Transformation – Debate Environmental Tales

Dominant world system operates on principles of capitalism and free trade.

It has lifted millions of people from extreme poverty and brought prosperity and well-being around the World.

Yet, recently the wealth it generates has concentrated to few superrich, growing the gaps of economic and social well-being and ecological injustice – both on national and international levels.

System failures

There are also mechanisms, where the costs of failed – and even succeeded business transactions are to be paid by states and tax payers. Saving the investment banks after the 2008 sub-prime crises or allowing fossil industry to cause the global warming as some examples.

World’s leading countries are among those that have highest GDP – Gross Domestic Product – per capita.

They also have the largest carbon foot print per capita and their citizens are consuming the largest part of our planetary resources at personal level.

“The planet cannot support billions of meat-eaters”
– Sir David Attenborough

Overuse of resources

Superior economic status has been built on excavating raw materials from the Earth, burning fossil fuels and turning forests and nature to industrial plants and agricultural sites that feed the World economy. More of this at “Excavation economics”.

With the help of globalisation and international organisations this way of working is now universal. As a side-effect it has produced climate crisis and world-wide extinction.

Some built-in logics of our current system (like the financial system aiming for growth, power of corporate giants and too easy destruction of nature) keep pushing us over the edge of sustainability.

System change

Taking a look to the “Planetary boundaries” or listening to scientific consensus (99-100%) of manmade climate change should make it obvious, that we cannot keep on living the way we have been. As in each system, ecosystems have failsafe – and also tipping points, if too many warnings are ignored.

As the root causes of both global warming and weakening ecosystems are deep in our economic system, we need a system level change, not a fine-tuning.

As the system is global, we need a transition. Changes of world system are complicated and require co-operation, trust and will-power.

As two main contributors to our planetary crisis are

1) population growth and

2) economic growth,

both need to be dismantled and their interrelations assessed. Sustainable elements should be maintained and harmful forms of operation replaced by more regenerative solutions.

New role models – current day

Considering that both the population growth and global warming are likely to continue, even though we would apply all international contracts right now, ideas of abundance and limitless consumption should be replaced with ideas of moderation and conservation – not destruction – of nature.

As seen from the above, 2024 there are 8 countries, that have their “overshoot day” at Q4, on October or November. So, regarding the sustainable level in usage of natural resources Ecuador, Indonesia and Guatemala are outperforming by far countries like Qatar, Luxembourg and USA. Surely there are large population differences, but in the name of sustainability, the role models are NOT found among the most industrialised states.

Downscaling

In most societies going back only some decades would take us back to sustainable level on many aspects: owning less, repairing more, finding meaning in people and surroundings we actually face daily.

It would likely also shrink the distances average citizens would cover daily and especially annually. If half of the +8.000.000.000 people would commute and travel less every week, it would significantly lower the CO₂-emissions.

Downscaling is required also on larger scale; giant corporations control markets as they can buy away competitors, influence climate laws and shop around globally for benefits. To lower the CO₂-emissions, direction must change from globalisation to localisation.

Ancient role models

Western way of seeing mankind as ruler of the planet is extremely harmful to Earth, as everybody can see. There has existed a plurality of worldviews that consider Earth the object of worship. For thousands of years most cultures have mainly taken care of their environment, instead of destroying and materialising it. It is time to look deeper into history of mankind and to restore the bond between men and other species.

After all, humans are just one species in the diverse ecosystem. With science and medicine, we learned to break the limits, nature had set to human population. The more we keep bending those planetary and medical boundaries, the harder the ecosystem will dislocate.

Time of change

It is time for us to face the scientific facts and to stop using fossil fuels, reduce significantly our consumption, eat less meat and on individual and communal level to restore our connection to nature and its ability to maintain life on the planet.

This means reversing our way of life.

Drastic change.

For anybody.

Needed, though.

For the sake of us all.

