Act V: The Evolution of Solutions

Hope for humanity depends on our vision,

We must see a way that inspires.

Set fear, doubt and worry aside for a moment,

And ask what the future requires.

Picture this world in one hundred years,

Thriving and full of new life.

Our grandchildren’s children living in peace,

How did we escape former strife?

The deep-rooted wisdom of webs of connection,

Each life giving shape to the whole.

Value inherent, not based on production,

Each creature fulfilling its role.

The weather continues to change as predicted,

But humans are quick to adapt.

Building resiliency into our systems,

Our genius does not go untapped.

We grow a new future by farming with care,

Rebuilding the health of the soil.

Regenerative practice respects living systems,

Permaculture reduces the toil.

In mulching the ground, we conserve its hydration,

And shield it from wind and from sun.

We protect pollinators and critical species,

The race to extinction undone.

The food that we waste’s a disgrace in the face

Of those who sleep hungry at night.

The dumping of food is a crime against nature,

Nutrition’s a true human right.

Defend all the innocent victims of war -

Stop starvation and end genocide.

History despises the oppressors of rights -

It matters on which team you side.

Cease endless conflict, call off the arms race,

And give up the weapons of war.

Let women take charge of the plights of the nations -

Mothers demanding “No more!”

With peace as the standard, societies blossom,

Education is honoured with pride.

With knowledge comes progress and rapid advancement,

Humanity’s rise fortified.

Indigenous wisdom and rights are respected,

Land given back, treaties upheld.

Repairing the harm and healing the trauma -

Colonial thinking dispelled.

And cease causing trauma anew for the migrants

Who flee from conditions unstable.

No one’s illegal on land that’s been stolen -

There is room for us all at the table.

Connect in community, build mutual aid,

Supporting all people to prosper.

Banding together’s an act of resistance

When belief in each other we foster.

We move to de-growth by shorter workweeks,

Leaving time for friends, family, and fun.

Creativity flourishes with time to live life,

The age of solutions begun.

Let’s imagine the future of energy’s here -

Not dependent on coal, gas, or oil.

The power is endless from wind and from sun,

And the heat that lies under the soil.

Improve the tech used in transmission and storage -

Think outside the box and discover new forms.

Make heating and cooling our homes more efficient -

Retrofits now becoming the norm.

All the power we harness is useless unless

We stand in defense of the water.

Fracking it down to the depths of the ground

Will result in the Earth growing hotter.

Hold sacred the lifeblood that flows through our land -

We can’t live without rivers and lakes.

We must leave them clean for all life on this planet -

Fight this fight with whatever it takes.

In writing our future, the pen’s in our hands,

The story’s not yet cast in stone.

If we will see freedom and progress and peace,

The tyrants must fall from their thrones.

The revolution is growing, as grass stirs from the roots,

Ensuring that life will live on.

Evolution persistently, stubbornly striving -

Hope rises with every new dawn.