Earthkeeper | Agent 350

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AGENT 350. Building a Global Climate Movement.

Agent 350

Three hundred and fifty is something we all eat, sleep, live and literally breathe.  You may not know it yet, but 350 is going to become the most important, talked about number on the planet.  At least that’s the plan.
 

I'm Jamie Henn (aka Agent 350). My team and I here at 350.org have just broken ground on the first-ever global climate movement that will send the number 350 sweeping across the planet.  We happen to know a thing or two about spreading a climate movement like wildfire over the Internet – more on that and where you come in, so read on! 

Here’s the point.  It's up to all of us – and that includes me, you and everyone we know – to help reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to 350 parts per million. Science experts tell us that if we don't, we're screwed. Translation: we’ll cause massive and irreparable damage to the planet.  

So, we’re basically going to ride our student debts a few more years in order to build (from scratch) a viral movement around the world that invites everyone on Earth to know what 350 means.

Lofty? Yes.  Thrilling? Yes.  Crazy? Probably.  Possible?  Definitely - with your help. Follow our story.  I’ll be narrating in real time how our team is using the Internet to crowd source cutting edge ideas; white board concepts; debate strategies; recruit talent; spread the buzz; build the 350 Internet hub (check it out at www.350.org); raise the money; conduct 350 stunts around town here in San Fran; track down the partners; and make 350 emerge from concept to reality.  In other words, you’ll have a seat at the table – meeting rooms, hallway conversations, partner conversations, meals, roadtrips – as we pull in a virtual team around the world through vids, pics, blogs, podcasts, twitters, you name it.  Jump on our team as an Agent 350 Backer -- encourage us when we fail, guide us when we flounder and give us a virtual whack on the head when it looks like we've lost our minds.

In short, by joining us you can help jumpstart this movement and make the number 350 go from a global whisper to a scream.  Interested?

350 will be an action sport. We’ll be posting Action Requests for Backers to help us halt global warming by finding ways to showcase the number 350 through art, music and political demonstrations or any other way you can dream up. Find 350 people to ski down a melting glacier, plant 350 trees, throw 350 Frisbees into the air, petition 350 lawmakers, write 350 haikus about global warming, write one haiku about the number 350.  We’ll throw out ideas and share yours with the Agent 350 following.  You get the idea.

The way we see it, 350 is your global environmental movement.  To participate, you don't have to be a brainiac scientist. We're not scientists but we're glad we've got the support of some of the best and brightest minds in environmental science behind us.

Collaboration is the key to our culture. We're more wired than any other generation on Earth so let's harness that power and get this thing going.

Now the disclaimers.  We're young and we don't have all the answers. But we also know it's OK to think big but start small. Activism is a creative act riddled with constant problem solving.  We’re having a blast doing serious business.

Me?  I'm 23 years old and have some experience seeing what a lot of inspiration and a ton of sweat can do.  As a Middlebury College student in Vermont, I worked with a group of friends to start Step It Up 2007. The campaign successfully inspired people to gather around the United States on Apr. 14, 2007, in the name of cutting carbon emissions. The effort, which encouraged cutting 80 percent of carbon emissions by 2050, became a central platform for politicians campaigning for the 2008 presidency.  Not bad… but now we’re setting out to knock climate change out of the park by ensuring that Step It Up was not a one-hit-wonder.

Right now there's great potential for change. It's one of the world's most creative and exciting times. People around the globe are thinking, well, globally as they should. The US in particular is at a crossroads when it comes to energy policy and consumer action. While it will take decades to get down from our current level of about 385 ppm of CO2, we can start reversing the damage today.  With a strong global climate treaty coming out of the United Nations, we can get back to 350 and maybe even lower.

Lot’s to do.  How will we pull off the 350 movement?  That’s where you come in. Welcome to Agent 350!

 

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Jake Whitcomb
June 7, 2008 - 10:45am

loving it, Jamie and crew. brainstorming my next 350 activation right now...

atlascaproni
June 16, 2008 - 3:43pm

Great idea! I could incorporate it into my series with a clip on frogs... : )

Videodrone
June 25, 2008 - 11:45am

interesting - did you know that
CO2 has been more than 10 times higher in past times than it is now? (i.e. before man)
or that CO2 lags temperature rise? - by hundreds of years?
that greenhouse growers increase the CO2 to 1000ppm/ (it is plant food after all)
that the heat trapping properties of CO2 are inversely proportional to its concentration?

have fun - you need a Sancho to help your windmill tilting

Baine
July 9, 2008 - 3:45pm

this is an amazing idea. im an artist, and youve all inspire me to make something involving 350, ill show it to yall when im done. eybut you guys need to spend time merging this movement into myspace and youtube. thats where all the clueless but hopeful youth is wastin thier time

GuestMark Johnson
July 10, 2008 - 1:31pm

The 350 message is important work. Please also tell a fuller story of how we lost our connection with the earth. Culture and society was taken over by mass market conditioning that the economy is dependent on more and more consumption. Study history of the 20th century. 1939 World's Fair in NY laid out the world of tomorrow model brought to all by General Motors. We built this century on cars and roads and the need to find ever increasing supplies of oil.
We take the earth, atmosphere and water to much for granted.
Create new culture life sustaining and never give up protecting the earth.

CarolH
July 29, 2008 - 1:33pm

Raising awareness of the meaning and importance of "350" is really important. Perhaps we should identify 350 ways people can help to 'Get to 350'. These could be categorized by home, office, school, business, community, etc. or by how much time it would take--e.g. got 1 min, do this; got 5 mins, do this, etc. As you point out, it will take many changes on the part of all of us and the systems we spend our lives supporting in order to accomplish this change in a relatively short time frame. We have to make this seem very important but also doable for people. Channeling the voices of many takes your voice and energy and internet savvy; channeling behavior change takes all of us demanding that systems make it easier to change and provide incentives to sustain the change. I'm with ya!

GFF
August 5, 2008 - 7:59pm

Hey! You have got my support. I am working in my own way to inform other people of the urgency on global warming. We all have to do our share,don't we?

Let me know how I can assist with your project's goal and 350 awaress.

CC

Jonas Eriksson
September 22, 2008 - 9:10am

As an public educator I think 350.org are one of the most motivating actions around. A very pedagogical approach and a way to go from words to action.

Thank you!

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