March 2020: A Voice for Everyone (Read the Full Issue)

From the Editor

March 2020: A VOICE FOR EVERYONE

Welcome to the March 2020 edition of Parvati Magazine.

A year ago this month, the all-volunteer Parvati Foundation was forever changed by the sudden and untimely death of our Director of Strategic Initiatives, and dear friend, Darcy Belanger, who was aboard the ill-fated Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302. Like many on that plane whose voices for a healthy world were tragically silenced, he was on his way to the United Nations Environment Assembly in Nairobi. A year later, we still grieve his loss. We often speak of him, with smiles and laughter, as well as tears. We feel him close, helping the Marine Arctic Peace Sanctuary (MAPS) from the “other side”.

In the wake of his passing, the Parvati Foundation and Parvati Magazine have continued to grow and move MAPS forward. Darcy’s legacy of courage has inspired many of the people whose voices you will encounter in this special Parvati Magazine issue entitled “A Voice for Everyone”.

The concept of “MAPS: A Voice for Everyone” first came to me while I was in the midst of a media whirlwind following the crash. I was carrying out my role as Parvati Foundation’s CEO and Founder, while also serving as the designated spokesperson for Darcy’s family. It became clear that our global ecological and humanitarian crisis had to be given a voice. We needed to highlight the practical and effective response found in MAPS to safeguard all life. That was the message Darcy was carrying and why he was on the plane. MAPS is about how we are all connected and are potential catalysts for mass change as one Earth family. MAPS is literally for everyone.

In this issue, core volunteers (many who knew Darcy well) share in their own way how MAPS has given them a voice. And of course, the issue would not be complete without Darcy’s own words. He was a great fan of Parvati Magazine, and wrote a column for it just weeks before he left for Kenya. We share it here again to celebrate his enduring legacy of courage, compassion and generosity that activated so many others in turn for MAPS.

Though this is a special edition similar to the one we produced last year for Darcy, you will find some of our regular columns and interviews to keep you connected. Bestselling author Matt Emerzian speaks with us about his recent book “You Matter”. We interview Edinburgh Fringe, the largest arts festival in the world, about making art accessible to all. We’ve got tips for books, music and film to check out this month. I share guidance on finding and trusting your own authentic voice. This and much more.

May the articles here inspire you to fearlessly give voice to your soul and light up the world.

 

Parvati

 

OnWord

Thank you for reading this special March 2020 edition of Parvati Magazine.

Every adventure of transformation begins with a call. We each are heroes on the MAPS journey because MAPS is about us all, for us all. Darcy’s passing called the volunteers at Parvati Foundation into a new stage of that journey, one that has been both painful and full of grace.

The outpouring of love from unexpected supporters over the past year has shown that the voice of MAPS and the call to its adventure have extended far beyond our core group and touched the world. The opportunity to embody the courage Darcy lived and wished for is alive through those who choose it.

As I close my eyes to sleep at night in the warmth and safety of my Canadian home, I see the faces of our world’s fishermen and their dependent loved ones, whose daily catch has vanished and whose homes have been swept away by the sea. I hear the cries of our world’s farmers and their families who have lost their crops due to devastating floods and droughts, and feel that their only refuge is to take their own lives. I hear the agony of people and animals incinerated in wildfires sweeping continents. I hear the heartbeats of the benevolent whales whose very existence gives us our every second breath, thousands of times more efficient than trees in reducing the carbon we emit. I hear how they struggle to survive in a cacophonic sea, struck by ships, choked by plastic, hunted for trade.

MAPS is their voice, calling us all to remember our interconnection and compassionately protect all life. MAPS is Darcy’s voice, reminding us that we are capable beyond our imagining. MAPS is my voice, dedicated to a peaceful and healthy world. MAPS is your voice, affirming your integral importance in our collective wellbeing. Positive change is not only possible; it is happening right now. It starts with joining the growing international chorus of “I am MAPS!”

Love yourself.
Love others.
Love our world.
We are one Earth family.