About Dimidia
The Many Environmental Faces of Our World
Digging wells for the Peace Corps in the sub-Saharan region of French West Africa in the early 1970s, I was unaware that my efforts as a Volunteer might be having a negative impact on the very communities I was trying to help. The freshwater available from these wells was giving villages a false hope of surviving the devastation that other villages throughout the Sahel were experiencing from prolonged declines in rainfall and worsening land degradation. It would be nearly 40 years later that I would be “officially” introduced to the subject of desertification.
I began to understand the relationship between the extended drought of the 60s and 70s and sustainable agriculture. In 2007, I came full-circle to the appreciation of the scope of desertification’s global prevalence – not simply an environmental condition relegated to “poor developing countries”.
In 2008, I created Dimidia to share details on this growing environmental challenge.
The realization that the United States was experiencing the very same environmental stress as India, as Brazil, as China, as Australia and as well as the countries of the Sahel, forced me to understand its relevance to my world today.
I first thought that it might make an interesting subject for an environmental documentary because it seemed to be so under-discussed in the United States. I began to reach out to scientists and professors to learn more about the subject. I did learn more and met many more people – no longer restricted to the United States, but around the world.
Since creating my first blog post on August 31, 2008, I realize that Dimidia has an opportunity to become a diverse education channel on the issues of desertification and groundwater degradation by:
- Simplifying the complexity
- Providing a forum for continuing dialogue and awareness among global communities
Many of the environmental topics interrelated to desertification are complex, scientific and sometimes controversial. We believe that complex science can be simplified - that it is possible to understand the cause and effect of the complex interaction between humans and nature.
Human History and the Environment: A Very Compressed View
Planet Earth has enjoyed an unusual period of climatic stability for the past 12,000 years. Over this time, human settlements, agriculture, and civilization came into existence. Human population centers began to seriously establish themselves with advances in agriculture and irrigation techniques.
Although our past achievements have successfully improved crop genetics and yields, these successes have not been without consequences. Environmental resources have been carelessly depleted and degraded. Historically, climate stability has allowed for humans to prosper. Today, our planet is feeling the heat from our demanding efforts to harness our environment. The causes of this warming, whether human-induced or from natural cycles continues to be debated. What is clear is that our global environmental stability is being severely challenged.
Throughout history, whenever there was environmental decline, ample land enabled a smaller global population to move to new and better locations. However, our present population of 7 billion people continues to rise rapidly – placing greater strain on the environment and global food production. The unabated demand from increasing populations is contributing to this distress. What was once viewed positively as population mobility is now negatively understood as forced migration.
Each of the issues being discussed throughout this site will have the unifying theme of “Working Together“. We believe that in order to achieve greater global impact and change, the best in all of us will recognize the need for and encourage greater global efforts to work together.
Climate change is coming and the very countries least responsible for its acceleration will suffer the most. In partnership with our expanding network of international partners, you will be introduced to projects, villages and cultures. There will be an opportunity to learn about the science behind climate change, how global dryland regions are being affected and understand how successful adaptation strategies have been implemented.
Our corporate effort is comprised of two parts:
Educational Outreach
The critical paradigm for lasting change
- Educational Initiatives
Conventional and web-based learning modules, created to increase awareness of the global reach of today’s environmental challenges- Lectures
Delivered through community outreach and college campuses- Environmental Documentary
Focused on c limate change and its impact on global drylands, the film series will highlight the numerous, daily successes occurring throughout our planet’s most challenging environmental conditions
Environmental Project Consulting
Project Design/Management
- Environmental Sustainability
Performing needs assessments at the community level to devise holistic solutions that address community-wide, environmental deficiencies.- Community Health
Community health and stability directly equate to the health of women. There is an intricate relationship between public health, sanitation and fitness that extend far beyond the obvious needs for a healthy and stable environment.
Many of the world’s poorest people – the bottom billion of our present 7 billion – continue to survive at the most basic levels of subsistence. Yet, beneath the veil of climate change, there are numerous, daily successes in the world’s most challenging conditions.
In support of our primary objective to educate young adults, we are available
for Campus & Community lectures on the Issues addressed by our site or simply having a dialogue on personal vision.
Please send your request with details about your organization to:
We also encourage you to offer suggestions to improve its content or layout of this site.
Our mission is to inspire young adults to learn more about environmental issues to make their impact on the world.
Embrace Personal Growth.
Change the World.
We hope that a small part of our contribution to improving global sustainability will come by raising your awareness and knowledge of our global environment, that you will enjoy the information being hosted on our website and will return often.
Is there a better time for improving global environmental harmony?
This effort is dedicated to the many people – expert and not – who have devoted their lives to increasing our awareness of and improving the health and quality of life of our planet.
More importantly, Dimidia exists because of the unwavering support, encouragement and objectivity from my wife, children, family and friends about the possibilities.