It’s a delicate balance
We arrived at the mess we are in with the fires, floods, and now, even threatened democracy, due to a lack of passion, power, and persuasion.
When people were warned about global warming, many responded with caring. The most caring, were, however, hijacked by the fossil fuel industry to make people feel that it was individual efforts that make a difference.
What makes a big difference?
It really is individual efforts, but most of those efforts have to do with bottom-up demand for bold action and leadership.
We tried to control our trash, but trashy politics was more powerful.
Consumption and exploitation are now the norms
We continued to sort our plastics and change our light bulbs without changing the system of electing courageous, visionary leaders.
Gaia keeps a well-regulated balance for so much diversity to make a sustaining biosphere.
Politics, rapacious capitalism, hoarding all resources, and exploiting all human and non-human diversity, can’t work with that methodology.
Emissions are higher than ever. Pandemics threaten to destabilize and pollute what we have left.
If we truly invest in green Ag, green energy, green jobs, green infrastructure, green defense, and green politics, that will go a long way.
But we need far more than practical and progressive efforts in the physical world.
A truly “green new deal” changes world thought completely.
Environmental justice has now gained ground as a movement in its own right. It is entirely connected to our choices. The global north cannot dump upon the global south with impunity anymore. Racism and sexism — or any oppressive exploitation — are being recognized as detrimental to our species.
The wealthy elite is being asked to pay their share both for past sins and future fixes. This is more than technology, this is worldwide, inclusion.
Thought and prayers
A total revolution in our values and even our spirituality is required.
That means a sense of purpose, hope, cooperation, and most of all belonging.
Ideas like zero waste, and a circular economy, are just the tools.
However late it may come for some, this is a planetary prayer for future life on earth. We must remain skeptical of motives, as we collaborate with, and not against, nature’s balance.
In other words, we must “follow the money,” even as we chase after livelihoods that are compatible with sustainability.
And that means green education for people to understand inclusion, diversity, and justice are human values. Human values that can embrace the rest of the creation, are currently threatened with loss of biodiversity, and extinction is key.
Until then, it is important to be vigilant about watching the legislators and making sure they are on the side of a living planet.
—
This post was previously published on medium.com.
***
You may also like these posts on The Good Men Project:
 White Fragility: Talking to White People About Racism |
 Escape the “Act Like a Man” Box |
 The Lack of Gentle Platonic Touch in Men’s Lives is a Killer |
 |
—
Photo credit: Margot RICHARD on Unsplash
