all of us nature blog

I come from a family of teachers. Both my parents recently retired from over 50 combined years in the public school system, and my sister is currently starting her very first year as a science teacher. How I avoided that fate is beyond me, there must be some aspect of their respective personalities that’s conducive to education that I lack, I’m thinking it’s likely patience. In any case, I’ve had a soft spot in my heart for educators of all stripes, be they formally accredited by the appropriate state agency or someone who points something cool out to another person.
In a way, all of us nature bloggers are educators in some sense. We certainly seek to entertain and inform on our blogs, and isn’t that the mission of an educator, though our classrooms are as wide as the word web. But there’s a certain segment of bloggers, and indeed an even certainer set of nature bloggers for whom education is of paramount importance. It’s to them, the self described education blogs, that we turn to today. And with school starting up across the country, I figure there’s no better time.
The Handbook of Nature Study sits atop the list of education blogs in the NBN, and for good reason, the home of the Outdoor Hour Challenge offers lots of cool stuff you can do with kids outside.
I’ve already expounded on the wonders of the Spanish blogging scene, but next door neighbor Portugal has some gems as well, including Joias da Natureza, which I think means Joys of Nature but i could be wrong. Don’t let the language barrier scare you, the photos here are great.
It’s Alive! If by “it” you mean, science education in the Australia, where Micheal hosts a blog about ife biology, bioethics, science communication and related topics
The natural world you rarely see is the tag line for faunascope, so go get yourself educated in what isn’t in the surface and check out some nest cams too, though that last bit might be tailing off these days.
Africa is well-known for it’s phenomenal wildlife, and South African Photographs intends to present it to you in all it’s glory with special attention to those organisms in the small end of the scale which, it should be said, are nearly as spectacular as the big stuff.
A place to share ideas and and interesting ways to learn about science, Mama Joules is a great place to for family science and nature education. Getting kids outdoors is a big part, but focusing what they do when they’re out there is great too.
Last, but not least, Danielle at Urban Science Adventures has a lot of great things to say about discovering nature in an urban setting. Her blog is really great, and it’s from there I want to jump off to next week.
I need your help for this next one because it’s not a particularly intuitive category. I’m looking for blogs primarily about nature in urban settings. Cities are hives of human interaction, but for many of the residents, nature goes on unnoticed. I want blogs that notice it.
City Dwellers
If you write one, or know of a good one, drop me a line at naswick (at) gmail (dot) com.
Till next time!
“The second classification or division comprises social laws and regulations applicable to human conduct. This is not the essential spiritual quality of religion. It is subject to change and transformation according to the exigencies and requirements of time and place.”
(Address by Abdu’l Baha Abbas before Congregation Emmanu-El, San Francisco, Cal.
(Martin A. Meyer, Rabbi) Saturday, October 12, 1912.
- Star of the West, Vol. 3, No. 13, p. 3)
Abdu’l-Baha places principles such as justice and equality into the first classification, as part of what all religion is concerned with and which does not change. By “second classificiation” Abdu’l-Baha is referring to daily practices that are to some degree related to social conditions while being based on principles in the first classification such as justice and equality.
Times are changed, and the need and fashion of the world are changed. Interference with creed and faith in every country causes manifest detriment, while justice and equal dealing towards all peoples on the face of the earth are the means whereby progress is effected.
(Abdu’l-Baha, A Traveller’s Narrative, p. 87)
While in London last month, I was reminded of the nature of change when I saw this photograph on the front pages of a newspaper and then read the accompanying article, about a public apology by the leader of the Tory party for past support for Section 28.
Section 28 (a ban on councils and schools promoting homosexuality as a valid lifestyle) was axed in 2003, but it was introduced in the 1980s under a Tory government which is why this apology is so significant. The words quoted in various newspapers were: “I’m sorry for Section 28. We got it wrong. It was an emotional issue. We have got to move on and we have moved on,”
Laws and statutes of governments civil and federal are in process of change and transformation. Sciences and arts are being moulded anew. Thoughts are metamorphosed. The foundations of human society are changing and strengthening.
