Just recognizing and naming that many of the things we treat as historical fact are stories can help erode their power over our sense of identity and thinking. If they are stories rather than "truth," we can write new stories that better represent the country we aspire to be. Our new stories can be about diverse people working together to overcome challenges and make life better for all, about figuring out how to live sustainably on this one planet we share, and on deep respect for cooperation, fairness, and equity instead of promoting hyper-competitive individualism.

I am afraid that I think both the near future environmental reality and political landscape are not looking good - and they are connected. The best tool we have for advancing environmental solutions is our democracy, and we can't currently access it because it has been so thoroughly hijacked by big corporate interests.

We've got to rescue our democracy by using it.

Put simply, if we do not redirect our extraction and production systems and change the way we distribute, consume, and dispose of our stuff - what I sometimes call the take-make-waste model - the economy as it is will kill the planet.

Solid information is necessary, but insufficient. We also need to present that information in ways that are inspiring and accessible. That's where stories come in.

It's crucial we know the facts and science, but it's naïve to rely on them alone to build a movement for change.

The power that comes from knowing the facts of history is dwarfed by the power that comes from being able to shape the stories about how that history is written and told.