Nasher's Natural Nuances

Spreading Happiness

2008-12-08T18:33:00.003+01:00

A recent study from Harvard and the University of California shows how an individuals happiness increases the happiness of those around him/her in up to three degrees of separation. If you haven't heard about this, then you can read about it here or listen to a 60-second science podcast. Basically, this study provides a scientific founding for something that I've always known: When I smile, the people around me are more likely to smile and vice-versa!

The contagiousness of happiness is an important point to consider, because it gives credence to the idea that we benefit selfishly by giving to others. It is in our own self-interest to ensure the happiness of those around us, be they family, friends, or unknown neighbours. No man or woman is an island, and I am clearly impacted by the actions and attitudes of others. In the same way, I need to be aware of what emotions I am projecting and realize that a positive vibe will likely result in happier people around me!

Although obviously relevant for individuals' decision-making, this study is even more important for a macroeconomic discussion of governmental objectives. Conventionally, governments aim for economic growth in the form of higher GDP. This priority is clear from the importance of money in our lives, and the place of prominence that Finance/Commerce Departments and Ministries have in any country's governmental power hierarchy. Unlike happiness, money is not contagious. In fact, the flows of money show that it tends to concentrate in the hands of the few, as if there were a 'trickle-up' effect (see here and here for proof). Therefore, our government's efforts to increase monetary wealth have primarily resulted in the rich getting richer. If governments really want to 'raise all boats' to prosperity, then it should focus on something positive that will self-perpetuate. Several regions (most noticeably the countries of Thailand and Bhutan) have embraced happiness as the ultimate end social well-being. They employ measures like Happy Planet Index, Gross National Happiness, and Genuine Progress Indicator to provide guidance and quantify success.

Accepting happiness as a economic strategy recognizes that having money alone does not constitute a high quality of life. Instead, societies must strike a balance between the connected spheres of profit, people and planet. By measuring and encouraging the growth of human capital, social capital and natural capital in conjunction with financial and manufactured capital, we get a more robust form of economic development that is more sustainable.

Don't worry, be happy!

Hedge Fund Hustle

2008-09-22T20:55:00.003+02:00

Hedge funds getting trimmed,
Like 3-point shooters getting rimmed.
Aiming for the net,
Looks more like a prayer than a bet.
Projecting expectations for a loss,
Suits playing a game of ring-toss.
WHO’S A WINNER??
Not you sucker, your prospects for growth are looking dimmer.
Merril getting lynched, Goldman getting sacked,
Rich old white men getting hacked worse than Shaq at the track
Betting on horses ridden by CEOs,
Selling their skills like so many ho’s.
Where is the finish line? Nobody knows.
The market just grows and grows and grows.
At least it’s supposed to,
Like at a wedding having the sky blue.
But when it rains, it pours, and now the S&P is in the gutter,
Forcing the money manager to put down his putter.
‘Cause he ain’t shooting par, isn’t smoking a fat cigar.
Instead, he’s answering questions,
Clients sputtering and making suggestions,
That someone’s head had better role,
Before we’re out collecting the dole.
Saying ‘something had better change’
And ‘these hedge funds are rather deranged’.
A return to old-school values,
Where clients and managers choose
Companies that win and don’t lose
In the long-term game.
Not in it for the fame,
Just trying to build a name for respectability in perpetuity.
The best showcase for my ability to generate profitability is a fund with one purpose: Sustainability.

