T-shirts
a tool against global warming
By
SCOTT McMILLION Chronicle Staff Writer
Not
believing in global climate change is like not believing in gravity, according
to Otto Pohl.
“It's
not a question of belief,” he said.
So
he and his wife, Anne Sherwood, are trying to do something about it, one T shirt
at a time.
“We
realize we're not going to fix the world with this,” he said. “But it's
something we can do.”
What
they're doing is selling colorful American made T shirts that carry the slogan
“start global cooling” beneath a picture of a creature endangered by
global warming.
The
first models portray a penguin standing in a puddle of melted water and a baby
polar bear floating on a shrinking piece of ice.
Future
models include a tree frog and a Bengal tiger, both species at risk from global
warming.
“The
T shirts are a billboard for change,” Pohl said. “Raising awareness
of this issue is the only way we're going to make a difference.”
Pohl
and Sherwood, both journalists, are running the T shirt business as a part time
enterprise from a fourth floor office in the Bozeman Hotel on East Main Street.
They call their company Darwin Design Clothing Company. They selected that name
because “it's time we evolved our collective thinking.”
Pohl,
38, calls himself the chief evolution officer. Sherwood, 37, says she's “peripheral”
to the business, but her semi-official title is “creative guru.”
The
T shirts are made in the United States of high quality cotton, and with no sweat
shop conditions. They are printed in Bozeman by Big Sky Printing and the artwork
was created by Bozeman artist Ralph Wiegmann. Ten percent of net proceeds go to
Earth Island Institute, one of the leading nonprofits working on global warming
issues.
The
concept of global warming is so huge that it can seem overwhelming. But the couple
says there are plenty of things that individuals can do: walk or bike instead
of drive; use energy-saving light bulbs; use a clothesline instead of a dryer;
insulate buildings. The list goes on.
Pohl
said he's pretty optimistic that the world can address global warming, and do
so profitably.
“It's
probably going to be easier to solve and bring more benefits than anybody thought
possible,” he said. “Once the demand for change is out there, it will
all go much more quickly than people think.”
The
T shirts are available locally at Cactus Records and Shoefly shoes or through
Pohl's Web site at www.darwindesignclothing.com
