The Sustainability Revolution. Please read and ad your insights

Ecology Meets Economy
By Michael Alexander Kurz
The future is an idea. As we endeavor to sustain our lives, we are realizing that how we obtain our vital elements do not bestow a future. Humanity’s great powers in productivity has instilled prosperity to modern societies, but has also emitted byproducts of deterioration, destruction, and disillusionment (Costanza 1-3). We stand at the threshold of irreparable change when species go extinct and ecosystems become unlivable. The force of adaptation can guide us to a world of diverse life and coexistence. Just as the Industrial Revolution gave birth to increased productivity, growth, and innovation; the Sustainable Revolution will provide efficiencies in resources, infrastructure, and energy (Hawken, Lovins, L. Hunter Lovins 1-10).
There are those who believe that economy and ecology are two different entities that cannot coincide. However, if we only rely on one aspect of existence the other will surely cease to exist. Only when we unite our actions with the processes of the planet can humanity truly prosper in this environment. Before, pollution, habitat destruction, and waste were all negative externalities placed outside of our Free Market System (Beder 12-15). Today, businesses are discovering that helping the planet also helps their bottom line. Environmentalism incorporated has many possibilities for new jobs, new markets, and a new mindset. Now, we can better assess the issues and use the ingenuity of business and technology to enrich our economy and work towards the betterment of the Earth. While some protest that stewardship of our natural capital (living systems, resources, ecosystems) will only stagnate the economy, others are finding that emphasis on natural capital is the key to the future of industry (Goldemberg 5-7). Even more people are becoming conscious of the deadly consequences related to exhaustion of natural capital.
I am fortunate to live in a place where people worship Mother Nature’s majesty, a sovereignty that was drawn around a kingdom of Nature’s power on Earth. This place that I call home is Colorado. It is also home to the most diverse lakes, rivers, mountains, valleys, meadows, and forests in America. These elements sustain our lives. Coincidentally, the elements that we are comprised of also belong to nature. We are created by natural laws and when we die we will assimilate back through natural laws. These laws hold true for all life forms that dwell on Earth. This is not a new concept or an idea only held by certain groups. Man has been tied to nature as long as mankind has experienced life.
For Colorado, natural consciousness originates from the indigenous Ute, Cheyenne, Pueblo, Arapaho, Apache, and Shoshone tribes. For example, the Ute people are the oldest living residents of Colorado. The reason why they migrated South through the Rocky Mountains is a mystery. Their choice of habitat was reflected through adaptation, culture, and religion. It is my belief that they chose Colorado so they could live with nature, protected from other tribes by the land’s high peaks. The Ute people’s embrace of the western mountains even shielded them from European advances longer than most other tribes (http://www.native-languages.org/colorado.htm). The Ute tribe is best known for their dance ceremonies. Their most important was the Sundance Ceremony. During this ceremony there was believed to be a spiritual connection between the dancers and the Great Spirit. Traditionally, these spirits were elements of nature. Through their visions of the natural spirit, it was believed that the Great Spirit would ordain them with the “medicine power” (http://www.native-languages.org/colorado.htm). This proves that not only has mankind had a relationship with nature but also that mankind is inspired by nature to heal. The present day inhabitants of Colorado are beginning to experience the same guidance by nature. As we become more enlightened to the threats to our environment, we turn to nature as a guide for the power to heal these ailments. The people of Colorado are similarly searching for a path that will lead to purification and longevity for all species. People connected by fundamental values and associations are the orators of this story, the laborers of this project, and the basis for further change. Colorado, as a collective group of people, is leading by example as government, industry, and society journey down the path to sustainable development. The Governor of Colorado, Bill Ritter Jr., has taken the task of addressing the ecological problems that Colorado faces today. His strategy to address Global Warming is within his proposed Colorado Climate Action Plan. He raises a very important question: “Can Coloradans really make a difference? I believe we can, and that we have a moral obligation to try. In setting and achieving our climate action goals, we will show leadership as a state, engage with neighboring states in a regional effort, and call upon the federal government to take strong actions on national initiatives,” (Ritter 2). In April, 2007 the governor of Colorado, Bill Ritter, passed the Greening of State Executive Orders. These orders make it the responsibility of state departments, offices, and agencies to take a leadership role in energy efficiency, recycling, and purchasing standards. These actions, combined with thousands of other endeavors by local and private organizations as well as industry and individuals, are the driving labor for a community built by sustainable means (www.colorado.gov/energy).