Attack of the Killer Swan

2008-04-20T14:02:00.005+02:00

The strangest event occurred yesterday. Playing Bocce in ideal conditions on a beach out on Sälto, my friends and I were enjoying the first sprouting of Spring. With my toes in the sand, and the competitive 'eye of the tiger' hidden behind shades, I was dropping precision bombs that made my opponents shudder in dismay. The game stopped in a salutary admiration of graceful beauty as a Swan floated by so near to us that she was using her strong legs to push off the shore. We stood in disbelief at the presence of something divinely delivered to us, a peep into the complex beauties of nature's diversity. I remarked at the way she was using her legs to propel herself forward, and pronounced that I had never seen a Swan walk on land before. As I said the words, the Swan came ashore and started to walk towards us. Stunned at the sudden onslaught, Ben, Nick, and I stood silently as Freek wisely got some distance. The Swan stared us straight in the face and delivered a steadfast "HIIIIISSSSSSSSS" that sent the three of us scrambling barefoot up the beach. I surmised that this was an angry mother, who had thought our nonchalant tossing of the Bocce an affront to playing with her eggs. Nick grabbed the Bocce and the set of silver balls from the course, but left the black ones. Since we were watching the scene so intently, I think the Swan took it as a challenge. Every few minutes, the Swan would begin re-approaching us. Freek was adamant that we keep our distance, insisting that a Swan could break your arm with its wing. Hurriedly, we retreated even further, but still in a place where we could watch this real-life nature documentary. There was a Swedish couple who happened to be walking past when the show started, and they were enjoying the program too. The Swan inspected the black Bocce balls, perhaps even tried to eat one, and then triumphantly departed. We waited until it left the scene before gathering up our sweaters and socks and having a nice, long chuckle about the situation. Still, I think we all developed a little more respect for Swans. Dismissing them as weak and overly elegant, I failed to see the purposefulness of their bendy necks, but now I've watched them find food on the sea floor without resorting to a plunge. I feel confident now in saying that my life will not be complete until I have a large bio-mimicked Swan to sail the seas and soar the skies. Plus, now I know it has an inherent defense mechanism to boot!

Jesus Camp, etc.

2008-02-07T02:32:00.000+01:00

I just finished watching the documentary "Jesus Camp" and it left me feeling disturbed, disconsolate, and distrustful of extreme religiousness. Ironically, it also made me feel extremely jealous.

I'm amazed at how effectively evangelists have dominated the American political scene. With a highly-organized 10% of the population, they have elected (and re-elected) a sympathetic, although idiotic, president. Moreover, they have saturated general discourse and mass media with their ideologies. As Jesus Camp shows, they are indoctrinating the next generation of 'God's Army' with unshakable values, beliefs, and visions of the future. Too bad this particular vision includes the second coming of Christ and the end of civilization as we know it....

The Globalsalvation movement should adopt some of these successful strategies to launch our own invasion of consciousness. Imagine scores of children playing in forests and discovering nature at eco-camps! We can teach them that Gaia loves them and has given them life. We'll lecture them on the evils of Exxon and tell ghost stories about the haunted SUV that went around killing polar bears and flooding the Netherlands! We'll create our own squadron of 'Earth's Peacekeepers' to go around chanting "YES, AND!" at protests. We'll guilt children that they cannot be hypocrites, breathing air and drinking water, but failing to properly sort their garbage (OH, the horror! REPENT!) They will develop a reverence for the extraordinary coincidence of the evolution of consciousness, and will understand their role in ensuring a long tenure for humanity on this planet. Core values of Diversity, Interdependence, and Self-Sufficiency will be drilled into their minds using popular icons, funnels, and fancy fonts. We will mold them into eco-fascists that will CONQUER THE WORLD (only to implement fair and sustainable practices).

Okay, so maybe I've taken this joke a bit far, but it's still a funny thought. How come religious fanatics who honestly believe that a book is literally "the word of God" get more traction in the public spotlight than local heroes that endlessly work to improve the quality of social and environmental systems?? If people are so hungry for faith and belief, why do they look for it in something external, eternal, and unknowable while stomping all over the most beautiful, magical, gracious creation ever known? I guess the devil you know is better than the planet you live on...

Global Responsibility

2008-01-27T17:01:00.000+01:00

According to the 2004 United Nations Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, over the past 50 years, humans have changed ecosystems more rapidly and extensively than in any comparable period of time in human history. Moreover, the changes that have been made to ecosystems have contributed to substantial net gains in human well-being and economic development, but these gains have been achieved at growing costs in the form of the degradation of many ecosystem services, increased risks of nonlinear changes, and the exacerbation of poverty for some groups of people.
There is a growing disconnection between human socio-economic activity and the natural systems around us. Many leaders still espouse the notion that environmental measures will hurt the economy, and this mentality serves to reinforce ‘business as usual’ tendencies. Responsibility for the health of natural ecosystems has been lost to the pursuit of unending economic growth. Unfortunately, this trend cannot continue indefinitely, as infinite economic growth within limited natural capacity is impossible. Current generations may enjoy the thrill of irresponsible activity, flying in the face of imminent chaos and danger, but future generations will have to pay the price. Responsibility for the impacts of human-generated waste and destruction is continually being passed to someone else. In this game of hot potato that we are playing with ecosystem services, bio-diversity and global health, future generations will inevitably be left clutching the remains of a planet in peril.

Eco-nomics and Carbon Taxes

2008-01-14T03:26:00.000+01:00

I wrote a small piece for the Global Assembly online dialogue, and wanted to share it!

