Louie
SaraJThe Tipping Point
April 27th 2007 02:42
Ok, Ok, so I am currently reading Malcolm Gladwells book “The Tipping Point” hence the unoriginal blog name. But – there is another reason besides plagiarism: everyday momentum seems to be building and everyday Climate Change seems to becomes a bigger and bigger issue which creeps up the priority pathway.
Malcom Gladwells book helps us to explain these changes. He talks about how “epidemics” are created, and how things (like fashion trends I guess) go from being something a few wear, to something everyone wants or needs. How do you get everyone to jump on the bandwagon? And can we do it with Climate Change?
I’ve been involved in an online forum which goes until the end of the month. There is some really interesting thinkers in it, and it has largely been about “where we are” at the moment, and whether to solve this problem we need a paradigm shift in the way people think. The forum discussion has been about a move from “Anthropocentrism to Ecocentrism” – or from people first to Ecology first. Personally, I am not that much of a philosophiser – although I totally agree Humans should move away from considering only ourselves but is it the case that if we move too far into Ecocentrism we can start to shun responsibility and think we are not so in control of the situation? For example, in ecology, you learn about succession. In a disturbed environment – for arguments sake, lets say after a Fire - the first species to establish will be the ones who can adapt to the change the fastest. Gradually, these colonists (as they are technically referred to) will change the environment and later successional species will establish and start to grow while outcompeting the colonists. For example gorse or broom are colonists, whereas larger canopy trees are generally later successional species (I would argue not Gum trees though – those things can grow anywhere!). When the later successional species establish, they take the sunlight and so the gorse dies off and so, it always appeared to me, those colonist species seemed to create an environment which in the end would better support other species. I hope that makes sense… I don’t think I will quit my job and become an ecology teacher any time soon!
Anyway, the depth of my philosophical musings is this. With Climate Change – are we at risk of being the colonists? Are we creating an environment which over time will become uninhabitable for us, but more suited to other species? And, if we move to Ecocentrism, is that a way of saying it doesn’t matter if we wipe ourselves out, the earth will be better off without us and its just a natural process of succession? I don’t have those answers (maybe thats why Im not such a good philosophiser).
So back to the Tipping Point. We are obviously getting closer to it, but how do we make sure we have the right focus? Do we really need to move away from considering ourselves first, or is it better that we step up and take responsibility for our own emissions in order to combat this problem. Whatever our focus, we seem to be at a stage right now where there is a realisation Carbon Emissions are the cause of this problem. There are not many still arguing against that. Now we need to decide what the appropriate action is… and this is going to be the hard part.
We need to grow an environmental movement, that’s for sure. I think its too difficult to have people move away from a place where we consider ourselves first – that goes against our strongest instinct: survival. But we need a movement recognising that our culture of use and throw away, buy, buy, buy and grow our gross domestic product at all costs is not going to lead us anywhere but to our own extinction. But how can you make a movement like this carry? I want to own an Aston Martin DB9 one day… [quiet moment of reflection for me]… where was I? Oh, my point is – will people support an environmental movement that means they have to give up some of lifes little luxuries?
Can turning off our lights, taking public transport, not buying products covered in plastic, converting to renewable energy, having recycled rain water tanks for irrigation or using grey, or even blackwater and sacrificing having an Aston etc… really be the basis of something we can make fashionable to the extent that it becomes a movement. I hope so.
Malcom Gladwells book helps us to explain these changes. He talks about how “epidemics” are created, and how things (like fashion trends I guess) go from being something a few wear, to something everyone wants or needs. How do you get everyone to jump on the bandwagon? And can we do it with Climate Change?
I’ve been involved in an online forum which goes until the end of the month. There is some really interesting thinkers in it, and it has largely been about “where we are” at the moment, and whether to solve this problem we need a paradigm shift in the way people think. The forum discussion has been about a move from “Anthropocentrism to Ecocentrism” – or from people first to Ecology first. Personally, I am not that much of a philosophiser – although I totally agree Humans should move away from considering only ourselves but is it the case that if we move too far into Ecocentrism we can start to shun responsibility and think we are not so in control of the situation? For example, in ecology, you learn about succession. In a disturbed environment – for arguments sake, lets say after a Fire - the first species to establish will be the ones who can adapt to the change the fastest. Gradually, these colonists (as they are technically referred to) will change the environment and later successional species will establish and start to grow while outcompeting the colonists. For example gorse or broom are colonists, whereas larger canopy trees are generally later successional species (I would argue not Gum trees though – those things can grow anywhere!). When the later successional species establish, they take the sunlight and so the gorse dies off and so, it always appeared to me, those colonist species seemed to create an environment which in the end would better support other species. I hope that makes sense… I don’t think I will quit my job and become an ecology teacher any time soon!
Anyway, the depth of my philosophical musings is this. With Climate Change – are we at risk of being the colonists? Are we creating an environment which over time will become uninhabitable for us, but more suited to other species? And, if we move to Ecocentrism, is that a way of saying it doesn’t matter if we wipe ourselves out, the earth will be better off without us and its just a natural process of succession? I don’t have those answers (maybe thats why Im not such a good philosophiser).
So back to the Tipping Point. We are obviously getting closer to it, but how do we make sure we have the right focus? Do we really need to move away from considering ourselves first, or is it better that we step up and take responsibility for our own emissions in order to combat this problem. Whatever our focus, we seem to be at a stage right now where there is a realisation Carbon Emissions are the cause of this problem. There are not many still arguing against that. Now we need to decide what the appropriate action is… and this is going to be the hard part.
We need to grow an environmental movement, that’s for sure. I think its too difficult to have people move away from a place where we consider ourselves first – that goes against our strongest instinct: survival. But we need a movement recognising that our culture of use and throw away, buy, buy, buy and grow our gross domestic product at all costs is not going to lead us anywhere but to our own extinction. But how can you make a movement like this carry? I want to own an Aston Martin DB9 one day… [quiet moment of reflection for me]… where was I? Oh, my point is – will people support an environmental movement that means they have to give up some of lifes little luxuries?
Can turning off our lights, taking public transport, not buying products covered in plastic, converting to renewable energy, having recycled rain water tanks for irrigation or using grey, or even blackwater and sacrificing having an Aston etc… really be the basis of something we can make fashionable to the extent that it becomes a movement. I hope so.
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