We must transit from consumption-oriented technologies towards regenerative local living.

Instead of inventing more devices and “solutions” that consume more of the limited natural resources we should change ourselves. Not a minor task. But possible – and necessary.

We have to learn to grow and nurture things again – a skill we have had for millennia, but forgotten in decades.

Tasks:

As global warming has already 2024 exceeded (at least for few months) the 1,5^OC level and the CO₂ already in the atmosphere stays there for over 100 years keeping us under greenhouse effect, we are the last generations that can influence.

Everyone living now must change their way of life, if we hope to keep the living conditions on tolerable level. Our daily decisions on what we eat, how and how far we move and how we earn our living do influence to the climate and liveability of Earth.

Consider:

1. FOOD. Too many of us eats meat too often. Instead of becoming vegans, eating 30-50 % less meat weekly would already be a significant change.

Consequences of our actions are often hidden from us, as the delivery chains to our tables and homes are blindingly long. For example, throughout past decade, 2010s, roughly 2/3 of the grain grown in Finland went to feeding livestock. Only 1/3 went directly to dining table.

Imagine, if 1/3 of that ground feeding the cattle could be used in regenerative agriculture – adding to natural carbon sinks and diversity. Peas, horse beans and other plants containing protein have been part of traditional nutrition in historical Finland.

Where could you find recipes that help you replace part of the meat in your diet? There are many nice apps and sites available. Search, test and find your favourites!

2. TRANSFORMATION. The longest journey starts with a single step. What is your step today?

We see the consequences of our current way of life in the newsfeed – stronger storms, floods, forest fires, etc.

Scientists have told us for 50 years that all of us should consume less and to protect the planet, not the business.

For the same time politicians and organisations have failed in pointing us to the new direction.

Couple of times the pressure to ban the fossil fuels and to turn to more sustainable regulation has been close.

For example, Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth” -campaign in the early 2000s was getting international high-level attention. But then came the 2008 subprime crisis, and governments decided to save the investment bankers and the economic system, not the ecosystem.

Next time you are looking for something exciting to watch, how about a movie winning two Oscars?

See the “An Inconvenient Truth” – 1 hr 36 min…

… or check the 2 min 33 sec trailer.

It might motivate you to taking better daily decisions.

3. GROWING FOOD. Large part of living in current World system is about consuming and enabling continuous growth – of economy and population. Since that is an impossible scenario even in middle term, all of us need to start thinking of more sustainable ways of getting the food to the table.

In past two generations most of us have lost our skill to grow anything; food comes from stores, not from our backyards. This has weakened our link to the rest of the ecosystem – making it easier to wipe out life.

How about reconnecting with our past? Soil, seeds, water and light are all accessible to most of us.

How about starting to grow something to eat at home?

Or would it be possible to share an urban plantation somewhere with a friend?

4. PART OF THE PROBLEM … OR THE SOLUTION?

As the people in power have failed to change the system, the remaining alternative is grass-root activity. Us.

When enough of us say, that we want to live in homes to which we can get decently priced insurances and, in a World, that remains habitable to future generations, the change becomes possible.

When many enough claims, that we want the corporations that have caused the climate change to participate significantly in transforming societies to regenerative life, the political pressure rises.

When more of us replaces novelty with repairing and instead of consuming, buys less, but more durable essentials, we are on better track.

What is the “upgrade” you leave unbought this year?

Links – read more about the need to transform our World system:

Planetary boundaries: https://www.stockholmresilience.org/research/planetary-boundaries.html

Life on earth: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_life

National over-consumption days, 2024:

https://overshoot.footprintnetwork.org/newsroom/country-overshoot-days/

Take action:

“An Inconvenient Truth” -movie: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0497116/?ref_=vp_close

Find and test easy lacto-ovo-vegetarian recipes: … Look for an App or a site!

Learn about urban farming: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_agriculture#Main_types

Regenerative agriculture: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regenerative_agriculture