John Beaton is an award-winning poet who lives in Qualicum Beach. He has been concerned for decades about environmental degradation of the planet.
His love of writing and of nature inspired him to write a novel on environmental activism set in 1999, which is titled Emergency 1-6-2 to reflect human population growth from one billion to six billion in the 200 years from 1800 to 1999.
He believes a thriller would have broader reach and a more diverse readership. In his research, Beaton discovered the Earth Charter, a document that evolved from a first draft presented at the United Nations Rio+5 Forum in 1997 under the leadership of Maurice Strong, a Canadian environmental leader working at the UN, and Mikael Gorbachev, former president of the Soviet Union, to its formal launch in 2000.
An aspirational document for stewardship of the planet, the Earth Charter is organized using four pillars and 16 principles which serve as consensus guidelines for countries and organizations on “the meaning of sustainability, the challenge and vision of sustainable development, and the principles by which sustainable development is to be achieved."
The four pillars are Respect and Care for the Community of Life; Ecological Integrity; Social and Economic Justice; and Democracy Nonviolence, and Peace. Beaton wove the Earth Charter messages into his novel and he is currently seeking a publisher.
Beaton also wrote a version of the Charter’s four pillars and the principles using the language of poetry to provoke thought and entertain. He was invited to attend in April this year the Earth Charter International conference in Florida to perform his poem titled Manifesto for Humankind. A conference audience of academic and scientific researchers, activists and educators gave it a warm reception and organizers are in the process of making it available as an education and communication resource.
The Earth Charter was an important influence on the development of the Plan of Implementation for the UNESCO Decade for Education on Sustainable Development. Canadian universities are currently using UNESCO’s sustainable development goals to shape their research and course development. The UNESCO goals echo the Earth Charter principles, and UNESCO supports the work of Earth Charter International. A global movement of individuals and organizations from 90 countries around the world use the Earth Charter “in various ways to guide the transition towards a more just, sustainable, and peaceful world."
For more information on the Earth Charter see https://earthcharter.org/read-the-earth-charter/.
Communities Protecting our Coast would like to honour Beaton's commitment to a healthier planet and are pleased to provide $50 to the local Streamkeepers on behalf of their sponsor, the Nanoose Bay Lions Club.
