Challenges facing humanity today are of such as magnitude that, if left unanswered, could potentially trigger disasters of untold proportions. Wars, threat of nuclear proliferation, poverty, starvation and ecological disasters such as global warming, just to name a few, threaten our earth and our very existence. The immensity of the problems overwhelms us and leaves us wondering if there is anything we can do as ordinary people to help ourselves and save the planet. At the first glance, it seems that to meet these challenges we need to perform incredible acts of heroism and sacrifice. The enormity of the problems makes us feel confused and discouraged. Of course, there are no silver bullets to solve these multitudes of problems all at once, but we can't afford to be discouraged or throw our hand up in desperation and give up.

　There are lots of us in the world who care and together we can meet these challenges head on. It is comforting to know that we are all in this together and there is power in large numbers. The fundamental fact to remember is that human race is interdependent with each other and the earth. We are all connected together like the members of a large family. Persian poet Saadi writes:" Children of Adam are each others' limbs, having been created of the same essence. We don't have to be a hero to be effective. All we have to do is bring forth to our consciousness the urgency of the tasks ahead and help others to raise their level of awareness. We can talk about our global challenges with members of our immediate family, friends and co-workers. This will help to raise the collective consciousness in every society.

　The road ahead is very long and we need to be patient and consistent for it is not what we know, it is how we live that can make a difference. Raising our awareness is essential. In fact, this is the first step we must take. Then we can engage in little acts of kindness like helping an old person across the street, complementing people for their accomplishments, encouraging or even smiling at them. We should take our responsibility seriously like taking good care of our children, conserving energy and taking care of our environment. These little acts of kindness instill a sense of belonging in the community and promote brotherhood and cooperation. For every person on the face of the earth understands the language of love. We must believe that every individual counts. We are all specs of light, when put together can illuminate the whole world. As a young Persian writer Samad Behrangi said:"every light no matter how dim, it is still luminosity."