People Make a Difference
Sometimes in groups, sometimes as individuals, people have worked to promote change. They have bucked the status quo in an effort to make things better either for themselves or for others. The list of people who have made a difference is lengthy, but one individual is worth highlighting. John Muir, considered the original preservationist and father of the national park system, spread the conviction that people need natural space to thrive. Muir helped found the Sierra Club and lobbied politicians against the destruction of resources in the Pacific Northwest. His legacy lives on in numerous schools and protected wilderness areas that bear his name.
If you are looking for inspiration, pick up a biography. Reading how someone else overcame obstacles and followed his or her passion can give you just the boost you need to make some changes in your life. More than likely, you'll see that people who changed the world didn't really set out to do so, but change came one step at a time.
The list of people who have inspired change continues to grow, and one interesting point about nearly all of them is that they weren't born into activism. Something happened in their lives that drove them to work for change. People can be at the forefront of a movement or they can be in the ranks providing support; either way, individuals and groups can make a difference and redirect the course of history. Dr. Rosalie Bertel is a good example. As a mathematician and nun in the order of the Grey Nuns of the Sacred Heart, Dr. Bertel was spurred to action in the mid-1980s after the nuclear reactor meltdown in Chernobyl and the Union Carbide explosion in Bhopal, India. She has become a respected scholar and author and now works on behalf of Native Americans and Gulf War veterans on the effects of depleted uranium and low-level radiation.
