Tomorrow through next weekend, communities across Newton County will host Arbor Day celebrations to plant trees and pay homage to their benefits.  Especially in this age of climate change and forests lost to development, agriculture, drought, and fires, the replanting of trees has never been a more necessary act.

But, there's something deeper, more essential, and even perhaps spiritual about giving life to a tree that will likely outlive its planters to shade, shelter, and serve generations yet unborn today.

As the Greek proverb says:  "Society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they will never sit in."  The awareness that actions we take (or don't take) today have consequences for generations to come is at the heart of why Sustainable Newton exists.  As our motto says:  "There 's no time like the present to give our children a better future."

This Thursday, Sustainable Newton will present "24 Hours of Reality - Truth in Action" at the Covington branch of the Newton County Public Library.  Ours is a local event, presented by local climate activists, focused on climate change here in the southeast.  But, our discussion is part of a much larger conversation organized by the Climate Reality Project.  As of this week, over 1,350 presentations were scheduled, covering all 50 US states and over 70 countries, all taking place sometime between 6 pm ET Wednesday and 6 pm ET Thursday.