Become Director of Public Works for a Day: Step 3: Getting down to business

Become the Director of Public Works for a Day: Step 3: Getting down to business

ANSBACH, Germany (Dec. 18, 2015) ― So, if you’re competing (or at least contemplating competing), you’ve reviewed Army Regulation 420-1 and you understand the role of Frau Steinbauer ― both as her role within the Directorate of Public Works and with respect to her role in this contest.

Onto Step 3.

If the 2014 Word of the Year was “selfie,” then “sustainability” is the buzzword for 2015 and beyond.

Familiarize yourself with some of these famous quotes:

“The components of the natural world are myriad but they constitute a single living system. There is no escape from our interdependence with nature; we are woven into the closest relationship with the Earth, the sea, the air, the seasons, the animals and all the fruits of the Earth. What affects one affects all ― we are part of a greater whole ― the body of the planet. We must respect, preserve, and love its manifold expression if we hope to survive.” ― Bernard Campbell

“We abuse land because we see it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect.” ― Aldo Leopold

We inhabit a world that is not getting any larger. Many of our Earth’s natural resources are finite and non-regenerative: coal, oil and natural gas to name just a few. When our society expends these natural resources, they are gone forever.

So, as good citizens and stewards of our planet, we need to incorporate sustainability in all that we do … all we design … all that we build … and in our daily lives and habits. How will generations after us judge our selfishness and short-sightedness if we leave them a world without trees; that is polluted; that is dangerous; that is ruined?

“I am glad I will not be young in a future without wilderness.” ― Aldo Leopold

This contest has everything to do with sustainability! It has to do with bright, new, fresh ideas. It has to do with our responsibilities ― to our children, and to the numerous generations that follow. Pause and give this some thought. Take audit of your life, behaviors, and habits. Sustainability is the “schwerpunkt” of this contest. But it’s more than about being the Director of Public Works for a day; it’s about providing for an Earth that endures and provides sustainment for those who will follow us.

Please ponder on this over the weekend.

Step 4 is coming Monday … and keep your ears open on AFN as I outline USAG Ansbach’s plan to the entirety of Bavaria!

Ein Schones Wochenende!

Editor’s note: To see a roll-up of all of the “DPW for a Day” articles to date, visit https://ansbachhometownherald.com/become-dpw-for-a-day/.