So many ideas, where to begin?? The field of sustainable economics (or Eco-nomics, as I prefer) is so untouched that I see possibilities everywhere.

Today I'd like to describe my version of a Carbon Tax. The words have been heavily used lately in Canada and they sparked an idea. Instead of a downstream carbon emissions tax, why not try an upstream carbon extraction tax??

Understanding the carbon cycle, I've come to realize that normal carbon emmissions are not the problem (you are emitting CO2 right now as you read this, as I am while I write). We are part of the cycle, therefore our emissions are to be expected. The problem is that carbon is being extracted from outside the biophere's system (underground) and is being added to the atmospheric at an accelerating pace, flooding it. The problem isn't CO2 emissions (like you & me, biofules, cows decomposing, etc) the problem is CO2 extraction.

Therefore, I feel that the proper market-based tool for this problem is an extraction tax on carbon. Oil & mining companies would have to pay for the carbon beforehand, assuming that it will eventually be burned. Of course, customers would end up footing the bill (inevitably) with higher prices, but it will make substitutes of petroleum-based products much more competitive!

Moreover, you wouldn't need complicated emissions-reporting evaluations and audits. Every country knows how many fossil fuel resources get extracted every year, down to the barrel. Revenues could be shifted to subsidies for sustainable R&D or to help out those who need it most to find sustainable alternatives.

That's my idea, and I'm sticking to it!

Brussels Hustle

2007-11-19T22:35:00.000+01:00

Today was a big day. After a brilliant day/night in Masstricht reconnecting with powerful friends, I hopped the train to the European Parliament where I've been attending a conference called 'Beyond GDP'. Not so many new ideas, but it's sooooooo cool to hear them beying discussed in such a powerful setting. I've been dutifully rewarded with a potential job offer, a possible book deal (long live the Eco-Nomad!) and getting to ask the advice of a Nobel-winning member of the IPCC! I feel fully blessed to have these opportunities. I need a big sleep tonight because it's back to the beehive tomorrow for another day of rubbing elbows. Anyone know anything about this Carbon exchange that's being set up in London (England)?????

Core Values

2007-10-28T16:37:00.000+01:00

I'll keep this one short, to balance out the last monster post.

I'm feeling very "happy" these days. Last week I had to come up with a Leadership essay for class, so I meditated on the questions "Who am I? What do I belive in? What are my CORE values?"

The results have been enlightening. Here are the 5 things I came up with. They are in no particular order, and I want to constantly refine the language:

-This Earth is my Mother and I will treat her with dur respect.

-I am grateful for the support received from past generation, and I pledge my full support to future ones.

-I will pursue money & power only as a means to my goals (sustainable life/society), never as ends in of themselves.

-When my actions impact others, I will be aware of the consequences.

-I will listen to others and feel compassion for their suffering.

Going on a Trip!

2007-10-13T01:50:00.000+02:00

I've had quite a few amazing experiences in the past week and a half! Last Wednesday, my class and I departed on an epic adventure to visit the European Parliament in Brussels, an exhibit on Human Needs in Luxembourg, and a couple of days to let it soak in Amsterdam. I'd like to share some stories from each place:

Bruxelles, Belgium

It was love at first sight. Even from my bus seat, I could feel the energy radiating from the city. I'm not sure if it was the architecture, the French writing, the faces of the people walking by, the spraying of liquid fertilizer by dogs on the sidewalk, the stench of political lobbying, or the scads of waffle stands and chocolate shops. Likely it was a mix of them all! Regardless, I was smitten. I walked around with some of our crew that night and become mesmerized by the town square. I've been to many large European city squares, but none of them has ever struck me like this one did.

The next morning we had a meeting with Anders Wijkman, a Swedish MEP (Member of European Parliament). He is a right-of-centre politician with an economics background, but is a champion of environmental policy! He started by spewing out some of the common rhetoric (3BL, carbon footprint, etc.) but with some carefully crafted questions, we were able to open him up a bit and get him to speak more from the heart about how hard it is to change people's opinions away from the status quo. I asked him something along the lines of "If the goal of almost every country is to systematically grow the economy infinitely, and if GDP growth is closely tied to finite resource use, how come more people haven't embraced Sustainability as a means to see endless economic growth within a finite world??" He replied, "If I knew the answer, I would be sitting in the highest chair". It was clear that HE got it, and that WE got it, but how come more politicians and economists don't see this blindingly obvious problem??

