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The Buddhist monk approaches the hot dog vendor, hands him a $20 bill and says, “Make me one with everything.”

Then the monk asks, “Where’s my change?” to which the hot dog vendor replies, “You, of all people, should know that change comes from within.”

Many in our society see the word “environment” and think “out there.” It’s a view that has been espoused by various religions and cultures for thousands of years – a dualism of “me” and “everything else.” We have been separated, man and nature, putting a “soul” in man, while keeping nature inanimate, soulless, unfeeling.

With a greater understanding of our weather, and the long-term effects of our actions and activities on our climate, we are now reaping what we have sown over the last 100 years or so. Our separation from nature and our misunderstanding of our effects on our environment have now become apparent. Better science has helped us with the metrics necessary to influence the rational part of our mind. But we still have the emotional part of us that does not easily see an inextricable connection, or, better yet, a “oneness” that we must embrace. Nature still scares us.

We have been ambivalent about man-nature from the beginning of time. It nurtures us with food and fuel, yet we feel we must conquer it at every turn. Our traditional domination, however, is being replaced by a newfound sense of stewardship, built from a realization of limited resources and a sense of responsibility to future generations.

New advertisements from www.wecansolveit.org, featuring Al Sharpton, Pat Robertson, Newt Gingrich and Nancy Pelosi, espouse a nonpartisan effort to accept the challenge of reducing our greenhouse gas emissions for our sake and the sake of our grandchildren. There is a growing worldwide concern over carbon fuels, and how the world will use these to produce food, shelter and economies, while at the same time reducing greenhouse gases. Biofuel policies have added unintended consequences with their effects on worldwide land use, feed and food prices, political unrest and a detrimental effect on our natural resources. I wonder if we aren’t merely rearranging carbon chains on the deck of the Titanic.

The weeds will win. Nature bats last. Because the stakes are so high, we cannot afford to take the risk of inaction. One would think a conservative nation like the United States would preserve the environment as a national asset. Is our national lack of fiscal control reflective of our lack of environmental control? I hope not.

As we understand more, we are able to change our traditional views and actions toward our water, air and soil. We CAN conserve; we CAN reduce, reuse, recycle. As we become more responsible, we see many things we, and our governments, can do. But will this be enough? We must refocus our outlook and emotionally bond with nature. We must have a visceral attachment to our land and water.

Get yourself outdoors. Be quiet and listen. You will become one with everything.

Robert Riley is president and chief executive officer of Feed Energy Co. in Des Moines.