History

How It Started (by Andrew Tait, founder)

I was snorkeling off the east coast of Florida at the exact location where I had snorkeled just ten years earlier. I was excited about making it back to the same spot a decade later. As I began snorkeling all I can say is I was ill prepared for what I witnessed. Dive after dive I discovered that 40 to 50% of the reef life in the area had been lost. Never before had I witnessed such a rapid decline to one of our primary eco-systems. It was an experience I would never forget.

Years later during an annual snorkeling trip to Crystal River in Florida my Dad and I witnessed yet another event. In late December we went snorkeling to observe Manatees. For years we watched these gentle giants eating a diet of green native grasses. However this year all the grasses were gone and a brown moss like plant was now drifting primarily along the bottom of the canals and waterways. With no native grasses to eat the Manatees were eating the brown moss like plant. I remember when my Dad and I went out for diner that evening and we discussed our concern over the nutritional value of the moss like substance compared to rich native grasses. In January, 1996 a record number of Manatees died. Read more at http://whale.wheelock.edu/archives/info97/0358.html and at http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/FISH/southflorida/news/manatee2006.html.

These events combined with my affinity to nature and analytical business background lead me to one conclusion. We needed a complex business equation to change how people live or we would lose our Earth as we knew it. The major environmental organizations that we had counted on were clearly losing the battle to save Earth.

By 1999, I had developed a concept to build a synergistically designed network of entities and organizations that would produce an unstoppable environmental movement. It took our small team 18 months to turn over enough pieces of what seemed to be a 50,000 piece puzzle before we felt the entire plan was achievable.

I created a comprehensive survey and proceeded to survey individuals from 23 states. By the time I had responses from the survey from the second state I knew my original plan was flawed and would have failed. After quickly modifying the survey we completed all 23 states with very favorable results. Today that survey is a key reason why our environmental model has been and will continue to be a tremendous success.

2001 – We began obtaining key domain names and worked to establish our initial websites. Our small team developed the general infrastructure that would support our mission. This was no small undertaking and we all realized it would take at least a few years to build.

2002 – Creating a system that would empower and unite organizations and individuals is no small undertaking. Then when one adds that the plan must also be inclusive rather than exclusive, designed to help the majority rather than the few, and effectively recession proof well needless to say the over complexity also increases. Using this strategy we created turnkey business solutions to network and empower all like-minded individuals and entities that would share one common goal—of saving Earth.

2003 – Having established One Earth, One Mission earlier we ran three ads and our small staff placed over 60 volunteers within our ranks in the spring of 2003. That summer, we completed over 2,500 hours of research. In the fall of 2003 with the assistance of dedicated interns, our administrative group began building our web infrastructure.

2004 – In the spring we placed 33 ads looking to obtain 100 to 150 volunteers. By mid June we had 265 volunteers and interns signed up. From templates to banners and programming, our all volunteer staff completed a major portion of our web work for 28 sites. Our initial 28 websites have expanded to 54.

2005 – With over 75,000 hours invested we now have about 70% of our infrastructure completed. Our goal of creating shifts within our society is finally in sight.

2006 – We now have over 90,000 hours invested with 81 websites and approximately 80% of our co-op infrastructure is now prepared.

2007 – There are now 117 websites with over 108,000 hours in our co-op infrastructure. We have completed banners, mission statements etc. for all additional sites. Race To Save Earth was added as a lead contribution site that will in turn fund numerous organizations.

2008 – With 126,000 invested and 135 websites our general infrastructure is completed. We have determined that we need to update the programming for all of our sites before we are ready to launch our entire environmental platform.

2009 – After 9 years and exceeding 135,000 hours The Environmental Community is set to launch in 2011. The largest environmental platform of its kind will provide Earth minded individuals with an abundance of green living and work opportunities.

Visit our 9 portals or environmental gateways to gain access to jobs, networks, media, entertainment and more. “Creating environmental and social change has never been made so easy.” – Andrew Tait, TEC Founder

Become the solution — Join Our Revolution!

"Anything else you're interested in is not going to happen if you can't breathe the air and drink the water. Don't sit this one out. Do something. You are by accident of fate alive at an absolutely critical moment in the history of our planet."

– Carl Sagan