Protecting Mother Earth

I recently had the opportunity of seeing Dr. David Suzuki speak in Corner Brook and at a more intimate gathering in Woody Point the following day. His voice, quiet, compassionate, and compelling, is one of the most crucial sounds on this noisy planet. He is remarkable for the depth of his commitment and more remarkable for the leverage he exerts to keep this earth intact. He has certainly inspired my thoughts over the years.

The lapse of time has brought a dramatic change in the reach of human actions from the local to the global. We now have global transportation, global communication, global information, global pollution, global wars, global organizations, global peace-keeping, global markets, global finances, even something like a global culture and language.

In the past, people had to worry about mostly local or regional problems: a depression here, a war there, a tyrant today, a plague tomorrow. We certainly did not worry in a global context and may not have known what to worry about even if we wanted to.

Today, though, many problems are clearly global, and even most local and regional problems are rooted in global developments. Let=s consider the following global trends:

Tremendous population growth, adding over 80 million people annually to the world's population, or roughly a billion people every twelve years. Enormous material consumption in industrialize nations, now equivalent to some 30 tons of waste per year for each citizen of these countries, with all its problems of pollution and resource destruction.

Globalization of most economic activities to the point where many trans-national corporations wield more power than most national governments. Where nations are forced into a competitive >race to the bottom=, and where the prosperity of some regions depends on the exploitation of others.

Unemployment, as technological advances permit production of more goods and services by fewer people, while on the other hand essential services cannot be provided because of the high cost of labor.

Breakdown of social support systems and bankruptcy of the welfare state in many countries, causing unaccustomed poverty, hardship and social problems.

Less obvious are the global linkages of many developments. For example, opening of international agricultural markets means that many family farms all over the country have difficulty competing with farmers elsewhere. The global agricultural market also destroys subsistence farming in many third world countries: there is no incentive to produce if food can be imported much more cheaply. These people are forced to look for work in the cities and their communities die, their cultures disappear. Sound familiar?

Globalization of markets also opens national labor markets to competition elsewhere. Technological advances ensure that high quality products can be produced almost anywhere, and this cuts into the competitive advantage some nations may have had with a highly skilled labor force. Also, in highly skilled sectors such as information technology, health care and education, economic globalization has already resulted in a tremendous drain on Canada=s human resources. We have not yet seen the end result!

The global adoption and enforcement of international conventions protecting human rights and welfare, as well as the global ecosystem, are important steps in human development, and are particularly important for finding and implementing sustainable solutions for the future.

Global trade agreements, on the other hand, are specifically introduced to >level the playing field= of international competition. Since ecological and cultural conditions are different in different regions, the globalization of markets pits competitors with favorable conditions against others with unfavorable conditions. The long-term outcome is all too obvious (and often intended): those that are more favored by natural conditions, or more willing to be ruthless in their exploitation of environmental and social conditions, will come to dominate the market; their competitors are destroyed in the process.

Most of us, unfortunately, are quite at home in a static, linear and materialistic world; action causes reaction, two cars cost twice as much as one car, greater effort brings more reward. We seldom think about globalization and how it may, or may not, be affecting us on a day-to-day basis. In fact, we are so busy living our own lives that we rarely even think about how our own friends and neighbors live. Not surprising that we seldom, if ever, give a damn about how millions of people all over the globe are adversely affected by what is happening around us.

In thinking about the future we have to remind ourselves that there are some constraints that human ingenuity simply cannot remove because they are prescribed by natural laws or the physical conditions on earth. Some things are simply impossible, while others are extremely unlikely.

Since the earth carries only a limited amount of resources there are physical restraints that limit, or at least should, political and economic decisions on a day-to-day basis. The devastation of one of the largest natural resources on earth, right on our own doorstep, and the inevitable destruction of what is left is an indication, to me at least, that the right decisions are still not being made.

There are also logical restraints where we cannot spend more resources than we=ve got. If money is used to increase parliamentary salaries, for example, then it cannot be simultaneously used to fight third world conditions in many northern communities. If an exuberant portion of our tax dollars are used to support big government then it cannot be simultaneously used to address social and environmental problems that exist around the world. Quite simple, isn=t it?

You may be saying at this point that the future will happen anyway, and as individuals we can=t influence it much. So why bother thinking about it? Let=s hope for the best, be prepared for the worst, and be surprised by what actually happens.

Nothing will change unless we change our way of thinking and doing things. We have to translate our sights into effective actions and focus on a more sustainable future. Sustainability is a complex issue, and requires intelligent and adaptive behavior of knowledgeable, responsive individuals. Above all, sustainability cannot be achieved by simply switching technologies while keeping the old mind-set. Little is gained by giving a more fuel efficient car to a driver who is going to drive twice as much as he did before.

Sustainability is a global and ongoing project, requiring big and small daily contributions from everybody. This may seem like an impossible undertaking. However, as we have no other choice, it is simply the natural thing to do. In a few decades, if we are lucky, our children and our grandchildren may wonder why all this seemed to be so difficult to do in the first place. Then, and only then, can we be assured that the future will happen anyway!

As David Suzuki articulated so compassionately in Woody Point - Aeach day we invent the future with the choices we make about food, transportation, and energy use@. By going to his website and joining his Nature Challenge, you=ll be protecting the environment and our quality of life for future generations. Don=t do it for Suzuki - do it for yourself - for your children and grandchildren. Do it for the future of the planet!

http://www.davidsuzuki.org/NatureChallenge/