Good Humans

[Con't from my last post...]  People learn from people like Gary.  Correct, you can pick up any text or type into Google what ever question you have of animals: How to hold a scorpion or caiman, even how to humanely kill and freeze large rodents for python-food.  I think the first thing I did when I got home from meeting Gary was Google "what is a skink".  It lead me on a month long investigation of the evolution of lizards and snakes.  But beyond Gary's distracting, intriguing lifestyle exists important subtleties.  When you meet someone who represents something you haven't thought of, you detect it immediately. If you choose not to connect with that person it can become something intimidating.  Instead of being defensive or critical I've learned to take advantage of this position of unfamiliarity.  It can be very useful to understand someone like Gary, when you understand a different perspective you tend to learn something about yourself.  Unintentional learning is an experience but to realize you have changed in the process is surreal.


I want to introduce you to Manfred Max-Neef, a chilean economist and environmentalist.  He was the first to introduce to me the notion that there even existed an economist who is also an environmentalist.  David Suzuki also reminds us that "eco"system and "eco"nomics are the same...  we've just lost track of which of the two we humans have control over.

"This current economic crisis provides an opportunity to re-examine our priorities. For decades, scientists and environmentalists have been alarmed at global environmental degradation. Today, the oceans are depleted of fish while “dead zones”, immense islands of plastic, and acidification from dissolving carbon dioxide are having untold effects. We have altered the chemistry of the atmosphere with our emissions, causing the planet to heat up, and have cleared land of forests, along with hundreds of thousands of species. Using air, water, and soil as dumps for our industrial wastes, we have poisoned ourselves." -Suzuki

  We must understand that current economic strategies no longer provide a coherent framework.  If we want to achieve sustainable development we have to be more creative with solutions, more understanding of what an economy is.  The current practices are, very simply, not complimentary to the environment.  I don't know how to put it more simply because it is a simple concept: Economies rely on the environment, we must have a level of governing for these systems on a global scale.  No one country owns air or water, welcome to Earth Systems 101.  Even a four year old cannot resist or ignore this awareness. Unfortunately we predict and predict without being phased, we must either be in denial or totally accustomed to procrastination since we fail to recognize our behaviour is a global responsibility. We waste time that we do not have blaming and pointing while shovelling money at temporary solutions to keep certain companies going that face inevitable failure.  There must be economic, social and environmental balance to move toward any form of recovery. I see potential for humans through Manfred Max-Neef discussing the importance of love on a political level. Of course one must show compassion to offer any help to any person? Without love for the people how can there be respect for the people?  If we don't respect our people how could we have a conscience while making decisions on their behalf?  He was also the first in a position of political authority that I'd heard say "I say life, not human beings...".

1. The economy is to serve the people, not the people to serve the economy.

2. Development is about people and not about objects.

3. Growth is not the same as development, and development does not necessarily require growth.

4. No economy is possible in the absence of ecosystem services.

5. The economy is a subsystem of a larger, finite system: The biosphere. Hence permanent growth is impossible.

I shouldn't react so struck by Dr. Manfred Max-Neef.  His ideas are not especially overwhelming or new or even tactical.  They are clear, simple, logical and delivered with that sexy-adorable chilean accent. They are so easy to understand you have to wonder why this man is so different from everyone else.  It is unnerving that situations he places priority on, the objectives politics depend upon, are so foreign to the normal functioning of politics!  We should be accustomed to his perspective on development, people and environment.  What should shock and disturb us are governments that encourage it's people to pour money into "stuff" and into building when there is no soil from which to grow these "necessities".  What this ends up costing is life.  You might think 'this isn't affecting me, where is there trouble?'.  This is exactly what Manfred talks about when he says "...life, not human beings."  I feel the effects everyday because I refuse to ignore the signs.  I don't want to walk around oblivious to the bee's on the sidewalk in the middle of summer dancing moronically with confusion.  I'll spend the extra dollars on organic, locally grown food because there's a better chance it's not genetically modified.  Not that I could ever be sure since our government works with the food industry to keep labels off these products.  We're involved deeply in a dangerous experiment, and wether you know it or actively choose not to, we are paying dearly for this irresponsibility.


This vision of worth-through-consuption is inhuman and is not normal.  People don't see it because we've diluted our existence with the environment to an existence among the environment.  This way, we can remove ourselves from responsibility to maintain all other existing life which allows governments to fulfill the power agenda.  If we're happily consuming we're unfocused and attempting to fulfill something we don't understand so it's never ending.  If Manfred fearlessly and easily breaks down this compound of issues we spend loads of money on to complicate, why is no one paying any attention if he makes so much sense?  Where is his due publicity?  He has the answers, he has won awards for these answers and teaches in universities and is a council member of the World Future Council.  He is an author and lectures around the world, but no one I know has heard of him?  He is best known for elaborations of practicing economics as if people matter.  Why ignore his efforts to help us?  

No wonder Dr. Suzuki has the weight of the world on his shoulders, he's dealing with a bunch of maggots.