Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler. - Albert Einstein
_____
THERE’S MUCH DEBATE about how to achieve a sustainable civilization. The good news is that there are a lot of people trying, through direct on-the-ground actions, through science and technological innovation, and by policy and legal means.
The bad news is that collectively we have not been successful. The simple explanation is that we haven’t yet done enough to conserve nature and protect the environment. But why not, after all the years of trying?
First, we are burdened with a huge problem of scale. Our numbers and patterns of consumption today are mind-boggling. The incredible pace of human exploitation of Earth’s resources far outruns efforts to protect the environment. Meanwhile, many mainstream environmentalists continue to believe that environmental harms can be decoupled from global gigantism simply through technological cleverness or modest changes in human behavior.
Second, ours is a very self-centered, materialistic culture that is top heavy with leaders who prioritize wealth and power. Some argue that we simply need better governance. We certainly do, but don't expect government to rise to a level of great ecological competence absent a major cultural shift.
If this analysis is correct, we better look to create a society dedicated to, and focused on, the well-being of life on Earth. We better make environmental protection and nature conservation top priorities. And we better scale down.
Don’t agonize over how to save the world. Play a role, no matter how large or how small. And keep the big picture firmly in mind.
The Sustainability Triangle
.
On Defining Degrowth
Here is an interview of Prof. Kohei Saito on his popular book on degrowth. https://grist.org/economics/slow-down-do-less-a-qa-with-the-author-who-introduced-degrowth-to-a-mass-audience/
It's great that the topic is getting a lot more attention!
If I had done the interview, I would have asked Saito about overpopulation. It is going to be extremely difficult to achieve desired results (true sustainability) with the world's human population at 8 billion and still growing.
Degrowth should include the goal of substantially lowering our numbers. That would amplify gains made in reducing consumption. It's going to be hard enough to get the Global North to reduce consumption while increasing material growth in the Global South. Moreover, our human population is currently way too high to allow many other forms of life to avoid extinction and recover from endangerment.
Here's a pertinent quote from Saito:
"There will be, of course, more usage of resources and energy in countries in the Global South, because right now they are under-consuming. Their development necessarily involves more consumption of energy and resources. That creates some pressure on planetary boundaries. So that means that the Global North needs to consciously degrow because it is over-developing, and has excessive production and consumption."
As we applaud the degrowth movement, we need to keep in mind related drivers of the ecological crisis, including overpopulation and extreme anthropocentrism. I've tried to bring together key requirements for genuine sustainability in this short essay ("How to Save the World. at https://scaledown.substack.com/p/how-to-save-the-world
Keeping it simple is always a good idea. Live simply that others may simply live! Nice work, Tony.