The purpose of these steps is to challenge our habits, so that we may alter them to better suit the future. Unity, respect, preservation, and love of the world are what I believe to be the answers to the problems our planet faces today. It is also my belief that sustainability is the path to these virtues. Paul Hawken, Amory Lovins, and L. Hunter Lovins are authors of the book, Natural Capitalism, they take this position in the preface of their book:
We have lived by the assumption that what was good for us would be good for the world. We have been wrong. We must change our lives, so that it will be possible to live by the contrary assumption that what is good for the world will be good for us. And that requires that we make the effort to know the world and to learn what is good for it. We must learn to cooperate in its processes, and to yield to its limits. But even more important, we must learn to acknowledge that creation is full of mystery; we will never clearly understand it. We must abandon arrogance and stand in awe. We must recover the sense of the majesty of the creation, and the ability to be worshipful in its presence. For it is only on that condition of humility and reverence before the world that our species will be able to remain in it (Hawken, Lovins, L. Hunter Lovins 1-10).
We have lost the will to protect the world around us and have declined to be part of the solution, so we have become the entire problem. We have declined to take responsibility for our planet and handed its fate to the bidding of lobbyists and politicians. By accepting responsibility we find purpose, and when we act with purpose the world is placed back in our hands. By following the path toward sustainability, we can enlighten our future, provide the framework for social reform, and earn wealth currency cannot buy.
The beliefs of the world we wish to live in, the principles we put into practice, and the values we place on the environment are the elements needed for a sustainable future. Andres R. Edwards is an educator who specializes in sustainability education programs. In his book, The Sustainability Revolution, Edwards focuses on the principles needed for change. He is very well versed in the ideological changes that are happening around the world and what they instill for future generations. According to Edwards, “The Sustainability Revolution draws its significance and global impact from a wide spectrum of interests with common fundamental values,” (Edwards 2). This revolution of thinking will shift the way we perceive profit, success, and opportunity. Edwards elaborates when he describes the implications of this change. “Like the Industrial Revolution, the Sustainability Revolution is far-reaching and is having a profound impact, shaping everything from the places we live and work to the foods we eat and the endeavors we pursue as individuals and as communities,” (Edwards 2).
Today we walk a path leading to the destruction of our world. If we remain on this path many life-forms will die out and forever be lost. Edwards elaborates when he illustrates our change to sustainability: “The present unsustainable path marked by an unrelenting economy that methodically depletes the Earth’s ecosystems will have to change… The Sustainability Revolution presents an alternative that supports economic viability and healthy ecosystems by modifying consumption patterns and implementing a more equitable social framework,” (Edwards 2-3). By modifying consumption patterns, we are reducing the amount of resources and impact needed to produce goods. We are also utilizing waste for revenue, reusing waste for operations, and recycling waste to create more products. When Edwards emphasizes a more equitable social framework, he is referring to the new values we must place on natural life, including human rights. He is also referring to new methodologies and principles needed to harvest resources efficiently and safely. Essentially, a more equitable social framework needs a different view of success and profit for all creation. The future of industry is dependant on the natural life processes that the Earth bestows upon us for free. Therefore, the future of business is reliant on adaptation to the processes of the Earth. This means we must change our current linear operation process, where resources and goods are manufactured then discarded as waste, into a cyclical form. Just as the Earth’s natural processes cycle from one form to another, so must our operations cycle back through to eliminate waste.