We spent the night at a hostel in Germany out in the middle of nowhere near the border with Luxembourg. Thankfully, the bus stopped at a gas station that sold booze and I grabbed a 7 Euro bottle of sweet sweet Amaretto. We proceeded to get drunk in the middle of a field with some cows. It was a bonding experience and I felt that night that everyone in the programme is now family.

Luxembourg

After a rock-like sleep and a welcome breakfast, we got back on the bus and rolled up to the Human Needs exhibit well outside from civilization in an abandoned steel factory. The setting was perfect for the intentions of the display, for they both showed the extremity of humanity's ability to alter our environment and create new realities. The exhibit was organized such that every room represented a different human need.

1. Idleness (relax): A giant beach with a water-bottle ocean displayed the dangerous effects of mass tourism on a traditional culture. Nowhere is the gap between rich and poor in the world so evident. Suggestions for eco-safe and socially responsible tourism were provided.

2. Subsistence (survive): Basic necessities such as food and water are real needs for all of humanity. Is international aid really beneficial to developing (sic) countries?? When we create dependencies, are we undermining people's ability to meet their own needs?? Lots of questions coming out of this section, but also the funniest bit of the day! A video called "the Hunt" by Christian Jankowski that was about a guy going into the supermarket with a toy bow & arrow actually 'hunting' his food. Popping the margarine container a new one!! The best was the woman scanning all his food riddled with arrows at the checkout.

3. Freedom (choose): There was a passing reference to democratic choice, but this section dealt primarily with the economic choices we make everyday. A wide variety of shampoos were lined up to display the ridiculous choices we have (for essentially the same product) and a tv was set up in the shower showing "Island of Flowers" a 12-minute film that brought me to tears. You can watch it at http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=2855736949121066289&q=Island%20of%20Flowers&total=288&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=0

4. Affection (love): With my heart heavy from the video, I turned the corner and was taken aback by a wall covered in soft porn. I guess this IS Europe, but I'm definitely not yet used to having nudity so gratuitously portrayed. The exhibit then went into an auditory experience of famous quotes from movies played over loud speakers as you walk down the aisle. There was an interesting look at how we market love as diamonds and flowers, two of the most socially and environmentally destructive products we sell. We all know about blood diamonds, but the export of flowers to rich countries has destroyed natural areas, exploited thousands of workers, and let to the widespread use of pesticides and herbicides to protect the monocultured plants.

5. Identity (belong): This section focused on the clothes that we wear to display our individual style and create an identity for ourselves. It's unimaginable how much traveling a pair of jeans will do from raw material to labeled good ready for sale. Does anyone else find it strange that our products see more of the world than most humans do?? The punctuation mark was a row of mirrors that let you look at yourself, your identity, and your garments. Fully clothed, I've never felt so naked in my life. I also remember being dumbfounded by the juxtaposition of two tvs right next to each other. The first was a stream of labourers entering a factory in Asia for a full day of work making clothes for H&M (Swedish clothing company). The second was from a camera placed outside the entrance to one of their stores, likely in Europe somewhere, with a steady in and out of happy consumers. It made me realize just how disconnected we are.

6. Protection: The artists didn't often try to describe the Need itself, but would portray the negation of that Need instead. Protection, or the lack of it really, is evident in our global medical systems. The fact that there is an abhorrent number of AIDS victims in Africa every year when there IS medicine that will slow the effects (re: Magic Johnson) but is kept excessively expensive due to drug patents and exorbitant expected profits. I then got grossed out by a taped discussion on the organ trade situation, whereby poorer humans can sell organs (US$300 for a kidney, apparently) to needing rich customers. We all need some protection in our life, and to feel useless and destitute because you are physically ill will literally take the life right out of you.

7. Understanding: This was a really difficult section for me. It was a display put on by Stan's Cafe (http://www.stanscafe.co.uk/) called Of All The People in All The World where they use grains of rice to represent human beings and convey all kinds of telling statistics in this way. We often get wrapped up in statistics without really understanding what they mean. It's very difficult for us to visualize 200 of something, imagine seeing the number of forced labour employees all in one pile! I think this section had the biggest impact on me, as it really drove home some of the statistics that I had started taking for granted.

8. Creation: I had really high hopes coming into this section. I thought it was the most original of the Needs, for people (myself included) often underestimate the impact of creativity and playfulness for living a healthy, happy life. Unfortunately, I inevitably felt the disappointment of high expectations for it proved to be a series of noise machines made from recycled materials. ok, still kinda cool but I wanted to CREATE dammit!

