| Today is International Polar Bear Day, a day to celebrate these magnificent, mighty Arctic creatures that have come to symbolize the great environmental struggle of our time the race to solve the climate crisis and defend life on Earth. Today is International Polar Bear Day, a day to celebrate these magnificent, mighty Arctic creatures that have come to symbolize the great environmental struggle of our time the race to solve the climate crisis and defend life on Earth.
We’re often asked by colleagues and members, “Why do you think people love the polar bear so much?” It’s a great question, one that I have wondered about myself. I think it has something to do with the power and elegance of these animals. They are solitary creatures usually roaming their icy world alone except for polar bear mothers who selflessly nurture their young cubs for the first two to three years of life.
I think as much as anything, we are drawn to their faces, their black eyes and snouts set against their cloud white fur. It is easy to imagine that we are peering into their souls. I often see a kind of sadness, a vulnerability so ironic given their hulking power.
And we see through them the consequences of our activities on this planet the costs associated with living out of balance with the natural world. We see how important it is to change how we produce and consume energy before these noble creatures and countless other precious species vanish from this earth.
The idea of extinction is shocking and horrific. That a species, which has evolved over billions of years from the same microscopic ancient life form from which we descend, could in our lifetimes be no more is a heartbreaking, astonishing notion, one so profound and difficult for the human mind to grasp.
But we are losing species at rate many orders of magnitude faster than natural processes and human activity is driving it. That’s the bad news. The good news is that what is human caused can be human remedied. And that is our mission. That is why we work here at EDF. That is why you support our work.
Together, we can slow and even reverse the trends toward climate catastrophe. We are making progress we just need the constant civic engagement to apply continual pressure on our elected officials and other key decision makers.
We can take a stand to defend the majestic polar bear… and the vibrant monarch butterfly… and the stealthy Canada lynx… and the life-sustaining coral reefs… and countless other species threatened by climate change. It starts with you and our shared commitment to promoting the strongest possible standards to slash climate pollution, promote energy efficiency, reduce deforestation, and defend the natural world in which we all live.
 Thank you for all your support,
Sam Parry
Director, Membership
P.S. If you haven’t already, please consider signing up as a monthly donor to support our fight for climate solutions and clean energy.  |
