Speech for the Youth Summit for the Environment — Kobe, Japan 2008

by Dennis Haysbert  and Jack Rose 

Children are confronted with a lot of concerns today that, frankly, I never had to deal with when I was a kid. Paul Simon wrote a song to comfort his daughter at bedtime. He sang:

“I believe the light that shines on you will shine on you forever.”

I believe the same thing – and my message to you today is this: The one resource we will never run out of is you – your imagination, your creativity, your wonder and hope. Each new generation has specific challenges to face, but just remember this: There are no unsolvable problems.

My father’s generation ate problems for breakfast. They built a road across the entire continent. When a giant canyon appeared in their path they did not whine or whimper – they invented a bridge. In every field of science and medicine and exploration, at the edge of every chasm, they built a bridge. This is your lineage . . . You will do the same. There is no limit to your imagination.

Many people will tell you there isn’t enough — that we are running out, that things are getting worse, that the future will be less than today. This is not true.

Some people have forgotten that a problem is something to be solved, not feared.

Have you heard the story about the truck that got stuck in a tunnel?. . . A big ‘ol truck was roaring towards New York City when it rammed into the Lincoln Tunnel at 70 miles per hour. The truck was too tall and got very extremely stuck and the cars backed up for miles. You can imagine the traffic jam.

The fire department showed up to help. Then the Army Corps of Engineers — along with many others. With cranes and saws and jackhammers all tried to get the truck unstuck from the tunnel. But to no avail. Finally, after several hours, an 8 year old girl walked up from the long line of cars and said, “Why don’t you let the air out of the tires?”

You are today – all kids all over the world — you are the brilliant ones who will say, “Why don’t you let the air out of the tires?” There are no unsolvable problems. Let me give an example: Every week we hear about the ‘World Water Shortage’ — yet alongside these stories we see photos of floods…?

A friend of mine says, “If we catch the rain that creates the floods, there would be no water shortage, there would be more than enough for everyone. He’s always reminding me that “There isn’t a shortage of water given, just a shortage of water received.”

If every school caught the rain that fell on its roof, kids all around the world would have plenty of clean water to drink. It’s as simple as letting the air out of the tires.We are told there’s a shortage of water, but what we really have is an abundance. . . a flood.

Enough water is freely given for all if we simply put a bucket under a rainstorm. And enough energy is freely given from the sun and the wind and the ocean and the earth.

You do not need to fear the future, you are the future.

And I see no limit to the creative ideas that will come to you in this lifetime. It is a great and exciting time to be alive and I believe “The light that shines on you today will shine on you forever.” Let it rain. . . Life is good. . . So be it

see the video –  Let it Rain 

Splendid torch

By George Bernard Shaw

This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy. I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and as long as I live it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can.

I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work the more I live. I rejoice in life for it’s own sake.

Life is no ‘brief candle’ to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.

RainCatcher — water for California and beyond

Water for California

I have a solution to California’s, and the world’s, water woes. It’s called the RainCatcher.

In California, and throughout the Western U.S., the demand for water is rapidly outpacing supply. Current and future water needs for home and business owners, as well as for agriculture and industry, is so great that state government is desperately searching for new sources to tap, including adding six feet to the height of Shasta Dam. Massive, centralized infrastructure projects, paid for by increasing taxes and water bills, will not come close to meeting the relentless thirst of an ever expanding population. It is clear that for the next many decades, water will be the defining issue for California and the neighboring western states. What if every house in California caught and stored 10,000 gallons of water each season? That would add up to billions of gallons that wouldn’t have to be imported and purchased.

The California RainCatcher project will demonstrate how easy it is for homes; commercial and industrial buildings; municipal and public structures (office buildings, parking structures, etc) to be converted into rainwater collection centers. In this way each new and existing building can become a valuable source of water for landscaping. This would save billions of gallons each year. The water is free. Catching rain is easy. And plants love it, finding it preferable to chlorinated municipal water. Woodie Guthrie sang, “California is the Garden of Eden”. RainCatcher aims to nourish that garden by developing a new relationship with an old resource: rain. As with the installations we are doing in Africa, once a RainCatcher is in place, when the rains come no one is complaining, everyone is grateful. One at a time, as people get the concept of catching and using rainwater, the first question posed is, “I wonder why we waited so long to do this?” The wait is over, Raincatcher is here.

Where To Start

I am producing the first RainCatcher prototype for use along the coast of Northern California. My rainwater harvesting system will benefit both Californians and people in developing nations. Here’s how people in America can help their counterparts in Africa: Convert your house, garage or new building into a RainCatcher structure and 10% of the cost will go into the World RainCatcher Capital Pool. For every $1,000 spent on collecting rain here, $100 will go to setting up RainCatchers in Africa, where millions of people lack a consistent, clean source of water for drinking and irrigation. Each RainCatcher in America can help create a beneficiary RainCatcher house, school or medical clinic in Africa. This abundant resource will not only be enjoyed by millions here, but also shared with millions in developing countries. We have the capability of providing ample clean water for our own families and for others worldwide.

Manufacturers in Nairobi are making the tents and tanks needed for catching and storing rainwater for drinking and irrigation: Kentainers makes water storage tanks; Tarpo makes the RainCatcher tents.

Let it rain!