9. Transcendence (dream): This wasn't one of Max-Neef's original Needs, but has subsequently been added. I really like this idea, because it explains the draw of religion (besides belonging) and the rise of spirituality in the current void left by mainstream religious orgnizations in North America. The content was basically left up to the participant, as the display consisted simply of white beds and soft hanging speakers quoting everything from Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World" to Voltaire's "Candid". I really enjoyed this section, although I didn't like being watched by others and feeling like I was part of the display.

From Need to Need we were moving upward through the old factory, and after the dreaming came a big, metal twisty slide!!! It was really cool, because all of the heavy information and emotional extremes left you feeling a little dead inside and the small shot of adrenaline you get from a big slide was much obliged. The slide was really dark inside, and it felt like I was being reborn as I headed for the light.

10. Participation (stand up): The final Need was a series of laptops where you could access information to stay connected to the exhibit and some of the organizations that are involved. It also contained the only really analytic information of the exhibit with a 3-d graph mapping countries' GDP, environmental footprint, and resource consumption. I was completely overwhelmed at this point, and probably wouldn't have responded to blatant appeals for my action, but I think it could have answered the 'What Now?' question a little bit better.

After the exhibit, I was very humbled and withdrawn. My heart felt tremendously heavy. We were asked to form small groups and talk about our impressions, but it felt like such a chore. It wasn't until we got back outside that I could raise my head. I talked a few people into playing an impromptu game of footy outside, and the playful competition really made me feel better.

Back on the bus, going to...

Amsterdam

Everyone was feeling kinda strange coming out of that exhibit. It hasn't completely sunk in for me, and I doubt that it ever will. I've really noticed a shift in my perception to take these Needs into consideration. Our time in Amsterdam, the group dynamics kind of disintegrated and we all went in our separate directions. I was really happy to meet up with Jacob Binder, my roommate from FYP at King's. Getting away from the crowd for a bit really helped me to consolidate my thoughts and I developed a couple of ideas. I began to see each of the Human Needs as a glass needing to be filled. Society can fill some of the glasses for us (subsistence, protection, and maybe understanding) if properly administered, but we really depend on ourselves and on our family and friends for the rest. Some people try to compensate for the lack of a need (affection, say) by pouring extra energy and resources into a glass that is already full (overkill on the subsistence). This action doesn't benefit anyone, as the water just flows away and is wasted. This theory also provides a striking new view on the subject of poverty. If we are to really create a sustainable society, we need every human being working at their full capacity to meet this challenge. In my mind, the only way for people to be completely productive is to ensure that every one of these needs is being met!

Finally, a couple thoughts on the city of Amsterdam itself. The speed of life there is at once impossibly slow, yet insanely quick. It runs at an unsustainable pace, but is able to keep it up because it's a dynamic equilibrium with people constantly coming and leaving. People arrive with high energy, and by the time it's spent and they're ready to leave, new people show up to replace them. I'm not totally sure I'm using the word right, but the city has a very high entropy, with random encounters almost ensured by the chaotic movement of its particular people.

15 hours on the bus back to Karlskrona and here I find myself the following weekend still trying to sort it all out! Luckily, I'm forcing a Reiki treatment tomorrow morning with my friend Tracy, and hopefully she can get me good and balanced.

If you made it all the way through this, thanks for reading, sorry it was such a doozy!

here and there and everywhere

2007-09-26T23:47:00.000+02:00

Let me begin by boasting about my hat-trick in Floorball tonight. I definitely carried the team, and it's nice to be competitive in sports again. So what if it's unorganized, co-ed pick up floor hockey??

I enjoyed a beautiful weekend in Gotland, a medieval island off the east coast of Sweden. It was very peaceful and reminded me lots of Lake Huron (possibly the best compliment EVER!)

Feeling nicely grounded, I was free to ponder some larger questions. Having accepted the Taoist notion that the only constant is change, I began to look at the various types of change. First, there is the active movement towards some end goal. Here, we call this 'backcasting' whereby you start with a vision (say the blueprints of a building, or an ideal situation) and then move deliberately, step-by-step towards this goal. The other type of change I recognized was a slow, gradual erosion, often perpetrated by forces of nature (wind, water, sun, etc). Since most types of real growth are predicated on the first idea, I started to wonder 'what is the Earth, with all of her intricate evolutions and complex cycles, moving towards??' If we humans could recognize the direction of this development, it would be much easier to join along!