(Abdu’l-Baha, Baha’i World Faith – Abdu’l-Baha Section, p. 228)
Seeing this image of the Prime Minister’s wife, Sarah Brown and another photograph of the Prime Minister meeting with Stonewall (they work to reduce homophobic bullying in schools), also part of the UK Gay Pride celebrations, gave me hope to think one day the Bahai community could change too. Change enough so that gay Bahais wouldn’t lose their voting rights for doing what heterosexuals do: marry. We have a long way to go but that doesn’t mean that I have to give up.
The morals of humanity must undergo change. New remedies and solutions for human problems must be adopted. Human intellects themselves must change and be subject to the universal reformation. Just as the thoughts and hypotheses of past ages are fruitless today, likewise dogmas and codes of human invention are obsolete and barren of product in religion. Nay, it is true that they are the cause of enmity and conducive to strife in the world of humanity; war and bloodshed proceed from them, and the oneness of mankind finds no recognition in their observance. Therefore, it is our duty in this radiant century to investigate the essentials of divine religion, seek the realities underlying the oneness of the world of humanity and discover the source of fellowship and agreement which will unite mankind in the heavenly bond of love. This unity is the radiance of eternity, the divine spirituality, the effulgence of God and the bounty of the Kingdom. We must investigate the divine source of these heavenly bestowals and adhere unto them steadfastly. For if we remain fettered and restricted by human inventions and dogmas, day by day the world of mankind will be degraded, day by day warfare and strife will increase and satanic forces converge toward the destruction of the human race.
(Abdu’l-Baha, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 144)
A few months ago my gay Bahai brother Daniel Orey received a letter from his NSA which began with “It is with deep sadness that the National Spiritual Assembly has learned that you openly married your male companion in a same sex marriage ceremony…” further on the letter states that the National Spiritual Assembly has no choice but to remove his Bahai membership rights because of his marriage and of his “support of homosexuality as an acceptable lifestyle for Bahais”.
All are one people, one nation, one species, one kind. The common interest is complete equality; justice and equality amongst mankind are amongst the chief promoters of empire and the principal means to the extension of the skirt of conquest. …Times are changed, and the need and fashion of the world are changed… …justice and equal dealing towards all peoples on the face of the earth are the means whereby progress is effected.
(Abdu’l-Baha, A Traveller’s Narrative, p. 87)
So how can I respond to this as a Bahai myself who believes that homosexuals are as equal as heterosexuals with the same rights and responsibilities? Daniel is one of the few gay Bahais who has not been afraid to be honest and open. I don’t blame gay Bahais who have partners in secret and admittedly if a heterosexual couple married as Daniel did, they might lose their voting rights as well, because he didn’t get his parents’ permission and hence couldn’t have a Bahai ceremony. But I’ll stick to two points made in the NSA’s letter, because they seem to be the reason for his loss of his voting rights: “same sex ceremony” and “support of homosexuality as an acceptable lifestyle for Bahais.”
It should also be borne in mind that the machinery of the Cause has been so fashioned, that whatever is deemed necessary to incorporate into it in order to keep it in the forefront of all progressive movements, can, according to the provisions made by Bahá’u'lláh, be safely embodied therein.
(Shoghi Effendi, The World Order of Baha’u'llah, p. 22-23)
The topic of equality for homosexuals in the Bahai community often ends up with individuals getting emotional on one side or the other and there ends the dialogue. My attempt here is to see what we can do to move forward on this discussion because I do believe that the Bahai Teachings are for all of humanity and so far haven’t found anything in the Bahai Writings to contradict this. So as a Bahai I continue. This is an important issue for Bahais to discuss, because, for example, in my own country, the Netherlands, it would be breaking the law to discriminate against homosexuals. I’m not suggesting for one minute that Dutch Law supercedes Bahai Law, but we need to think about the issues involved in applying Bahai principles in a changing world.
