ECOTOPIA POSTED ON SAT, JUN. 08, 2002
FICTIONAL 'ECOTOPIA' FIRES IMAGINATION
By Kara Shire CONTRA COSTA TIMES
RICHMOND - Ecotopia hardly seems the kind of place 11-year-old
Donta Bonner could have imagined on his own. "It seems like it's a
better life than we live," said Donta. "They don't have cars that
can pollute the air. They don't have a lot of crime. Plus, added his
classmate Dwaysha Chandler, "They have a lot of trees."
Ecotopia, a fictional land created by Berkeley author Ernest
Callenbach in his 1975 book of the same name, is a nation where
humans worship trees, enjoy little crime and relish free love.
For teacher Paul Auday's students at Peres Elementary School,
where life can seem full of poverty, concrete and crime, the notion
of a world where people live in harmony with nature and with each
other was inviting.
"They don't have a lot of killing like they have out here,"
11-year-old Darius Johnson said, comparing his neighborhood with
the book.
Auday read the cult-classic novel to his students for 20 minutes a
day as part of the school's literacy program. After Auday read, the
students wrote short summaries of each chapter.
It took 35 days to get through the book's 181 pages -- or most of
them. Auday edited out the novel's more adult themes, including marijuana use and vivid sex scenes.
On Friday, just a day after students heard the book's happy ending,
author Callenbach paid the class a visit, answering questions about
why Ecotopians don't use paint, why they only work 20 hours a
week and don't eat much sugar or salt.
In the book, Ecotopia is created when Northern California, Oregon
and Washington seceded from the United States to create "the
perfect balance between human beings and the environment."
"Writing can be about anything," Callenbach told the students,
"your brothers and sisters, your parents, your town, your dreams.
It can be whatever you want it to be."
Auday, who first read "Ecotopia" as a college student, said he chose
the book because it's his favorite and he hopes it one day comes
true.
"Coming from the teacher's perspective, as human beings we're
destroying the planet so much, and I would hope that some of my
students would one day work in careers that are beneficial to the
environment," Auday said.
None of his students left Callenbach's talk chattering about a
career in ecology or forestry, but they did give the book rave
reviews. "The world can be a better place," Donta said.
Kara Shire covers education. Reach her at 510-262-2798 or
kshire@cctimes.com.