Using my favourite analogy of the Earth as a mother, I began to wonder 'what is the goal of any loving caring mother?' I was stuck at this, but my good friend and Colleague Geoff Stack provided me with my much-needed response. He told me that he read somewhere that the best a mother could do was to provide a stable home in which her child could grow. This made sense to me, and after learning about the delicate balance that had to be found in creating an atmosphere that would allow for life to prosper, it occurred to me that this planet (our mother) has turned the chaotic extremes of space into a relatively stable, comfortable, inhabitable home.

The complexities inherent in her cycles and the vast diversity on her biosphere can be seen as measures to further safeguard life from diminishing. Like a safety net with a more complex weave and therefore fewer gaps, biodiversity prevents disease and the mass extinction of life. If one species or strain gets attacked and dies, a similar cousin will develop a successful response and replace the lost family member.

So basically, I think this planet is only trying to create a nice, stable home for everyone and we humans are actively mucking it up!?? What gives? Are we so egocentric that we'd openly degrade our mother for a perceived temporary personal gain?? We humans are such teenagers! We really need to grow up and develop a sense of responsibility!

Paddling the Canoe

2007-09-17T13:28:00.000+02:00

I played Floorball tonight with a bunch of Swedes (and Geoff, my American sustainability compatriot). It's basically like street hockey, but with a much lighter ball and tiny little nets. It'll take me a few tries to get my stickhandling down, but I'm already a force to be reckoned with on defense and forechecking in the offensive zone. It was pretty funny, because Swedish people are quite reserved, so no one was celebrating after a goal. They'd just get back into position. I started questioning this, and when I scored on a sweet wrap-around (they call it 'the kitchen' here???) I did the airplane all the way back to my end. I told my team that I was proud of our play, but that we needed to work on our celebrations. They laughed!

I'm doing my best to get outside of the MSLS bubble that has so inevitably formed. I guess my days in FYP at King's has taught me that only hanging out with people from your own program will lead to insanity. The people in my program are all amazing, intelligent, conscious, and engaging, but it's nice to not talk shop and to get to know Swedish culture. I've started volunteering one night a month at the campus pub (just when I thought I was done herding drunk people....they pull me back in). I worked my first shift this past Thursday, and met some really kind locals. They've made me promise that I'll come out drinking this week, which might pose a problem as I have a group presentation Friday morning. Oh well!

Speaking of presentations, this week is chalk-full of them! Besides our group one on Friday, I'm also preparing for an individual one this Wednesday. I'm expected to explain (in 15 min) just what the hell sustainability IS, and how to utilize the Strategic Sustainable Development Framework that's been drilled into my head. Since the idea is that I'm supposed to be presenting to friends & family, expect an outline to appear on this blog shortly. I figure it will be a good way to inform everyone about what I'm studying, while helping me to prepare for the prez.

Otherwise, all is well in my world. I'm finding a delicate balance within all the craziness, and I'm feeling happy & healthy. My apartment is great, and I have 2 cool roommates. I'm skating to class while the weather is still nice, and I'm constantly stimulated by my schoolwork and the people that surround me.

Life is good.

Sept. 2, 2007

2007-09-03T19:43:00.000+02:00

I sit on the eve of a new beginning. Tomorrow, I take my first natural step down the path to sustainability. I’ve been waiting on this event for months, and now that it approaches, I feel a strong sense of responsibility kicking in.

Am I really to believe that I will be a leader in establishing this new paradigm?? With so many problems being thrown in my face, how am I able to remain optimistic that humanity will overcome these obstacles?? I suppose that it’s encouraging to believe that no matter what evils our races have (will) wrought upon this planet, nature will endure. There have been numerous mass extinctions in the past, and life has lived. This one will be no different.
How egotistical for us to speak of ‘saving’ the planet. It was never ours to capture and it is not ours to rescue. Our duty is to our children and their children, to bestow upon them the blessing of a plentiful and beautiful planet that we were lucky enough to borrow from them.

How silly and insignificant is currency and money when viewed from the planet’s geologic perspective?? And yet that is what I’ve decided to dedicate my career towards. Since we have come to view financial gain as the end (instead of the means) of a successful existence, why not utilize this greed to further the goals of a sustainable society? If self-interest has allowed us to disperse throughout the planet and develop preposterous technologies, why not use it to reverse the damage and create a restorative economy?