A long, long time ago, Hugh Mann found himself in a lush and bountiful paradise. As abundant as that land was, Hugh still often struggled to put dinner on the table. But slowly over time, by using his inventive mind Huey found ways to increase harvest yields and manipulate the abundant resources to make a more comfortable life for himself.
Huey loved tromping all over his world. He relished in its wonders as he consumed the seemingly endless supply of goodies. Generally speaking, the tracks he left behind were small and inconsequential, scant evidence that he’d even been there.
Usually not one to pay much attention to his appearance, Huey recently just happened to glance down at his feet. They were enormous! Then he looked at his arms, hands, torso, and legs; they too were gigantic. When and how did this happen?
Huey rushed to find his most recent selfie. It was taken a mere 200 years ago. He compared it to his reflection in the mirror, and his jaw dropped! Compared to that photo, he’d not just doubled or even tripled in size. He was a whooping seven times larger! *
This shocking realization made Huey stop and take stock of his world. He found that the vibrant, verdant surroundings he had enjoyed for tens of thousands of years was rapidly disappearing. It didn’t take him long to realize that as a giant, every movement he makes has an impact on his environment. Now, those huge feet of his are definitely leaving their mark!
As he looked more closely, Huey found that over the past half century, 60% of the world’s wildlife has vanished. Pollution and temperature rise from burning fossil fuels has decimated half of the Earth’s shallow reefs. They’re the oceans’ incubators for millions of sea creatures. Pollinator insects like bees are declining too, threatening production of the very food crops he depends on.
“Whoa! I’ve got to make some changes, and fast!” Hugh thought to himself. “With these big feet, it’s important to be much more careful about every step I take. Not only that, I’ve got to repair the damaged areas. If not, I’ll lose this paradise. Then where would I tromp? Because this is the only home I’ll ever know. I’m here forever…Earthbound.”
*Human population – 1800 AD (approx. 200 years ago) – 1 billion
Current human population – 7.7 billion
Huey loved tromping all over his world. He relished in its wonders as he consumed the seemingly endless supply of goodies. Generally speaking, the tracks he left behind were small and inconsequential, scant evidence that he’d even been there.
Usually not one to pay much attention to his appearance, Huey recently just happened to glance down at his feet. They were enormous! Then he looked at his arms, hands, torso, and legs; they too were gigantic. When and how did this happen?
Huey rushed to find his most recent selfie. It was taken a mere 200 years ago. He compared it to his reflection in the mirror, and his jaw dropped! Compared to that photo, he’d not just doubled or even tripled in size. He was a whooping seven times larger! *
This shocking realization made Huey stop and take stock of his world. He found that the vibrant, verdant surroundings he had enjoyed for tens of thousands of years was rapidly disappearing. It didn’t take him long to realize that as a giant, every movement he makes has an impact on his environment. Now, those huge feet of his are definitely leaving their mark!
As he looked more closely, Huey found that over the past half century, 60% of the world’s wildlife has vanished. Pollution and temperature rise from burning fossil fuels has decimated half of the Earth’s shallow reefs. They’re the oceans’ incubators for millions of sea creatures. Pollinator insects like bees are declining too, threatening production of the very food crops he depends on.
“Whoa! I’ve got to make some changes, and fast!” Hugh thought to himself. “With these big feet, it’s important to be much more careful about every step I take. Not only that, I’ve got to repair the damaged areas. If not, I’ll lose this paradise. Then where would I tromp? Because this is the only home I’ll ever know. I’m here forever…Earthbound.”
*Human population – 1800 AD (approx. 200 years ago) – 1 billion
Current human population – 7.7 billion
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