If the New Orleans Saints win last night in Super Bowl XLIV is an indicator for what a turnaround can be, there might be hope for our blue green planet after all.
New Orleans became the unhappy poster child for environmental catastrophe back in 2005 when Hurricane Katrina devastated the city and burst levees that put it underwater. The place was literally a wasteland. The Saint’s showcase home, the Superdome, was a trashed refugee shelter. The team nearly left town.
But the Big Easy is rising from the watery grave. Not just restoration here folks, but regeneration, just like nature does. New Orleans is talking revitalization fueled by hurricane-force idealism embodied in this year’s stunning Super Bowl win.
Young workers in the not for profit sector see the city becoming a model for innovative schools, 21st century urban planning and a Mecca for green buildings as the city is rebuilt. Small entrepreneurs are starting green energy companies. Not only the pioneering spirit of these folks but recovery money is flowing to give the city a once in a lifetime chance to regenerate a better future from the old. Groups like Women of the Storm are educating leaders on coastal restoration. Restoring Louisiana’s saltwater wetlands would capture huge amounts of CO2 and help prevent the kind of damage that Katrina caused in the future.
Photo: USGS
Tourists are back and booming, unemployment is more than 2 points below the national average. City residents and recovery organizations are translating their hard earned experience to help earthquake victims in Haiti.
So if there was ever a question that an entire city can be recycled, reused, renewed, if a wasteland can become a champion - The Saints put that to rest last night - and New Orleans is doing it every day. It’s got to give you hope that we can solve the same puzzle on this blue green ball of ours.
Share
Print
E-mail
Comments
Just had to set the record straight.
What N.O. has accomplished is great -- and I'm a 30 year Saints fan, so Who Dat, baby! -- but Joe, please don't perpetuate the Katrina myth. N.O. has recovered well, but Mississippi has not. 90 miles of Mississippi coastline -- including beaches, protected wetlands, historic landmarks, homes, businesses -- not to mention human life -- were demolished by the storm. Katrina actually made landfall in Mississippi, not New Orleans. Mississippi was on the north side of the storm, which means it took the brunt of the storm. I am not trying to lessen the impact of damage to N.O., but the damage to the levees came a day after the storm hit, and most of the damage was caused by human error, not nature. Mississippi has had precious little help from the government, and even less from the media and celebrities, who have championed New Orleans and never speak of the damage to Mississippi. No matter what the Wiki page says, I know this first hand. Sorry to get so hopped up about an issue, but when I think of people I know who are still living in Katrina trailers, without resources and few employment opportunities after nearly 5 years, I get a little riled up.