I read that title and essay by Christian missionary Keith Barnett back in the year 2000.  In the essay, Keith talked about how he felt God had been speaking to him for a few years to just focus on one thing.  This singular divine focus led Keith to be a missionary in Guatemala at the time.

Keith went on to explain that just like a plant growing has a tendency to grow in many directions and produces off-shoots, or “suckers.”  These small off-shoots can draw of the life and vitality of the plant to useless ends.  For this reason, a wise gardener cuts off the smaller offshoots.   This causes the plant to direct all of its life force into the fruit of the plant, its seed, blooms, and its fruit.

This essay struck a deep accord in me because I was struggling at the time to find my “one thing” and stick with it also.  At the time, I was a naturalist guide in Everglades National Park narrating the boat tours the tourists.  I worked for a private company that treated its employees poorly and it did not really care about the environment.  I also felt I had a deeper message to give the world than just pointing out the alligators, crocodiles, birds, dolphins and manatees in the Everglades.  Still, when there was not wildlife around, which was often, I shared a message of the importance of the natural world and protecting the Everglades.  However, the tourists just focused most of the time on spotting the wild animals and paid little attention my message of conservation.

Brian Ettling, Everglades National Park, around 2006

I knew in my heart and gut that I did not want to be a naturalist guide in the Everglades forever.  However, I had no idea what the vision or “one thing” was.  Around this time, I found a book in a used book store, Laboratory Earth: The Planetary Gamble We Cannot Afford to Lose by Dr. Stephen Schneider.  He was a climate scientist out of Stanford University.  I purchased the book because passengers on the boat tour were asking me about global warming. I wanted to start educating myself on this issue.  The science in the book was very technical, but I was hooked.  I started reading more books on climate change over the years, especially whenever I would see a new book on this subject at Barnes and Noble.

In spring 2008, I quit working as a naturalist in the Everglades.  I knew I wanted to go to grad school to study about communicating climate change.  I set out a deadline for myself to be enrolled in a graduate program by 2010.  Unfortunate, I did not have a pin point dedication to this goal.  I got distracted by dating the wrong women, traveling, and having fun as a seasonal summer ranger at Crater Lake National Park in Oregon.

It is now the last week of 2011.  I am still not in grad school yet.  However, I have made major strides in following my “focus” and sticking with my deepest passion to be a climate change communicator.  In this past year alone, I started this blog.  I worked at the St. Louis Science Center answering questions and engaging visitors at their temporary climate change exhibit.  I joined South County Toastmasters.  I have successfully presented four speeches now at Toastmasters over the past year about climate change and promoting sustainable green living.  For my last two speeches, the other Toastmaster members voted for me as ‘Best Speaker.’

Brian Ettling winning “Best Speaker” for Toastmasters speech, November 2011.

This past summer at Crater Lake, I created an evening campfire program on the impact of climate change on Crater Lake.  This past September, the National Park Service invited me to attend the 2011 NASA ‘Earth to Sky’ conference in Washington D.C. on successfully communicating climate change with park visitors.

Within the past month while currently living in St. Louis, Missouri for the winter, I co-founded Climate Reality St. Louis Meet Up group.  This is a group of locals that meets regularly to discuss the impact and solutions to climate change in St. Louis.  In early December, I attended the American Geophysical Union Conference in San Francisco where I got to meet and interact with America’s top climate scientists and communicators.

In 2012, I hope to meet with professors at grad schools like Columbia, George Mason, and Colorado State to find a program that can really enable me to be a top climate change communicator.  I also hope to give more speeches at Toastmasters and elsewhere about climate change.  I also hope to return to Crater Lake to present my climate change evening program again and keep improving it.  2012 is going to be an exciting year for me as I edge ever closer “finding that one thing and sticking with it” as a climate change communicator.

In the original Christmas story, a bright star appears over Bethlehem attracting three wise men from the East.  They traveled from far away to see what they believed was the Messiah who was just born.  The arrival of the wise men was considered to be a very strong signal.   This baby born in Bethlehem was a very strong to be a very strong teacher, prophet and healer.
 
