The universe is an incredibly large place and we have been studying it for a long time. So far we know of only of one Earth. It is the rarest and most precious object in the known universe and is humanity's only home. Broad Ripple too is our home by happenstance or by choice. We are becoming increasingly aware that the destiny of Broad Ripple and that of Earth are inextricably intertwined. How goes the Earth, so goes Broad Ripple.

The huge global changes brought on by the industrial revolution especially in the 20th Century transformed humanity and our individual lives more that any previous time or generation. Invention and refinement of the airplane, the automobile, industrialized farming, household appliances, mass production and radio and television, drastically altered how we live; the distance and speed of our travel; the convenience of daily life; the ability and power of our communication; and the perception of our selves. All these bewildering changes were recounted to us as historical stories of ourselves by Walter Cronkite almost as soon as they occurred.

One structure heralded the coming of this age like no other - the Eiffel Tower. Designed by an engineer, it prophesied the technological explosion that was to be the hallmark of the 20th Century. At the beginning of the last century, it represented a challenging feat in design, fabrication and construction. Today, tall, erect, and still confident, it stands astride nature and dominates the landscape. Yet even as it was being built, most Frenchmen detested it. There were near riotous demonstrations that subsided only with the promise that it would be torn down as soon as the World Fair it was built for concluded. Only the fact that the tower proved valuable for communication purposes saved it from demolition.

There is a persistent recurring theme emanating from our intuitive artistic sense that I like to call the Frankenstein Syndrome. The notion that as we strive to create inventions to serve us and make us more powerful, inevitably, these very same creations turn out to be the source of our undoing. When Al Gore came to town some months ago, he consulted with me. And after he recounted his climate change, pollution, and destruction of the planet story, one I definitely ascribe to, he agreed that it may be a classic example of our own beloved, empowering creation transforming into the source of our destruction. When Dom Nozzi, a diehard proponent of Smart Growth, came to town, he further codified this notion. He made the statement, I paraphrase here, that ". . . once one establishes the mode of primary transportation by which people get around, regardless of the intent of the planners, all aspects of growth and development follow." Promoting the Hummer, brings the McMansion, the cul-de-sac, and sprawl. More roads, more strip centers, more parking lots and more happy car space. This has promoted a sedentary life based on convenience and manufactured food now cited as the primary cause of an epidemic of obesity and diabetes in our children.

This new century opens with many problems. It also offers a new way of seeing the world. A shift from the efficiency of mass production and consumption to the effectiveness of Livability. Livability is the herald of this new century. It's no longer about how much we can own and produce but how well we can live on how little. We are, and will continue to be, faced with choices. ". . . you can have happy car space or you can have happy people space but you can't have both." Livability is a very personal thing. Ask one hundred people and you will get one hundred answers. Even as a nation, we must muster the energy expended on the Manhattan Project; going to the moon; or waging the war and channel it toward restoring the environment, we as a community, must muster the energy our citizens generated in the current local property tax debacle and channel it toward developing a vision for the future of Broad Ripple and a plan for achieving it. This will not be easy. Even as the level of difficult is hard to gauge, we must come together; gather the necessary resources; and develop a plan that encourages renewed economic vitality; improves the quality of life; restores our heath and the health of our children; adds to the beauty of our community; and contributes to the healing of our planet for how goes Broad Ripple so goes the Earth. What better day to begin than EARTH DAY 2008.