Guest Post: A zine, for your viewing.

This is Maia, Forrest’s sister. I’m an art major at Whitman College.

I want to share something I’ve made with you instead of sharing all the words I have in my head about global warming. I have far too much to say in one post, and I want to mix things up. This series of images is meant to be a one page zine. You can print it out and distribute it, or just look at it online. A zine is a guerilla publication, kind of the opposite of capitalism because they often lose money when they’re printed. A zine is a forum to say what you really think. This is my zine about global warming. The images are collaged, photocopied, and printed in greyscale. I used a variation of Magritte’s font in his “Ceci n’est pas une pipe.” (this is not a pipe) to write “this is not global warming”. Each spread is a manifestation of global warming, even though each thing is not global warming in itself, and represents denial surrounding climate change. As the denial remains constant throughout the zine, the sea level rises with each spread, demonstrating the repercussions of inaction. Of course, the rest of it is what you interpret.

I’d like to close with a question to you, with a bit of context. Hopefully you’re still with me, I know this is the end of the page.

I was driving back to school with my friend, Spencer, after winter break. Over break, he said, he’d talked to his brother about saving and budgeting. His brother told him: save 50%, use 35% for living expenses, invest/give 15%. I think we can all vary those numbers by how much we actually can afford to save or invest based on our incomes, but it got me thinking. That 15% investment seems small, but for me (a workstudy employed student with a bit extra) that means I would donate $45 each month to some cause or invest it. But right now, investing to me means investing in my future, and in all of our futures. If I donate to 350.org, or a similar organization, that means I’ll have a future. Your kids will have a future.

Last semester, I worked 40+ hours each month. I spend the majority of that money on groceries, but I have some leftover. I’d say it’s about 15%. And, since I can, I’ll be donating. In the future, when money is tight, I might not be able to donate. In that case, I’ll continue volunteering with causes I think are important. Movements always need people and energy, not just money.

This is on us.

How can you invest in your future?