Jeff Rawls

Introducing Jeff Rawls: Author of "God Does Not Need Your Religion To Exist," founder of the Give Plants A Chance Foundation, former Environmental Scientist, former Computer Field Engineer, and holder of degrees in Business Administration and Environmental Studies. To add to my knowledge base and hobbies, I am a Vietnam era veteran, certified in welding, firefighting, and nuclear, biological, and chemical warfare decontamination in the Navy. After the Navy, I became certified in seven different welding styles, then went to college and earned a degree in Business Administration, and a few years later, a degree in Environmental Studies. I worked as an Environmental Scientist for years and, after working as a map digitizer for the USGS, changed careers to become a Computer Field Engineer. I retired on 5 acres of wooded land and started an environmental organization called the Give Plants A Chance Foundation. For fun, I have been known to scuba dive, race Hobby Cats sailboats, and kayak.

I don't come from a professional writing background. My academic background is in Business Administration and Environmental Studies, and I spent decades working as an Environmental Scientist and Computer Field Engineer. My journey with God started at age 7, and I have been on church boards and in leadership positions. After 20 years of research and thousands of hours of prayer and meditation, I wrote the book "God Does Not Need Your Religion To Exist." The exploration began with an open heart and curious mind that led me to question the status of religion in our lives. Seeking to understand the true essence of God's message, unencumbered by the accumulation of human interpretation and tradition, I approached this journey with humility, recognizing that I am a student in the grand classroom of life, forever learning and growing in my understanding of God. The book covers areas like scientific proof of God, evolution as a biblical fact, planetary stewardship, and sexual equality.

At age 66, I founded the Give Plants A Chance Foundation. The mission of this organization is to change our cities from concrete jungles into urban forests and farms. Unlike most organizations trying to remove excess CO2 from jungles, our focus is on improving air quality in the cities where we live, work, and play, both outdoors and indoors, because we all deserve cool, clean, and breathable air free of unnecessary contaminants. Another point that separates the Give Plants A Chance Foundation from 99% of the rest is our headquarters on 5 wooded acres, making us carbon neutral before we start. We are an ESG solution provider.

I have found that I am not designed for traditional social media because it does not allow for the inflection of voice, unlike podcasts. Podcasts offer listeners the opportunity to hear more than one side of a debate without the original subject being hijacked, as often happens on social media. If you can talk to a person without the interference or influence of an outsider with their own agenda, you may be able to provide help and guidance that would otherwise be lost in the comments.