This link takes you to a wonderful big picture explanation by Annie Leonard of what is happening on planet earth today, and how we participate. Thanks to one of my classmates who posted the link. It contained no surprises for me, so you may not have any great "Ah-ha!" yourself. For anyone who isn't convinced that our current way of life is unsustainable, this might help them understand just how urgently unsustainable our economy is. One factoid from the presentation that I hadn't previously absorbed: American happiness has been declining since the 1950's, which Annie says is about when we started "consuming". Anyway, check it out if you haven't, and pass it on to anyone who needs a straightforward explanation of what's going on.

http://www.storyofstuff.com/