He was aloof and alone, then Marshall Saunders had a breakthrough

January 24, 2020 / Citizens Climate Radio / No Comments »

Meeting Kurt Vonnegut

I remember fondly the evening I spent with writer Kurt Vonnegut. He was witty and sharp as a tack, but the thing that stuck with me most was how present he was to all the people around him. My experience with successful older men is that they typically do not acknowledge anyone except for other successful men (and young people who they find sexually attractive.) Vonnegut though looked at me when I spoke with him. He listened and heard me. He did this with everyone he encountered that night.

Meet Marshall Saunders

When I met Marshall Saunders, the founder of Citizens Climate Lobby, once again I encountered an older successful man who was not stuck on himself; Marshall aware of others around him and genuinely interested in them. Last month at the age of 80, Marshall Saunders passed.

For Citizens Climate Radio, I got to sit down with Marshall three different time to conduct interviews. In one interview he shared his backstory who as a successful businessman in Texas, he felt aloof and alone; he felt he was better than most people. He could have gone the rest of his life like that, but Marshall had a personal breakthrough. As a result, he improved himself, got educated about people who were suffering, and engaged in the world to make it a better place. First he helped organize a campaign to address world hunger and poverty, and then in a bold move to convince the US congress to do something meaningful to halt greenhouse gas pollution.

Listen to this short clip of Marshall talking about trusting individuals to do incredible things.

For this month’s Citizens Climate Radio, I pulled up two interviews with Marshall. I remastered these so they sound better than ever. His story will move you and inspire you, something we need when we are totally frustrated with aloof older men running things and not acknowledging anyone but their own interests. Marshall’s transformation will give you hope. Have a listen to Ep 44: The Extraordinary Marshall Saunders

(featured Photo by sudarshan poojary on Unsplash)