Over 2,000 years later, the signal of climate change is becoming evident from many different sources of scientific evidence, such as changes in the atmosphere, oceans, polar ice shelves, sea level rise, weather patterns, etc.  Just like the prominent news in Bethlehem of wise men arriving from the East, it is getting harder to ignore the vast amount of news about climate change these days.

For me, it has been fascinating how my best friend, Scott, has reacted to the news of climate change.  I have known him for nearly 30 years.  I met him back in 7th grade when we would eat lunch together at school and talk baseball. We still talk regularly on the phone.  Since high school, our lives have gone in totally different directions.  He is an auto mechanic outside of Seattle, Washington with a wonderful family.  I am a single seasonal park ranger at Crater Lake.  Scott has similar conservative political views as ‘Joe the Plummer,’ who became famous during the 2008 Presidential Campaign.  I have become very a very progressive environmentalist with spending the last twenty years working in the national parks.   We have kept the friendship strong over the years with the unspoken rule of not talking about politics.

Over the years, Scott has had a lot of fun making fun of the issue of global warming.  He loved to joke how he would love to see palm trees in Seattle and his home state of Wisconsin.  He would welcome sea level rise because he could launch his boat so much closer to the Puget Sound form his house.  We would have so much fun talking about other stuff about baseball, the outdoors, music etc.  However, I would have to bite my tongue so hard that it would almost bleed at times when he would make his global warming jokes.  I would be staying at his house, with his family, and eating his food during these short visits.  I wanted to be a gracious guest so I just did not have the heart to correct him.

Scott was very eager to share with me amazing story though when I visited him in 2008.  He was teasing his son, Ricky about global warming over the years, just like me.  However, Ricky was coming home from school and not giving an inch on this issue.  He kept saying, “No, Dad, we are learning about this in school and this is why global warming is a huge concern…“
 
Finally, Scott wanted to let me know that he thought Ricky was on to something. He could not dismiss his own son and what he was learning in school. His best friend, who is a tree hugger park ranger, he might overlook on this issue from living out in the woods too long. However, it was hard to ignore his son who was coming home from school with articulate facts on climate change.  Just like the town of Bethlehem noticing the original Wise Men, it was hard for Scott to ignore the Two Green Wise Men showing up in his life.

As a side note, I called up Scott a few days ago to ask him if this story was true.  He said it was.  However, we wanted to add that he still welcoming global warming and sea level rise so he can go fishing from his house.  However, Scott went out of his way to wish me all the best as I am following my passion to be a climate change communicator.  His tone could not have been more supportive and encouraging.  In the end, that is all you can ask for in a best friend and more.  It makes me want to double my efforts even more to inspire people to resolve climate change.  I am going to do all I can to prevent dangerous climate change.  In the end, all the negative consequences are going to far outweigh any possibility of Scott being able to fish from his house.  

Climate change can be a daunting and scary subject for a presentation to strangers.   You may then wonder how on Earth you are going to keep an audience engaged and inspired on such a serious topic.  I have been giving presentations on climate change for over a year now as a park ranger and public speaker.  Let me share with you my 5 tips on how to do effective climate change presentations.

1. BE LIKABLE.  Look for those ways to establish rapport with your audience.  At my ranger talks, I always try to arrive about 30 minutes early to get to know the early arrivals in my audience.  The top advice you always here for public presentations is KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE.  However, do you do this?  I chat with the audience members who arrive early by asking them where do they live, how did they hear about the program, what they did today, etc.  By establishing connections with the early arrivals, they will become friendly faces in the crowd, providing even support and an open mind to your ideas.

2. BE ENTHUSIASTIC.  Ralph Waldo Emerson was so correct when he stated, “Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.”  If you are not excited about climate change, how will your audience be?  Even more, if you are not about the solutions, especially the ideas of sustainability and hope, how can your audience get excited about this?  Genuine enthusiasm is contagious.  Dower is depressing.  I know I just gave a great presentation when people come up to me and say, “I love how positive and enthusiastic you are.”  I love baseball and I feel like I have hit a home run whenever I hear audience members say this to me.