Even though we are seeing production, consumption, and depletion at a large scale, the Sustainability Revolution is emerging as a life support system for the economical, ecological, and social entities of society. Sustainability bestows a great diversity of benefits and opportunities for those that develop under its laws. A prime example is the Eaton School District in Weld County, Colorado. In 2005, the small rural school district of Eaton was searching for a better facility that could improve education and comfort. With the help of the Government Energy Office of Colorado, Eaton was able to partake in performance contracting. This project was designed to better facilitate the learning experience of their students, significantly decrease their utility costs, and improve comfort within the new school building. The beauty of this was that this small rural school was able to erect a sustainable monument to education, with the costs paid by the savings brought by these improvements. These improvements began to increase much like a snowball effect as the case study suggests: “A performance contract uses energy and water saving to fund capital equipment purchases… What started as a simple cooling upgrade became a 3.5 million dollar facilities improvement project that required zero capital funds from the district,” (http://www.colorado.gov/energy/). In addition to this, the Eaton School District earned millions of dollars in grants for their work. The Colorado Department of Education awarded the school with five construction grants that totaled $2.2 million. They also received $500,000 from The Department of Local Affairs. These grants were also accompanied by $50,000 in rebates from Xcel Energy for lighting upgrades and guaranteed savings of $95,889 annually. The case study of this project explains additional opportunities that could be achieved through sustainable development: “This supplemental funding allowed Eaton to increase the scope of the project dramatically and incorporate additional efficiency measures such as new windows, several boiler replacements, and a solar hot water system for their swimming pool,” (http://www.colorado.gov/energy/). The most important benefit of this endeavor was the improved learning environment for all Eaton’s students, who now learn within a modern marvel of sustainable development with no drain on their school’s capacity to provide other services. At the same time, the school gained much needed infrastructure upgrades, improved health and safety of all that learn and work within the building and a significantly reduced carbon foot print (http://www.colorado.gov/energy/). The influence of this project now leads other establishments to integrate renewable energy into their business plans. This is merely an indicator of the successes that can be obtained through sustainability. It will take much more for a revolution of ideas to take hold and become a revolution in accomplishments.
In any revolution there are three phases: genesis, critical mass, and diffusion (Edwards 3). The genesis of the Industrial Revolution was caused by the acquisition of precious metals with the help of “technological innovations, increased production, and economic specialization,” (Edwards 3). These elements created modern industry and expanded the money economy. The origin of the Sustainability Revolution was first conceived in 1972 at the United Nations Conference pertaining to the “Human Environment” (Edwards 3-4). Leaders coming together to discuss the correlation between their nations and the environment was the first step in the birth of sustainability. The critical mass phase of the Industrial Revolution was the improvement of the engine to power factories and machinery. The next step for sustainability started at the 1992 Earth Summit when 182 world leaders gathered to discuss the depletion of Earth’s ecosystems. Agenda 21 and the Brundtland Report were the result of this discussion. The creation of Agenda 21 became a comprehensive program run by the United Nations to take action globally, nationally, and locally through government entities (Edwards 4). This established a way to monitor future actions and gave environmentalism an international presence. The Brundtland Report defined sustainable development as: “… development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generation to meet their own needs,” (Edwards 17). In addition to these proclamations, the invention of the personal computer followed by the development of the internet, gave ideas a vehicle to be spread directly to individuals. Environmental organizations now have media outlets with millions of users who can send feedback with a simple click. Networking among organizations, among individuals, and between firms and customers is a significant force in driving awareness and saving resources. Diffusion is the last phase to a revolution of ideas and methods. The Industrial Revolution achieved this when technology and methodology migrated from nation to nation (Edwards 4). Sustainability has not yet become a worldwide institution. However, advances in technology, renewable energy, and awareness of ecological issues are becoming more significant in the minds of humanity. Colorado, especially, has many things to lose with the loss of ecological health. As Bill Ritter indicates, this state is seeing many changes in the inherent natural scheme of our state: “ Observations in recent decades show that Colorado is seeing: Shorter and warmer winters, with a thinner snow pack and earlier spring runoff, less precipitation overall, and more falling as rain than snow, longer periods of drought, more wildfires, burning twice as many acres each year than before 1980, widespread beetle infestations wiping out pine forests, and die-off in aspen stands, rapid spread of West Nile virus due to higher summer temperatures,” (Ritter 7). In the future we may see dramatic increases to these issues along with new problems. According to Ritter, and his environmental team, these consequences include: “Much lower flows in rivers in the summer months and a greater vulnerability to drought, movement of plant and animal species to higher elevations and latitudes, high-elevation habitats will become fragmented, and warmer winter temperatures reduce winterkill of beetles, warmer summer temperatures allow faster insect life cycles,” (7). Let us not forget that Colorado is our nation’s 2nd biggest water shed and responsible for millions of gallons of water flowing to many sectors of America’s agriculture. Because of these threats, men and women throughout Colorado are taking precautions towards the environment in which they inhabit. Though these advancements are modest, the first investments and designs toward sustainable projects also make approximately 80-90 percent of their economic and ecological costs inevitable (Hawken, Lovins, L. Hunter Lovins 111). Meaning, the first steps toward preservation and conservation are the catalysts for a sustainable future.