There’s obedience to one’s country on one hand. There’s the principle of equality. There’s the discussion about just what is the nature of marriage in the Bahai Writings? I would like to base this discussion on what is in the Writings, rather than what we have been told or heard is a Bahai Teaching. My attempt is not a protest nor any attempt to change any Bahai Adiministration’s policy. My goal here is for a debate on this based on the Bahai Writings because, I argue, if the Bahai Teachings are so great, then we will find the answer by applying the Bahai principles of justice and equality. We don’t need to pretend nor see it as a mystery, we can use science as our aid.
In various places Abdul-Baha states science is a way of keeping religion in balance as much as science needs ethics. And so back to my original thoughts on this topic: the theme of change as a principle of nature.
Science is the discoverer of the past. From its premises of past and present we deduce conclusions as to the future. Science is the governor of nature and its mysteries, the one agency by which man explores the institutions of material creation. All created things are captives of nature and subject to its laws. They cannot transgress the control of these laws in one detail or particular. The infinite starry worlds and heavenly bodies are nature’s obedient subjects. The earth and its myriad organisms, all minerals, plants and animals are thralls of its dominion. But man through the exercise of his scientific, intellectual power can rise out of this condition, can modify, change and control nature according to his own wishes and uses. Science, so to speak, is the breaker of the laws of nature.
(Abdu’l-Baha, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 29)
Here is my suggestion for a debate on this topic in the hope of creating an atmosphere of consultative dialogue from various viewponts. To break up the discussion on the topic of homosexuality into several topics so we could see what we can learn from each other. Topics I thought I should try for in later blogs are “the nature of marriage” and “science and religion.” Suggestions for other topics are welcome.
This topic is on the theme of “change”, what is the role of this in the Bahai Teachings and practice? How does this relate to the Bahai Writings which don’t change (the fact that they are authenticated and written and seen as Scripture)? And other Writings that are important such as Letters written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi? What Bahai principles favour the acceptance of same-sex marriage today, and which Bahai principles restrict this?

Online Coin-Op Game
Play Online Computer Game
Online Kids And Teens: Gam
College and University
Art Voices
Online Board Games
Online Art History
Online Music
Online Writing
Television
News and Media
Yard, Deck, and Table Games
Hand-Eye Coordination
Paper and Pencil
Online Developers and Publi
Online Women in Gaming
Online Computer Science
Online Fonts
Online Human-Computer Inter
Online Speech Technology
Online Data Communications
Food and Related Products
Graphic Design
Online Libraries
Online Weblogs
Online Directories
Online Book Shopping
Chats and Forums
Web Rings
Birds And Blooms
Social Sciences
Methods and Techniques
Research Groups and CentersOnline Bibliography
Open Access Resources
Knowledge Management
Ask an Expert
Online Questions and Answe
Trains and Railroads
Newspapers
Internet Broadcasts
Museums and Archives
Colleges and Universities
Online Headline Links
People and Society
School Time
Teen Life
Your Family
Sports and Hobbies
Apartment Living
Do-It-Yourself
Online Home Business
Personal Organization
Online Rural Living
Online Domestic Services
Online Personal Finance
Online Healthcare Industry
Online Support Groups
Environmental Health
printed project
Spread Artculture
Watercolor Artist
Famous Magazine
Focus: Fine Art Photography
Nature's Best Photography
Team Handball
Autographs
Basketball
Video Games: Sports
Water Sports
Lifestyle Choices
Language and Linguistics
Consumer Goods and Services
Antiques and Collectibles
Beauty Products
Office Products
Home and Garden
Earth Sciences
Online Software
Online Employment
Birds And Blooms
Dogs Today
Feline Wellness
Modern Dog
Traditional House Plans
Print Design Annual
India Art Collector
Design Issues
Gallery Guide
Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual
Online Play-By-Mail
Online Gambling
Online Web Hosting
Play Online Video Games
Global Exec Women
Women's Health
Science and Nature
Online Jewelry
This Old House
Modern Painters