3. BE CREDIBLE.  Know your subject well.  It is hard for them to question your knowledge if you have really done your homework.  The greater amount of research you have put into your subject, the more confident you will speak about it also.  If you have really researched your subject and feel strong confidence speaking about it, the greater that your audience will trust what you are saying and think of you as an authority.

4. BE FUNNY.  Find some way to naturally incorporate humor into your program.  As science fiction writer Isaac Asimov once remarked,  “Jokes of the proper kind, properly told, can do more to enlighten  questions of politics, philosophy, and literature than any number of dull arguments.”  I cannot tell you how to be funny.  To paraphrase E.B. White, ‘Analyzing humor is like dissecting a frog.  Both die in the process.’   However, if you can find some natural humorous way to share funny stories, images, or analogies, then your audience will more likely stick with you on what they perceive is a heavy subject like climate change.

5. BE HOPEFUL.  A friend of mine just returned from a presentation by Project Ocean.  That speaker stressed the point that when people hear they have cancer, they do not research the molecular biology of cells.  They want the solutions now on how they can fight cancer successfully.  Is it exercise, diet, meditation, prayer, medication, surgery, sense of humor, or anything else Doctor?  The huge planetary problems associated with climate change can be very scary for your audience to comprehend.  What is your solutions for them?

John Lennon once said it best: “There are no problems. Only solutions.”  You got to believe that.

In December 2010, Matthew Feinberg and Robb Willer at the University of California Berkeley published research paper, Apocalypse Soon?: Dire Messages Reduce Belief in Global Warming by Contradicting Just-World Beliefs. The researcher conducted two experiments on 97 UC Berkeley undergraduates to gauge their political attitudes and skepticism about global warming. The study concluded that “Fear-based appeals, especially when not coupled with a clear solution, can backfire and undermine the intended effects of messages.”  In other words: GOT HOPE?

I would like to conclude with a statement I recently heard from Science Comedian Brian Malow.  In his recent presentation at the American Geophysical Union Conference in San Francisco on  ‘Delivering Your Message: Lessons from Stand-up Comedy, he remarked, “I admire scientists because they have maintained their child-like wonder of the world.  The only other profession I can think of similar to this is clowns.  And I think scientists are a lot less scary than clowns.”

I think it is so important to maintain those childlike qualities of wonder, fun, and hope as we engage people people with presentations on serious issues like climate change.        

Kermit the Frog was wrong: It is actually easy, as a matter of fact, very easy to be green.

I do not know if I mentioned this before: I LOVE THE COLOR GREEN.  Green is my all time favorite color.  I drive a green Honda civic. I use a green tooth brush, and favorite shorts sleep are even green.  My personal e-mail address is even [email protected].  In the summer, I even get to wear green at work as a park ranger at Crater Lake National Park in Oregon, where we even jokingly call ourselves ‘the green & gray.’

Often times when you hear people talking about conservation or environmental issues as “green issues.” This is because the color green reminds us a lush green forest or mountain meadow in nature.

Most people, they will tell that they try to be green by recycling, not littering, and paying attention to green issues.   However, it seems that people have a hard time taking actions beyond those basics.  They believe they have to buy a hybrid car, buy organic fruits and vegetables, or weatherize, which they consider to be too expensive.  Tonight we are going to talk about why MAKING CHANGES TO REDUCE YOUR HOME ENERGY COSTS IS GREEN..

The Bottom line is that: GREEEN IS $GREEN$
(In the long term it saves you hard earned cash)

I am going to show you here tonight that unlike Kermit the Frog It is Easy and Fun to be Green.  First of all, who here in the audience has switched their light bulbs from incandescent to compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFL)?

Why did you do this?  Because switching your light bulbs save you a lot of money in the long run.  According to Homedepot.com, CFL will use around 75% less electricity than an incandescent bulb with the same light output, while lasting about 10 times longer. Additionally, since CFLs produce less heat, they can help you save on cooling costs in the summer.  The bottom line though is that if you Replace 3 frequently used light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs and you could save around $60 per year.