Another way in which Colorado is getting involved is through alliances and organizations sharing fundamental values and goals. The Alliance for a Sustainable Colorado is bound by its goal to: “To catalyze the shift to a truly sustainable world by fostering collaboration among nonprofits, businesses, governments, and academia,” (http://sustainablecolorado.org/). Their long term goals are to build a center where leaders may discuss issues and share them with the rest of Colorado. This is a pivotal step in changing the way we think and act. This organization and many others much like it are connected by fundamental principles and values that are upheld to protect our natural inheritance. These large networks of private organizations make up the complex web of environmental consciousness. This decentralized collection of diverse point of views, objectives, and solutions are what will be the defining voice in sustainability. The objectives of The Alliance for a Sustainable Colorado is as follows: “protect and preserve the integrity of biological and natural systems, respect the natural environment and the limits of the planet’s finite resources, protect and promote the civil rights of all Coloradans, measure profitability not just in dollars, but in quality of life and equality of opportunity,” (http://sustainablecolorado.org/). The strategies used to make these objectives reality include providing means to communication, creating a will to unite and working for the common good, and establishing reasoning and incentives for collaboration (http://sustainablecolorado.org/). Another source for ecological advocacy is The Colorado Department of Natural Resources. Their mission statement reads: “The Colorado Department of Natural Resources was created with a mission to develop, preserve and enhance the state's natural resources for the benefit and enjoyment of current and future citizens and visitors,” (http://dnr.state.co.us/). Colorado’s Department of Natural Resources provides the basis for harvesting resources for the good of the people and the environment from which they came. These collections of citizens and their concern for their home has fostered a vehicle in which all people may get involved and strive to be the difference they wish to see.
It is my belief that our greatest work towards changing the future is education. Colorado has become a living school for the environmental implications that control our lives. Colorado State University has adopted a new view of the world and is educating the next generation of artists, business men and women, engineers, and scientists about the benefits of sustainable development. This institution is the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD). The influence of this institute of learning is described within their website: “The International Institute for Sustainable Development at Colorado State University provides innovative trainings in community-based development, consultation, evaluation and project support services for governments, multinational non-governmental organizations, individuals and community-based organizations around the world,” (http://www.colostate.edu/Orgs/IISD/). The courses studied include: Approaches to Community Development, Methods for Sustaining Development, and Role of Effective Leadership in Sustainable Community Development. These courses will aid students in finding the answers to sustainability. This goes to show that many people are rising to the issues and doing what they can do to facilitate training, research, and consultation. Knowledge is the key to advancing towards the common good for all life-organisms.
The key word in sustainability is efficiency. Paul Hawken, Amory Lovins, and L. Hunter Lovins are the so-called guides down the path of sustainability. They have showed many businesses how to profit by helping the environment. This is a novel idea in an age where exhaustion of resources is preconceived as inevitable. In their book, Natural Capitalism, they describe efficiency in relation to sustainability:
In manufacturing, transportation, forestry, construction, energy, and other industrial sectors, mounting empirical evidence suggests that radical improvements in resource productivity are both practical and cost-effective, even in the most modern industries… These efficiencies transcend the marginal gains in performance that industry constantly seeks as part of its evolution (Hawken, Lovins, L. Hunter Lovins 12-13).
Efficiency is defined as the amount of output provided per unit of input. Naturally, to obtain a high level of efficiency you have to learn to do more with less (Hawken, Lovins, L. Hunter Lovins 12-13). Now, this is something far different to what modern society is used to. Our capitalistic nature strengthened by the materialistic world we have built has inspired greed and envy. Lewis Mumford, a historian of science and technology, specialized in the study of urban cities. He agrees with Lovins when he states: “[The Market Economy] possesses all the Seven Deadly Sins except sloth,” (Hawken, Lovins, L. Hunter Lovins 261). However, markets are truly powerful tools that bring great effectiveness when done right. Paul Hawken, Amory Lovins, and his wife L. Hunter Lovins explain our market system and how it correlates with natural capital:
The success of markets, when they work well, is worth the effort. Their ingenuity, their rapid feedback, and their diverse, dispersed, resourceful, highly motivated agents give markets unrivaled effectiveness. Many of the excesses of markets can be compensated for by steering their immense forces in more creative and constructive directions… The goal of natural capitalism is to extend the sound principles of the market to all sources of material value, not just to those that by accidents of history were first appropriated into the market system (Hawken, Lovins, L. Hunter Lovins 260-261).
