Dear Terry,

My new book, The Story of Stuff, goes on sale today in bookstores all around the country.

In fact, I’m in New York as I write this preparing for my appearance tonight on The Colbert Report! I hope you tune in.

Before I make a pitch to buy The Story of Stuff, I want to tell you a bit about what inspired it.

I was raised by a single mom who-partly out of worldview and partly out of necessity-followed the World War II saying: Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without.

In college, I developed a fascination about the garbage on the streets of New York. Where did it all come from? Where did it all go?

After graduation I went to work for Greenpeace, investigating the international waste trade. My work took me around the world, and I learned firsthand about the way we distribute, consume, and dispose of our Stuff-what I call the take-make-waste model.

What I learned is that everything is part of a larger system and nothing can be understood without looking at all the other parts of the system. Everything is connected. When you try to trace the source and the true cost of your Stuff, whether it’s your T-shirt or your cellphone, you find that it takes a whole system to make anything.

The thing is, very few people want to talk about that system. I mean, most of our political leaders are still focused on economic growth for growth’s sake, when our real goal should be ensuring that our fellow human beings live fuller, healthier lives. Right?

I don’t have to tell you that the shift we need to make to ensure our children and their children live in a healthier, more just world is big. Really big.

It will require our government, banks, media, corporations and other institutions getting on board. It will require that we as individuals move beyond the easy fixes to push for fundamental change in the way we make, use and dispose of our Stuff-changes and costs that our leaders seem afraid to discuss.

Well, I’m not.

I didn’t pull any punches with The Story of Stuff. I tell it like it is. And that makes some people kind of uncomfortable. (And not just Glenn Beck!)

So here’s the pitch.

I’m going to be on the road for the next several months bringing the message of The Story of Stuff to anyone who will listen. I may even be coming to your town.

I’d like to let those who are open to the message-and even the critics-know that I’m not alone, that there is a growing community in this country and around the world who care and are ready to act.

So if you liked The Story of Stuff film and want to learn more or help elevate this message, please consider buying the book.

Then share it with a friend, or put up a link to our website from your Facebook page, or Tweet about it. Maybe even buy a copy for your librarian or science teacher or suggest it to your book club.

And tune in tonight to The Colbert Report or one of my other media appearances to cheer me on!

Thanks so much for your support!

Sincerely,

Annie Leonard

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 9th, 2010 at 8:05 am and is filed under St. Croix. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.