Changing your light bulbs is just the tip of this green iceberg, for saving your hard earned green cash also.  Exactly one year ago, Consumer Reports had a cover story on 7 Ways to Slash Your Energy Bills.  Among their tips to helping you or the average America household to save green:

1. Adjust your TV mode from “retail mode” which enables TVs to have the best quality mode under bright showroom lights to “home mode,” which is fine for most types of viewing.  Average yearly savings around $45.

2. Pay a qualified heating and cooling pro to seal and insulate heating and cooling ducts that run through your home.  Average yearly savings around $400.

3. Unplug those voltage vampires, such as your DVD player, microwave oven, computer, TV, cell phone charger, and Hello Kitty toaster (which I know ___________ uses with pride very morning).  Average yearly savings around $125.

4. Stop pre-rinsing dishes before you put them in the dishwasher.  Believe it or not, your dishes come just as clean, and it is an unnecessary waste of time and energy.  Ultimately, the yearly savings is $75.

5. If you can wash your clothes in cold water.  If you are worried about removing tough stains, Consumer Reports recommends Tide 2X Ultra for Cold Water.  Even if this Tide detergent is twice as expensive as other detergents, Consumer Reports thinks you could receive an average yearly savings of $60.

6. Lower your water heater from 130 degrees to 120 degrees and insulating your hot-water pipes could save an average yearly savings of $15.

7. Insulate your attics, basements, and other key areas could save the average American household up to $191 a year.

Which could be your airfare for you and your significant other to: (Florida, Bahamas, Hawaii, or Cancun, Mexico)

And I have heard that it is a lot greener down there in January with all the palm trees than it is in St. Louis.

I know what you are thinking right now:  Brian, I do not have the time to make all those adjustments to my home to make it more energy efficient.   Your neighbor might be making these changes already.  I found an article this on May 13, 2011 on the ClimateCentral.org, To Save Energy, Utilities Tap into Our Competitive Instincts by Nicole Heller.

The article reported that City of Palo Alto, Calif. recently began including Home Energy Reports in residential utility bills to empower their customers save energy and be greener. Each report compares a household’s energy use with their 100 closest neighbors in homes of similar sizes, and also provides targeted energy conservation tips.  The bill reported that the author, Nicole’s energy bill was “ranked as the 23rd-most-efficient household in the neighborhood, based on the previous month’s electricity and natural gas use.”  They were listed in the good, but not the great category.  Nicole and her husband wanted to be listed in the Great category, so they immediately dusted off the caulking gun that had been sitting for over two years.  This couple then spent the next two hours caulking the windows and weatherizing their home.  They then waited patiently for their next utility bill.  To their excitement, they were now classified as “Great,” having moved up in the standings to become the ninth-most-efficient house among their neighboring peers, and saving about $50 per month relative to the average household, or about $600 a year.

Just think if you decide not to weatherize, your neighbors might just thumb their nose at you. Tell you that you stink.  Or, even call you an energy hog.

And you know Howard, that GREEN IS $GREEN$.
Becoming more energy efficient can save you a lot of money.
Again, Kermit the Frog, for all of his cuteness has it wrong.
It is easy and fun to be green.

Don’t just take my word for it.  Anne Frank said it so beautifully some 60 years ago in her book, The Diary of a Young Girl: “The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quite alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature. As longs as this exists, and it certainly always will, I know that then there will always be comfort for every sorrow, whatever the circumstances may be. And I firmly believe that nature brings solace in all troubles.”

Keep in mind where she wrote this.  Anne and her family where hiding from the Nazis.  They were confined to in an attic of a house in Amsterdam, Netherlands.  She could not go outside for two years and basically had no contact with nature.  She only had a window to look out into the sky.  A vibrant chestnut tree that grew right in front of the window was her closest contact to the natural world.

