More than 46 million Americans—one in six of us—are living below the poverty line, and this number will only continue to grow in the coming years, according to a report from Indiana University.

"If the long-term unemployed lose their unemployment insurance benefits before the economy produces enough well-paying jobs to approach full employment, the ranks of the 'new poor' will steadily swell between now and 2017," the report found.

A significant number of new well-paying jobs are not likely to be created because of the replacement of labor with robotics and technology, and because the government insists on funding costly wars—U.S. defense spending has more than doubled, from $302 billion in 2000 to more than $700 billion in 2011. Meanwhile, the government refuses to increase taxes on the wealthiest 1 percent, many of whom are directly profiting from the war effort, or use their wealth to influence everything from legislation to media to the contents of school curricula.

Capitalism requires the exploitation of labor and natural resources. It puts profits before human needs. Sixteen percent of residents in the richest country on Earth have no health care coverage. In fact, the World Health Organization ranks America 37th among the world's health care systems, below developing countries such as Costa Rica and Morocco. At some point, the capitalist system in America will become so imbalanced that it will not be able to sustain itself any longer—we are seeing this breakdown happening now. The fallout of this breakdown is impacting the environment and has implications for the health and sustainability of human life itself.

Why Occupy?

Occupy is growing as a movement of people working together to recover from the ills of unregulated capitalism and to help each other lead healthier, more equitable and meaningful lives. Whether you believe our government is too big or too little, or that our problems stem from government being controlled by corporate and military interests, or that we need to focus on war, income inequality, the environment, making health care available to all, or ending the Fed—whatever your perspective, Occupy needs your voice! One of the strengths of this movement is its openness; anyone can participate, and the more diverse the voices that join the movement, the better chance we have to develop workable solutions and succeed in creating a sustainable, ethical world.

The Occupy Movement has already realized some success and it is not even a year old. It's changed the national dialogue, as evidenced by a significant rise in the use of the phrase "income inequality" in the news and in the State of the Union address. It's inspired hundreds of thousands of people and institutions to move their money from "too big to fail" banks to smaller banks and credit unions. It's revealed how oppressive our system has become by testing its limits—defending free speech through public protest, in solidarity with nonviolent protesters around the world.

You Decide How You Want to Participate

If you choose to support Occupy, you get to decide how you participate. You can join people already working on something of interest or you can start your own project. If you don't want to participate in a bank blockade or protest, don't do it. Whatever your talent or passion, you can probably find a way to put it to use with Occupy.

Support Your Local Occupation: One of the best ways to become a part of the Occupy Movement is to support your local Occupation, which you can do by just showing up at general assemblies or working group meetings; joining marches and direct actions; donating money and supplies; or simply having conversations with your neighbors and friends about issues that matter to you. Most Occupations have a web site or Facebook page listing meeting information.

If there isn't an occupation near you, start one! If you live in an area where a physical occupation is not viable, or for whatever reasons you are not able to participate with an Occupation, there are still other ways you can help.

Occupy the Media: Let's face it, mainstream media, what most people see on TV or read in the newspapers, is owned by the 1 percent. According to MIT language and politics professor Noam Chomsky, "American commercial media encourage controversy within a narrow range of opinion, in order to give the impression of open debate, but do not report on news that falls outside that range." The Occupy movement has received some coverage in the mainstream media, but much of it has been imbalanced. To overcome this, many occupiers and supporters act as citizen journalists, capturing video and photos and writing about Occupy in their own voice. You can help the movement distribute Occupied Media by sharing Occupy-generated photos, videos and articles with friends and family, either by traditional means or through social media like Facebook and Twitter.

You can also write op-eds or letters to the editor and send them to your local newspaper; start your own blog; write articles for news websites; or simply post comments after stories you read to grow conversations that are healthy, positive and interactive.

Move your money. Take your cash and savings out of irresponsible "too big to fail" (i.e. too big to prosecute) banks and move it into a credit union or community bank while encouraging your friends and neighbors to do the same.

Educate yourself on the issues that matter to you, and also the ones that come along which you've never heard about before. Arm yourself with the facts!

Volunteer with organizations working for the social good—to keep people in their foreclosed homes, to provide health care for those who cannot afford it, to feed people from organic, local farms—and talk to people. Occupation is about participation. All that is asked is that you get involved, that you engage. And how you do it is entirely up to you.