The Story of Stuff
- July 28th, 2008
Our friends Jana and Peter Thomsen have inspired Tami and I for years with how they live. Not only was Peter one of the main people that inspired me to even pick up a camera, I can’t think of a single visit with them in the decade and a half we’ve been friends when I haven’t walked away with a better idea on how to do life.
So, when I got this today from Jana I stopped what I was doing for 20 minutes and got a new more refined vision for what was possible. My invitation is for you to do the same.
For the cynics out there, I double dogg dare you with a cherry on top to especially give yourself the gift of suspended judgment and see this one through. Learning about these things, at least for me, comes in waves of realization and action. I wonder if this particular wave might be tailor created just for you.
Click here or the “play movie” link above to see what I’m talking about.
Love you guys!
-Dane
PS… Thanks to Annie Leonard for her commitment and creativity!
PPS… BIG ANNOUNCEMENT: The highly environmental Audiobook should be available in the Fast Track store in the next 24 hours for immediate download (pDNA included).
Tags: annie leonard, audiobook, dane sanders, environmental, fast track photographer, green, pdna, photographer DNA, story of stuff
July 29th, 2008 at 7:27 am
Thanks for the heads up on this. Great video. I posted on my blog as well.
July 29th, 2008 at 7:41 am
I bet that video would play great on the new I-phone. I’m going to order mine.
July 29th, 2008 at 10:17 am
Love this video! Telling all my friends!
July 29th, 2008 at 3:58 pm
OK, someone needs to play devils advocate here. She makes some good points and she is correct about some things. However, any logical thinking person can see she is not correct with some of her observations. For example trees are a renewable resource. She says she has an old monitor on her desk. New monitors are more energy efficient. Her examples of computer are riddiculus as well. Companies make faster computers because WE WANT THEM to.
Other countries don’t give a crap if we all were to live like the Amish. These other countries are more greedy than us.
Her video might be more effective if not for the Bush bashing undertones. Another example. Bush said to shop after 9-11. Duh so the economy that everybody constantly talks about all the time wouldn’t tank. My wife and I both lost our long term jobs at different companies thanks to terrorists.
Many more examples can be listed. For example hunters actually preserve wildlife. We harvest the surplus. The places where I have seen the most Elk is in replanted clearcuts, due to the simple fact that there is more food available in just a few years after a new planting.
Dane, Your a great person, we share many of the same beliefs, but Californians are some of the worst violators in the country. Over regulated and over polluted. You guys have huge fires because nobody wants to thin the brush. You have to thin, you have to take surpluses of various kind . Things become out of control if you don’t.
My wife and I are avid recyclers and try to do our part. You can also recycle old computers as well. Like someone else has said, I’m a conservative, but I’m not mad at anybody about it. Lets be good stewards of the earth, but not lose our souls in the process.
Keep the faith,
Ryan
July 29th, 2008 at 11:09 pm
Dane,
Just wanted to say a huge THANK YOU! I’m only a few chapters into the book (bookmarking and making notes in the pdf as I go along) and it’s incredible that your words are literally altering the way I think and my original ideas of how I should go about getting into this business. I’m just a fledgling amateur with a camera, about to shoot my first solo wedding this weekend, but already I feel like it’s possible to make it. My plan is taking shape as I read - Thank you so much and God bless you and your family!
July 29th, 2008 at 11:15 pm
Indeed, while this is kinda controversial in general, I was very touched about two things- the way we cheat the rest of the world so that we can have things as dirt-cheap as possible, and the rate at which we throw stuff out and get new stuff.
While her description of computers was totally over-simplified and she admitted to using the worse-for-the-environment computer monitor, I do feel there is still something terribly wrong in the photography community with regard to equipment consumption. Some, though not all, are SO guilty of obsessing about always having the latest DSLR body, for example.
It’s difficult though, because better equipment is, well, BETTER. If they make it, we will want it.
At the core, it has to do with how satisfied we are with what we’ve already got. And sad to say, but I don’t think
July 29th, 2008 at 11:17 pm
…I don’t think we’ll be able to curb our satisfaction and just stop buying new stuff. It is a downward spiral.
But, this world is fleeting anyway, and God does not intend for it to last forever. The end will come.
=Matt=
July 29th, 2008 at 11:22 pm
Your last comment really struck me Matt. It’s interesting to think about stewardship from a Christian perspective because we actually don’t get off the hook that easily. The world isn’t actually fleeting. There’s good reason to believe this is the same world God intends to redeem. I don’t think we get a redo.
