2005 - Some Friends of DAGR Clean the Beach
Back in 2005, DAGR was still in the throes of mimeograph vs email. Outreach was limited. But HELADA, a little informal-progressive group had just formed up, and one of its founding members, Brady Kiesling, thought a beach clean-up would bring people out.
An archaeologist by training, Brady was also concerned about the state of some of the lesser-known Greek sites. On the Aegean side of the Attic peninsula, Rhamnous and its nearby beach bore a load of litter and offered the venue. It was one of the first such events here in Greece, for Earth Day, 2005. Two more followed, the idea began to catch on and other environmental/wildlife groups took up the challenge.
Beach clean-ups may not seem earth-shattering news now, but in 2005 they were rarities. Prior to the 2004 Olympics, formal* volunteerism was little practiced in Greece, and environmental issues were just breaking into mainstream consciousness. In the interim, a mix of EU messaging and funds, local concerns over air quality and clean seas, and global interest shared by media and the Internet have spawned a wide array of efforts. Not all have been well thought out or managed, but some are quite impressive, as are the innovative research projects going on in Greek universities. Volunteering and eco-friendly practices are fairly mature now.
Likewise, DAGR has progressed. We’ve learned to use the Internet. We still haven’t found a really useful group-work (freeware) platform. So, if anybody knows of one, please recommend! We’ve also grown and continue to grow, reaching out to eligible American voters across Greece. More than ever, we support the DA platform call for fact-based policy making.
As for the little HELADA group, formally known as the Hellenic American Democratic Association (a name initially a bit worrying to DAGR leadership), it remains independent, informal, and open to all, not just Americans. In that respect, it operates much like ‘Friends of Dems Abroad’ groups that assist a number of country committees. It’s a hub of information flowing in from and back out to the local community, with many of its members also active in DAGR. Like Dems Abroad, it places a premium on enhancing our understanding of the natural and social world through good, solid information.
So, we thought highlighting HELADA’s 2005 Earth Day anniversary was a fitting start to a week of articles addressing the importance of Science – and science-based decision making -- for a healthy, prosperous world. -- by Karen Lee, Chair DAGR 2017-19
*Informal volunteering, e.g. caring for family members or helping neighbors, was and is embedded in Greek society. The three enviro R’s: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle were still foreign words at the millenium, nonetheless embodied in agrarian frugality, economizing of limited resources, and the rag men whose carts, and later small pick-up trucks, plied the streets collecting re-sellables. In a popular song, a deserted spouse cries: “Take anything you want, Rag Man. I no longer have any need.” In fact, Greece has always volunteered and recycled; it just hasn’t always worn a name tag while doing it.