sunday March 18th at 11am we are holding our inaugural meeting here in Vancouver, BC., Canada. (Location will be emailed to those who reply to familiesforthefuture@telus.net)
Families For The Future is a new, non-profit organization to help families get on a program of carbon reduction. Each family that joins will complete an ecological audit of its current lifestyle and based on this information set meaningful and attainable carbon reduction goals. Families share their goals with an eco-community of 2 - 10 other families for mutual support and information sharing.
Families For The Future is starting here in Vancouver, Canada but hopes to quickly spread across North America and around the world.
Anyone interested is invited to email us at familiesforthefuture@telus.net

FAMILIES FOR THE FUTURE
A new idea looking for people to make it happen…
Right now we are witnessing an amazing explosion of awareness about the dangers of global warming. Within the space of a few weeks the environment has gone from the political back-burner to centre stage as politicians of all stripes scramble to claim the green high ground and (hopefully) the votes that go with it. Meanwhile, ordinary folk like you and me are left scratching our heads and wondering if it is just more empty rhetoric and what really needs to happen to ensure a healthy world for our children and their children.
One thing seems clear, there is a drastic shortage of real world, practical information and support for people who want to make a difference but don’t know where to begin.
That’s where I see a need for a grass-roots organization that I am calling, for now anyway, Families For The Future. (F3)
I see F3 as a way for families and individuals to network, access information, resources and tools to help them make lifestyle changes to reduce their ecological footprint. One tool I would like to see is a Lifestyle Audit that families joining F3 would undertake to learn how their current lifestyle contributes to global warming. Based on this information they would set realistic goals for reducing their ecological footprint and draw up a plan and a timeline for achieving these goals.
This plan would be shared with other families in their F3 community (a group of 5 – 10 families) and reviewed regularly to see what progress is being made.
There are many other ideas that would fit within the F5 concept. For example a monthly on-line magazine of ideas and news related to the global warming issue.
F3 could also become a powerful lobby group to push politicians towards genuine, meaningful action, rather than window dressing.
Perhaps most of all F3 is a way for families to become truly engaged in the struggle to regain an ecological balance in global ecosystems. This is the struggle of our times. It is the fight not only for the future of our planet, but also for our own sanity. Children need to see their parents engaged in this struggle. Failing to do so is as good as abandoning them.
And yes it will be a long, hard struggle with much heartbreak along the way. But at least we will be able to look in the mirror and into our children’s eyes and know that we are doing our part to help save the planet. That alone is worth a whole lot of struggle.
Anyone interested in learning more about Families For The Future should contact Andy Vine at andyvine@telus.net.