I recently got into a debate with someone on Facebook whether or not there is really hope for the future with the immense problem of climate change.  With all the environmental destruction caused by humans, my friend did not think there was hope for the future.  On the other hand, I am endlessly optimism who believes all of us humans can lessen the impact of climate change.  How do I know this?  From all the time I have spent in nature.

I grew up walking the trails of a county park that looked the Mississippi River by my house, Bee Tree Park.  I loved walking the woods and exploring the creeks by around my parents house in the suburbs of St. Louis, Missouri.  As soon as I graduated from college in 1992, I worked at Crater Lake National Park, Oregon.  Every summer since, I have enjoyed hiking as many trails as I can in my spare time.  Up until spring 2008, I spent my winters in Everglades National Park, Florida.  As much as I could, I would canoe, bicycle, bird watch and hike all around that magnificent park also.  Local, state and national parks, and wilderness areas have always provided me a sense of wonder, renewal, peace, and hope.

From the past 20 years of working in the national parks, I went from working as a housekeeper and gift store cashier to a naturalist ranger leading presentations to visitors.  I even used that Anne Frank quote in many of my ranger programs.  When I was not out exploring nature, I loved reading about it in the evenings to educate myself and be knowledgeable for the park visitors.  My quest for green knowledge led to my interest in climate change.

For ten years now, I have been reading as many books as I can about climate change.  Most of the authors and scientists I read are very alarmed by the negative impact it is having on planet.  However, most seem hopeful that we can take lots of actions to lessen the impact for future generations.  Thus, I have always maintained hope we can solve climate change.

Four years ago, in November 2007 while still working in the Everglades, I had an epiphany.  I decided to dedicate the rest of my life to find some way to educate and inspire people to resolve climate change as some kind of public speaker or teacher.  Ever since then, I have been looking for a grad school to truly learn the art and science of effective climate change communications.  This is now my fourth winter in St. Louis trying to make this life transition.  While I am living with family and working various winter temporary jobs, I still have sought out nature.  I still make regular pilgrimages to Bee Tree Park to hike the trails, admire the wide Mississippi River, and look at the deciduous trees in amazement, especially how they change with the seasons.  Nature is still blessing me with renewal, wonder, peace and hope.

For my friend on Facebook, whom I was debating on the solutions to climate change, I tried to instill my hope from spending time in nature.  He was just not going to buy it.  Oh, well.  Some people are never going to be persuaded by your point of view.  However, I was really shocked by his pessimism and lack of hope for the future though.  After a conversation with him, you may not be hopeful that humans can take meaningful actions to reduce the threat of climate change.  I have never been convinced either that total pessimism inspires people to change their ways and take positive actions.   If you are just going to focus on doom and gloom projections of the future, you not going to be a joy to be around.  People will not be challenged to live a healthier, more sustainable, green life for the planet.  You will not help the cause.

My friend Tom Smerling, who founded the website www.climatebites.org said something interesting to me a few weeks ago.  He remarked that if we (who are very knowledgeable and aware of climate change) are not providing some kind of hope to our family, friends, students and people whom engage about climate change, then we must take a vacation or sabbatical.  This is a very truthful statement.  Even more, if you cannot take that vacation or sabbatical, at least go hiking in a nearby park.  Reconnect with nature.  Find that wonder by being in the natural world.
 
Don’t just take my word for this either.  Keep thinking about Anne Frank.  She expressed this deep appreciate for nature at the age of 14.   She even had this deep longing to reconnect with nature especially because she trapped hiding in that small attic with her family for two years.  She never gave up hope and optimism, despite the Holocaust happening all around.  Her words and spirit of hope forever lives on.  She would want us to go spend time in nature, especially if we were feeling hopeless and pessimistic about global issues like climate change.

If you really are feeling hopeless about the state of the world and humanity, please do yourself a favor and go spend some time in nature.  Nature has been such a wonderful friend to me.  The natural world has really inspired me to be green (strive to live more sustainably) and educate people to take action to resolve climate change.  I know if you are feeling blue, taking a hike will inspire you also to be green and live your best life.