I firmly believe that it’s time that we stop pitting climate against the economy – as though doing the right thing for the climate will be wrong for everything else, and somehow the trade off isn’t worth it, which justifies stalling on critical climate change action. At the same time, the concept of endless economic growth is a myth, in my opinion. Nothing can go up forever – at some point, things need to moderate, which is precisely what is needed to stay within planetary boundaries.
So, we can still have an economy – but a livable climate has to far outrank making more money, burning fossil fuels and maintaining the status quo.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/climate-change-denial-fossil-fuel-think-tank-sceptic-misinformation-1.5297236
Bottom line: Climate change is an absolutely critical issue, and the time for action (other than starting decades ago), is right now. Misinformation campaigns have no place in this, but they are there, and need to be dealt with, so that they do not impede climate action, at the pace that is needed.
Now is not the time for moderate action, or “let’s try a few things that aren’t too difficult and see how they feel” or anything else. It’s time to throw everything we’ve got at the issue.
For me, in the immediate term, that means electing Green MPs (because I believe that they have the strongest climate action plan.) Also, it means switching to proportional representation – to make it easier for people to vote positively (ie for Greens or whoever), instead of feeling pressured to vote negatively (ie “you have to vote for your second or third choice to make sure someone worse doesn’t get elected.”)
If we, collectively, vote overwhelmingly for candidates that support strong climate action, and PR, we can, in one election, shake up the current, broken system and build something better! (As far as I am aware, Greens and NDP are the only two parties that support both – though the Green climate platform is stronger). This will require massive turnout at the polls – but I believe that it’s doable, if we all work together, and bring others along. 🙂
I love the approach the author is taking here. I agree that there are certainly technical and financial discussions that need to be had, and they have value. However, doing the right thing, is ultimately a moral/faith issue, not a financial issue.
If our primary motivation is financial or technical, lots of the important decisions and changes that we need to make will not happen – since the right thing is (often) not the easiest or the cheapest. A deeper sense that we owe it to others to live sustainably is, in my opinion, critical to grounding ourselves to make the radical changes that creation care calls us to do.
Societies have rallied around war efforts (which I disagree with). This is the time to rally around what is right, and set ourselves on a rapid transition to zero carbon, then to carbon negative. There is no more time to delay. With collective effort, we can move forward, at an incredible pace – towards what’s right, instead of what’s easy. 🙂
While some parts of the world certainly need an increase in standard of living, much of the world will need to accept a decrease in order to stay within planetary boundaries. (And that does not apply only to the ultra rich with private planes and yachts.) Certainly, many others will need to adjust, if not to an actual decrease, certainly a decrease in what we are striving for in the future – an adjustment of goals and hopes and what we aiming for in life.
Extreme wealth imbalances, in my opinion, have no place in a balanced environment, or in a balanced society.
This is an excellent idea! We need to break the habit of hopping on a plane for trips where a high-efficiency (run on renewables) train could do the trick. Might take a bit longer, but it’s worth it.
Now, what Canada needs is to switch from subsidizing fossil fuels to promoting electric trains (and public transit) so that everybody can afford them, and use them regularly. And, trips within Canada should cost less to do by train than on an airplane – the opposite of the current status (based on the times that I have checked).
My recent discovery of a company that I am particularly interested in has coincided with the launch of my online store. I recently came across Lucky Iron fish, and (full disclosure), I am now a part of their affiliate program.
I am still learning all about the company, but I do like the work that they are doing, and am happy to help spread the word.
For more information, go to the Lucky Iron Fish website, or the online store page on my website. Happy browsing!
With the upcoming Canadian Federal election now called, I have added a page of info/resources etc related to the election, the Green Party and electoral reform. I will be adding to the page as additional info comes up throughout the election. 🙂
I am currently working on reorganizing the website – aiming to make pages and sections neater and tidier, with information easier to find. Please be patient over the next days (or longer) as things move around. Thank you! 🙂
I admit that I have flown a lot, including a lot of trips across the Atlantic – at one stage in my life, I was averaging two return trips per year. In my circles, depending on what projects people are working on, that average can be much higher.
So, reducing/eliminating flights is tough, but being hard doesn’t make it any less essential. Regardless of the prevalence of super cheap airlines – or the nice ones, for those who have the money – the cost of flying is much higher than the actual ticket price.
In Canada, I have long been frustrated with the fact that train travel is not more affordable. In my opinion, our big systems should be making it easier to do the right thing, not harder. Therefore, if the lower emissions train trip was cheaper than an equivalent flight, I think that would help create a significant shift in behaviours, patterns and trends.
Until then, the right thing will not necessarily be the easiest or the cheapest, but it is still the right thing to do. 🙂
I love this post https://oxfamblogs.org/fp2p/how-do-we-get-better-at-failure/ and the idea that organizations need to be much more open about failures, and using this to lead to changes. I have seen a variety of situations in which openness to admit failures is important. That includes, but is not limited to
apathy (maybe things aren’t perfect, but it’s how it’s always been done) and
resistance (This is how we have always done it, and we are not going to consider changing our ways.)
Some failures are more open (eg failed to account for an anticipated cost in the budget). Others, though are more subtle and harder to change. For example, sometimes, what got an org to where they are is not what is needed to move them forward. For example, a new organization might operate with a very lean staff and key positions all being held by the CEO/ED. However, after time, that structure needs to change, and the CEO/ED will need to hand over key positions to someone else, or risk the long-term viability of the organization.
In countless ways, what an organization/project needed in the past will not fully reflect what is needed in the future – so depending on the past, and repeating, will never get the best results. However, I see this coming up a lot – holding on to certain ways of doing things and failing to try new things, and thus creating a failure itself, since the old ways aren’t always relevant for the present or the future. Somehow, I think, organizations need more ways to check in and note those things – basically “That may have served us well in the past, but it isn’t what we need moving forward.”
I also like the idea of making check ins more frequent. Instead of this being something that is done once a year (or every few years, or more), I see value in making this a regular, key part of how organizations operate. Increased openness to learning and growing can only help. 🙂
