Are YOU the 100th Monkey? Active Rain Visionaries on the Subjects of Purpose, Collaboration, Responsibility and Healthy Lifestyles.
Dateline Asheville, North Carolina, July, 2009
News and Views from Asheville's Greenolina, Real Estate Eco-Steward
Years ago, the "100th Monkey" theory was widely popular and often quoted. It went like this: if, one by one, a hundred monkeys on a distant island learn how to use sticks for picking bananas the knowledge of picking bananas with sticks all of a sudden becomes an integral part of monkey consciousness. All monkeys everywhere all around the world will then be privy to this knowledge and be able to use sticks to that end.
Does the principle of a vanguard few apply to humankind as well? Here at Active Rain, I think it does! 
Who has not encountered amazing visionaries here?
Take a look at the eco-friendly real estate professionals (over 1,000 of them) at Active Rain, for example. These members and professionals can (and do) inspire changes that contribute to local communities and to the larger community.
This month, we have been celebrating just a few of Active Rain's luminaries at the Eco-All-Star Group.
(photo of visionaries in the mountains near Asheville, NC, hub of sustainable innovation.)
Active Rain's bloggers make it clear that real estate (and related) professionals can be and are agents of change. Of course, your sense of purpose plays into the effect. The more dedicated to what you are doing you are, the more impact you will have. There follow four posts that represent the "vanguard few". . .
1. PURPOSE: Every life has at its core a dream that quietly and unobtrusively asks to be fulfilled. Each of us dreams such a dream. It is an important part of the amazing blessing of just being in this world. Purpose is another word for this dream. If you wish to realize your purpose in life you can start by exercising your talents within your chosen field or profession- get what you want, and not give it away, but share it wisely
On the Subject of PURPOSE: Michelle Viggiano has chosen to ensure an inviting environment that would educate, inspire and delight any visitor regardless of individual background, age or belief system. Michelle conceptualized an educational garden with various smaller conceptual gardens to create a whole story. Sections such as plants used for ~ "economic growth and survival" ~ "medicinal plants" ~ "culinary plants and herbs" to name a few, as well as a "faith based garden section". ... conducted research ... locating rare and forgotten plants and seeds, making arrangements to grow them hydroponically, designing the layout of the garden, creating meaningful signage, all with a view to ensure an inviting environment that would educate, inspire and delight any visitor regardless of individual background, age or belief system.
Read MICHELLE VIGGIANO' s post ...HERE
2. COLLABORATION: In Life's intricate tapestry, my well-being and yours interweaves with the notion and energies of sharing good ideas and work with other people around us.- Bringing personal endeavors into focus in a collaborative approach, though possibly based on a person's own interests, contributes to overall good. I have heard Native Americans refer to this extended sense of community as "all of our relations". All of our relations -- fellow human beings, the animals, plants, minerals: the rocks, mountains and seas, the deserts, swamps and wetlands, the great plains and wild forests.
On the Subject of COLLABORATION: DEB HURT is one of those eco-savvy professionals who sees a home as an holistic system; a mini ecosystem for its residents. "Everyone deserves a safe, affordable home, be it ever so humble (on that subject PLEASE SEE Make It Right)...'" she says.
When it comes to collaborating with others, be it her real estate clients or members of the community, Deb has this advice as seen in her post entitled The Perfect Client
3. RESPONSIBILITY: If you are a person who appreciates the idea of stewardship, you may choose to support and restructure neighborhoods, towns and the larger community in genuinely new and liberating ways. This does not happen just by the decree of law. Instead, look closer to home- ourselves, our personal integrity, our own energy. In other words, we have to become ourselves, whole and healthy individuals-think for ourselves, take good care of ourselves emotionally and physically, and follow our purpose in life.
On the Subject of RESPONSIBILITY, DAVE ROBERTS of the Eco-All-Stars Group has much to contribute. . At his kindergarten class in St. Cloud Minnesota they had Lincoln Logs big enough to build kid sized houses, and he did. At the UC Santa Cruz Farm and Garden project he graduated to real-sized building blocks and learned how to build post and beam framed buildings with hand tools. In the thirty years since he learned to appreciate grain, texture, and a sharp saw, he has designed and built solar homes, consulted with the California Energy Commission on energy efficiency, and lived a second life as a computer consultant and web guru. Through it all, appropriate technology and smart design have played a key role in the projects he undertakes
Read Dave's post HERE http://activerain.com/blogsview/899183/wheel-i-am
The 100th Monkey....the Healthy Lifestyle, Rules and Regs, and Jeff G is in The Kitchen!
HEALTHY LIFESTYLES:Real estate professionals deal with distress and stress on many levels, and regularly. Exercise, rest and relaxation, eating "right" and coming home to a non toxic environment makes sense. A number of eco-savvy professionals are leading the way toward a more healthy approach to wellness-both personally and in and around the homes they represent taking an eco-friendly trajectory. They are the eco-friendly real estate professionals at the Eco-All-Star (1,000+ member) Group
To achieve a healthy lifestyle, there are those who say we should introduce ever more new and tighter legislation - adopt stringent rules and regulations. But, on second thought. . . laws are subject to manipulation. Rules can be bent and regulations have loopholes. Possibly, rules and regulations imply that we are ignorant of universal or natural law. Eco-friendly bloggers can demonstrate the connection we all have to an inherent understanding of wellness and healthy lifestyles.
On that subject- HEALTHY LIFESTYLESJeff Geoghan weighs in saying, "I love talking about the Kitchen because there's so much going on there that can be impacted. I break my thoughts into 2 categories: Behavior Changes and remodeling ideas."
Jeff is an interesting fellow. A strong advocate of sustainable energy and energy conservation, Jeff has taken the extraordinary step of creating the first "Green" friendly real estate practice in central Pennsylvania. In 2006 Jeff authored a new book entitled "A walking tour of Historic East Petersburg" featuring some of the great historic homes in his home town. Jeff is a tireless advocate of historic preservation. Most recently, Jeff has taken his love of photography to a new level, with a new venture entitled Heritage Photographic Art. With this he is offering fine art photography online as well as custom client portfolios (historic homes, commercial, advertising). Click here to see his work. Jeff has seamlessly woven this activity into his real estate business, offering his clients pro photography that "comes with the package"!
READ his post here. http://activerain.com/blogsview/1042494/-greening-your-kitchen-some-ideas
NOMINATE OTHER LUMINARIES. Please let me know if you would like to highlight the work of other Active Rain Luminaries. Just put a link to a post relative to 1. Purpose 2. Collaboration 3. Responsibility and/or 4. Healthy Lifestyles, and I happily will read it! Please use the the comment section to do that...THX!
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Does the time and energy the members of these Groups devote to a post help to determine how well larger ecological issues are considered? I cannot say for sure.
the larger community? Many will say that they do, and in genuinely new and liberating ways. "We cannot do so just by the decree of law. Instead, we can look closer to home, with ourselves, our personal integrity, our own energy, " they might tell you.
Today we celebrate: DAVE ROBERTS. 
woven together with the golden threads of collaboration- supporting the local and larger community?
One more hint? OK. Take a look at this graphic. And maybe check out this word. 