I do think the video is overly simplistic, politically biased at points (perhaps justifiably so) and cuts some corners. What I was moved by though was her simplicity in story telling (reminded me of Dan Roam’s Back of the Napkin) and effectiveness in getting a point across. That thing is 20 minutes long! And, I found it lingering for much longer than that.
I for one want to want to be more like Annie in this category… pausing to wonder, being willing to consider and taking more responsibility.
July 30th, 2008 at 10:02 am
Dane, I think your spot on after seeing your response. I just get a little testy when I see liberals complaining. I especially like your first paragraph. Too many Christians think “who cares, It’s all going to burn anyway”. It’s rare to see a perspective like yours within the evangelical community.
Blessings,
Ryan
July 31st, 2008 at 3:09 pm
Indeed, Dane, it’s not like I’m gonna just say ahh, to hell with it, literally, …and just drive around in an H2 using disposable everything and so on and so forth.
I drive my (fuel efficient) cars into the ground. I shoot my cameras into the ground. I recycle. I conserve. I’d rather go backpacking or camping as opposed to 4-wheeling, etc. etc.
I WILL myself to be simple, to be happy with whatever I’ve got, to seek out and to protect the serenity, the beauty that is our planet. And I encourage And hopefully soon when I’m stable and self-supported, I can reach out to others.
Even though armageddon will come, If I get to have children some day I’d like for them to breathe clean air and eat non-toxic food…
Heck, as an outdoor photographer I’m even bothered by LIGHT POLLUTION. And as an outdoorsman, I’m even bothered by noise pollution.
So, forgive my pessimism. I have faith in God, just not so much in society.
Take care,
=Matt=
July 31st, 2008 at 3:10 pm
*And I encourage others to do the same*
August 1st, 2008 at 12:33 am
I could only watch half of it. I got depressed.
August 1st, 2008 at 6:39 pm
Hi Dane,
Thanks for sharing the video with your friends. I’m encouraged by the willingness of people to discuss this topic. Just a few thoughts to those who have left comments and a few comments of my own.
Hoffman, feel depressed (being aware is good!), then move on and realize that we have the power to make small changes that can lead to significant change. I have a degree in Environmental Studies and I remember getting completely overwhelmed by the “dooms day” emphasis of many environmentalist, it was depressing! As trite as this may sound, small changes do make a difference in our resources and our attitudes.
Ryan E, as Dane said before, this video is an over-simplification of this issue, but she does an incredible job of compacting a lot of information into a 20 minute clip. You are right, hunters have done some great things to protect habitat and wildlife, trees are renewable (as long as they are managed well), and newer computers are more efficient to run than older ones (although the production and disposal of old ones can outweigh the energy efficiency of new ones). It’s always good to look at our need on an individual basis. I wouldn’t wish an old slow computer on anyone who is processing 3000 images from a wedding they just shot. On the other hand, my mom, who just checks her e-mail and plays solitary is just fine with a dinosaur of a computer.
This is what I have learned from my years of study and trying to live a balanced life.
1. What we own, owns us. The more stuff we have, the more time and money it requires to maintain it. This takes away from time and money to put towards the things we truly value.
2. We must always be assessing “Need vs. Want”. Do we really need something or do we just want it? Are we confusing “having with being”? Are we shopping as therapy?
3. We should be globally conscious. We don’t want our actions to have a negative effect on someone else.
4. We need to care for the Earth. I’ve never felt at liberty to destroy it, use it wisely-yes!, but not destroy it.
From these four thoughts have come significant change in my own life (and my husbands) on how I shop, how I live, and what I consume.
Thanks for reading!
Jana
August 2nd, 2008 at 11:56 am
Dane,
My wife and I are good friends with Jana and Peter Thomsen and have been richly blessed by them as well. Peter is an amazing person to bounce ideas off of; he helped me to refine and to start my company. You guys are amazing!!!! Great find on the video.
August 7th, 2008 at 10:40 pm
OMG, Why, why does everything have to be about jesus! People are dumping religion like used stuff, we are moving from a planet based on religious explanations to reasoned and logical explanations for, well for example why we created religion to explain what we couldn’t, which was pretty much everything. Now kids we have a lot of answers and they just don’t stop do they, the bible just keeps amending itself to keep up with science, seems kinda ridiculous doesn’t it. For societies all around the world, when it wasn’t connected, people created their own gods to explain their existence!!! Hello, wake up and smell the coffee. I know, its important to live for that little yellow arrow of pure pressure. If you gave up religion, all your friends would abandon you. Thats okay, because their are plenty of friends in the non-jesus camp. btw, that is a great movie to see… “Jesus Camp”