We introduced you to Tex Hawkins a number of months ago. He has just posted a terrific article that shares a combination of environmental and political science. He provides an English translation of the Citizen’s Action Party (PAC) environmental platform, which we consider to be extremely important in Costa Rica’s political dialogue. It will also be posted separately, in the interest of encouraging this dialogue.

“In my last post to Nature Air’s Nature Blog, I translated and shared observations from Costa Rican presidential candidate and opposition party leader Otton Solis, made after he attended the January inauguration of Barack Obama.  Of course, it’s impossible to predict how the ideals embodied in those reflections would play out if he were elected to that nation’s highest office, just as it would have been impossible for many of us to predict the effects of the military-industrial-financial-media complex on the rhetorical promise of our new president’s social and environmental agendas.  As my 90-year-old mother often advises, “hope for the best.”

I would advise further that we stay informed, involved and committed to a peaceful quest for the common good.  In that spirit, Winona State University launched a unique educational exchange last year, in the form of an interdisciplinary travel-study course on comparative conservation history and evolution of environmental policy.  We titled the course, “Making Peace with Nature,” borrowing from the initiative launched by Nobel prize-winning President Oscar Arias.  Our agenda called for visits to important conservation areas and communities participating in innovative programs.  The founders and leaders of Costa Rica’s internationally recognized efforts graciously found time to share their personal stories with the students, frankly discuss successes and failures, and answer many questions regarding future possibilities for a sustainable, healthy and just society. Read on…

Recently, we posted our first communication from Tex Hawkins, a gentleman with a long history of involvement in Costa Rica’s environmental protection and preservation efforts. In his second installment, he shares his translation of comments made by Otton Solis, who attended President Barack Obama’s inauguration. His impressions, written in Spanish, were sent to close friends. By way of introduction, Mr. Solis founded the political party, PAC (Citizen’s Action Party), and he ran for president in 2002 and 2006, nearly winning on his second attempt. He was also a leader in the opposition to CAFTA. We are not endorsing or opposing his politics, merely sharing his inspiring personal experience as a witness to the inauguration.

“In the cold of Washington that 20th of January – as much from the economic recession as the three degree centigrade temperatures – the words of Obama warmed the spirit of his listeners…

“I was physically close (a few meters from the presidential podium, among U.S. celebrities in politics, culture, business and entertainment) and I felt close conceptually and ethically…

“The atmosphere mixed the festive with the solemn, the emotional with the intellectual, and the past with the future…all of us agreed that Obama himself was a message against whatever kind of discrimination – origin, race, class, culture, nationality and history… we also talked about his concepts in relation to the environment, patriotism, citizen participation, transparency and the call to service that ought to characterize those who govern, with social justice, respect for other nations and commitment to diplomacy…

“I kept remembering ‘Imagine,’ John Lennon’s hymn to love and peace.  In the moments of his swearing in, a pregnant silence filled the auditorium.  Together, we prayed that the new President would let himself be guided by God and that God would listen to his petitions.

“He began by saying that he came before us with humility and gratitude, conscious of what his ancestors had done for the United States.  Later he talked about the necessity of uniting, eliminating conflict, polarization and dogmas.  He affirmed that what’s important is not the size of the state, but whether or not it functions…he added that economic success doesn’t depend solely on the size of the GNP, but on the numbers of people who benefit from prosperity; the possibility of bringing opportunity to everyone…

“I return to Costa Rica convinced of the enormous opportunities that present themselves with the arrival of a new paradigm in Washington.  I think that today Obama is the name of hope, and it depends on us to convert it to reality.”

Otton Solis

We are being tested on a daily basis to find within ourselves a ray of hope and optimism amidst the darkness and foreboding that bombards our consciousness. Our environment is under siege from our wanton disregard for its well-being and our mistaken idea that the natural world was created solely for our personal enjoyment. We have stretched the global economy to the breaking point because of a similarly distorted sensibility regarding our birthright to selfish abundance. In the silence of this desperation, it is inspiring to hear a voice of hope, one that speaks to the possibilities.

Thank you, Tex, for translating and sharing the eloquently expressed sentiments of this prominent Costa Rican.