To Save the World
Thursday, 12 June 2008 22:49
Two days ago we met a remarkable man by the name of Olivier Behra. I am still overwhelmed. In life, there are people whom you meet and even if it is a brief encounter, they have such a tremendous effect on you that your life is immediately changed. That describes my experience with Olivier. He is a prime example of someone who is living his deepest truth. His path has required many tough sacrifices. Those sacrifices include finances, family and separation from friends and colleagues.
Here is the story: I believe it is fair to say that Olivier Behra has single-handedly preserved the tract of land that is believed to hold Earth's more diverse species of frogs. I'm sure many of you are now thinking, frogs? He sacrificed what for frogs???
Allow me to explain. If many years ago, Olivier had not taken the initiative to preserve this tract of land, it would have been destroyed by logging. He had no connections to the preservation efforts of frogs. He was not wealthy. He was simply told by a biologist friend that this area would soon be destroyed because it was slated to be logged.
Olivier decided that he could not merely stand by and watch, he must at least try to make a difference. So, he south out the man who owned the logging rights... and he bought the logging rights. He then scraped and gathered enough money to buy the 5000 acre tract of land.
Amazing.
Please allow me to explain the significance of his work -- and how that influences you and me, and the entire human race. We, as a society are doing a better job of understanding the significance of ALL life forms. I believe that when we truly grasp this, we will see a new world, and one that will embrace and protect, as Olivier has done this pristine land.
From a medical standpoint, frogs and amphibians provide many clues and many solutions for new drugs and treatments to our world. For example, there are the infamous Poison Arrow Frogs: the Golden Poison Frog, which led to the discoveries of curare derivatives (later derived from vines), which led to the development of anesthesia drugs, which allowed for open heart surgery.
Then, there's the Holy Cross Frog in Australia. When this frog is disturbed, its glands produce a secretion that hardens within seconds. This secretion is the strongest known natural glue in the world. Researchers are looking at its use to repair splits in cartilage and other body tissues.
What if Olivier had decided that he couldn't do anything or didn't want to. That it was too much trouble or effort? What if this land was destroyed like so much of Madagascar and became a dry, infertile, wasteland?
I am immediately sadded by this thought as I understand more and more how much we, as a human race have already destroyed untold life forms, unfathomable cures and irreplaceable knowledge.
I am hopeful and so very grateful for Olivier and for those like him who are making a difference, who are paving the path and who are showing us that we still have time to make the right decisions. We still have the power to heal our world.
