Collapse of Our Life Support System: Need of Green Economy

Pandemic offers people that they can change their lives when they must do so. So often, we have been told that people never accept the changes required to prevent the  climate breakdown. But the changes we need to make in order to alter environmental outcomes are actually much less severe than the changes we’re making now to prevent the pandemic from spreading. This shows that when we are called upon to act for the greater good, the great majority of people are prepared to do that, even if that means bearing a personal cost.

It is not the matter to ask people to stay at home and not to meet other people. It is the matter to ask them to make much smaller changes, alongside structural changes and changes in technology which will greatly reduce our environmental impacts. It has been observed these days that many people are suddenly realising that this normality which we have constructed in our minds, which might seem to last forever, is actually extremely fragile- if it can be so radically changed by one virus, imagine the changes that can be wrought by the steady collapse of our life support system, which is what we are facing.

To accept the threat of environmental change is to accept that so may of the stories we told ourselves, particularly the story about progress, which is often conflated with the idea of economic growth, may not be true. If economic growth, instead of taking us towards general prosperity, drives us to the edge of a cliff, then we must reassess much of our world view- a that’s a painful business. All change is painful but change in response to an existential threat is particularly something we would rather not engage with. People find it easier to deny the science than to accept the implications of it.

It is important to note that our economies world over are very much in the hands of government policy now- our economies are much more planned that market theorists tell us. So, governments now have an amazing opportunity to, without destabilizing anything, start directing industries in a different way. Rather than simply bailing out oil companies, for instance, governments could support them on condition that they move from building oil rigs and gas platforms to offshore wind turbines. This is not unprecedented. When the US entered the Second World War, for instance, it turned its economy around entirely- suddenly within a few months, civilian factories were producing fighter jets and amphibious vehicles. That was many years before digitization and just-in-time production. So, if this could be done then, similar change can occur now, moving things around very quickly to a green economy, instead of just reinflating the old damaging economy.

One very positive aspect has been flowering of mutual aid- in many communities around the world, people have helped each other to an unprecedented degree. people who can’t leave home have relied on volunteers to do their shopping for them, people have created networks to ensure that those isolating don’t fall into loneliness, technicians have come together to quickly design new PPEs, etc. We are seeing wonderful human ability to come together and help each other. We should build on this ability.

We must act collectively for the common good. The past few decades have been the age of selfish individualism. Anything which inspires us to break out of this behaviour will help in dealing with the greatest threat we’ve ever faced- the collapse of our life support systems. If we can see ourselves as members of communities engaged in mutual aid, then that is something very beneficial emerging from this situation- something we can truly build on towards our transformation.

Matter referenced:

George Monbiot, Environmental Writer, Conservationist, Campaigner and Journalist. Times Evoke, Times of India, Ahmedabad, Saturday, 11th July, 2020.

By: Dr. Bhawana Asnani.

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