Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
gion and philosophy. Yet, this message is preached in-
cessantly by modern advertising, which encourages us
to buy more and more things. As humorist Will Rogers
put it, “Too many people spend money they haven't
earned to buy things they don't want, to impress peo-
ple they don't like.”
Some affluent people in developed countries are
adopting a lifestyle of
voluntary simplicity,
doing and
enjoying more with less by learning to live more simply.
Voluntary simplicity is based on Mahatma Gandhi's
principle of enoughness:
“The earth provides enough to
satisfy every person's need but not every person's
greed....When we take more than we need, we are
simply taking from each other, borrowing from the fu-
ture, or destroying the environment and other species.”
As environmental educator David W. Orr puts it, “We
do not have to rob the world and steal from our children
to live well.”
Most of the world's major religions have similar
teachings. “Why do you spend your money for that
which is not bread, and your labor for that which does
not satisfy?” (Christianity: Old Testament, Isaiah 55:2).
“Eat and drink, but waste not by excess” (Islam: Koran
7.31). “One should abstain from acquisitiveness” (Hin-
duism: Acarangastura 2.119). “He who knows he has
enough is rich” (Taoism: Tao Te Ching, Chapter 33).
Implementing this principle means asking your-
self, “How much is enough?” This is not easy because
people in affluent societies are conditioned to want
more and more.
philosophy, solutions, and scientific information be-
fore doing anything), and
faith in simple, easy answers.
They also urge us to keep our empowering feelings
of hope slightly ahead of our immobilizing feelings of
despair.
Recognizing that no single correct or best solution
to the environmental problems we face exists is also
important. Indeed, one of nature's most important
lessons is that preserving diversity—in this case, being
flexible and adaptable in trying a variety of solutions
to our problems—is the best way to adapt to the earth's
largely unpredictable, ever-changing conditions.
Finally, we should have fun and take time to enjoy
life. Laugh every day and enjoy nature, beauty, friend-
ship, and love. This empowers us to become good
earth citizens who practice
good earthkeeping.
Components of the Sustainability Revolution
The message of environmentalism is not gloom and
doom, fear, and catastrophe, but rather hope, a
positive vision of the future, and a call for
commitment in dealing with the environmental
challenges we face.
The
environmental
or
sustainability revolution
that many
environmental scientists and environmentalists call for
us to achieve during this century would have several
interrelated components:
■
A
biodiversity protection revolution
devoted to pro-
tecting and sustaining the genes, species, natural sys-
tems, and chemical and biological processes that make
up the earth's biodiversity
■
An
efficiency revolution
that minimizes the wasting
of matter and energy resources
■
An
energy revolution
based on decreasing our de-
pendence on carbon-based, nonrenewable fossil fuels
and increasing our dependence on forms of renewable
energy such as the wind, sun, flowing water, and geo-
thermal energy
■
A
pollution prevention revolution
that reduces pollu-
tion and environmental degradation from harmful
chemicals
■
A
sufficiency revolution
dedicated to meeting the ba-
sic needs of all people on the planet while affluent soci-
eties learn to live more sustainably by living with less
■
A
demographic revolution
based on bringing the size
and growth rate of the human population into balance
with the earth's ability to support humans and other
species sustainably
■
An
economic and political revolution
in which we use
economic systems to reward environmentally benefi-
cial behavior and discourage environmentally harm-
ful behavior
Becoming Better Environmental Citizens
We can help make the world a better place by not
falling into mental traps that lead to denial and
inaction and by keeping our empowering feelings of
hope slightly ahead of our immobilizing feelings of
despair.
We all make some direct or indirect contributions to
the environmental problems we face. However, be-
cause we do not want to feel guilty about the environ-
mental harm we may be creating, we try not to think
about this issue too much—a path that can lead to de-
nial and inaction.
Analysts suggest that we move beyond fear, de-
nial, apathy, and guilt to more responsible environ-
mental actions in our daily lives by recognizing and
avoiding common mental traps that lead to denial, in-
difference, and inaction. These traps include
gloom-
and-doom pessimism
(it is hopeless),
blind technological
optimism
(science and technofixes will save us),
fatalism
(we have no control over our actions and the future),
extrapolation to infinity
(if I cannot change the entire
world quickly, I will not try to change any of it),
paraly-
sis by analysis
(searching for the perfect worldview,