When they say all sources of material value they speak of capital. There are four types of capital needed in order for a business to survive: human capital, financial capital, manufactured capital, and natural capital. Human capital consists of labor, intelligence, culture, and organization (Hawken, Lovins, L. Hunter Lovins 4). Financial capital is made up of investments, cash, and monetary instruments (banks, loans, etc.) (4). Manufactured capital is in the form of factories, tools, machines, and the infrastructure that ties it all together (4). Lastly, the origin of all other capitals is natural capital. It consists of all the resources in existence, all living systems that make life possible, and “ecosystem services” (4). We may take it for granted but the Earth provides services for us everyday without charge. Food, houses, cars, highways, oxygen, water, vitamins, minerals, proteins are all products made from Mother Nature. The oxygen and carbon-dioxide cycle is another important service that Lovins points out: “One of nature’s most critical cycles is the continual exchange of carbon dioxide and oxygen among plants and animals,” (Hawken, Lovins, L. Hunter Lovins). Unfortunately, thanks to our addiction to fossil fuels, carbon dioxide is building up in our atmosphere. Our carbon emissions are exceeding the ability of natural systems to recycle them. This is no different to how excessive habitat destruction leads to the death of a species before they can grow as a population. Now, it is hard to put a price on natural capital. Anything that we cannot live without and cannot replace would become priceless. Human capital is also a very important form of capital. It is something that also cannot be replaced by other forms of capital. We must apply the significance of these two elements if we wish to change the injustices done to humanity and the environment.
Now that we have established the basic elements that sustain the natural realm and the human realm, the challenge is how we make these elements coincide without one form taking away from another. This brings us to our currently held institution of controlling these elements, capitalism. We are all familiar with the profligate nature of this economic system. Capitalism is only concerned with its own life cycle, not taking in account for the natural capital that is keeping it alive (Manes 30-50). A system for capitalism as if the environment had the value, that it so rightly deserves, would be significantly different. Lovins, Hawken, and L. Hunter Lovins describe the new form of capitalism:
The environment is not a minor factor of production but rather is an envelope containing, provisioning, and sustaining the entire economy… The limiting factor to future economic development is the availability and functionality of natural capital, in particular, life-supporting services that have no substitutes and currently have no market value… One of the keys to the most beneficial employment of people, money, and the environment is radical increases in resource productivity (Hawken, Lovins, L. Hunter Lovins 9).
In order for economy and ecology to coincide, we must first realize that they depend on each other. Any excesses produced only complicate our lives and the life of the planet. This waste will be our main focal point as we travel towards sustainability. Lovins describes the different kinds of waste within business in the passage: “Misconceived or badly designed business systems, population growth, and wasteful patterns of consumption are the primary causes of the loss of natural capital, and all three must be addressed to achieve a sustainable economy,” (9).
This movement is still in its infancy, so it will take small deliberated baby steps to finally attain our goal of complete sustainability. Although this movement seems to be moving slowly, I can see a shift in attitude all around me. This state, and the people living within it, has taken initiatives through legislation, industry, and civic duty. A prime example of Colorado industry pitching in to lower its impact on the environment and educate other on sustainable operating processes is the Ski Industry. This industry is a precursor to other industries that is already seeing the impacts of environmental deterioration on its business (Lyon, Maxwell 47-48). They have combated this by utilizing renewable energy, encouraging recycling, and leading by example in stewardship of the environment.
We all must play a role in the betterment of our lives and the lives of other organisms that also call this planet home. Through this principle the excesses, waste, and injustices experienced by all living organisms can be dramatically reduced. This revolution of ideas is based on responsibility and love of our community. That entails everything from the trees that produce our oxygen to the rivers that quench our thirst. We belong to a miraculous chain of interdependence between life and Earth. The Sustainability Revolution is a movement based on the choices that we make as we see the implications for the future. We see the world that we would like to pass down to our children and grandchildren; through their eyes we can see the path ahead of us. This change is not an upheaval of society or a punishment on those that do not take responsibility for their actions. This is a movement based on necessary changes to preserve the world we live in and even change the problems we face so that our children do not have to live with the consequences. This is our future and it is our responsibility to ensure that it enfolds how we know it should.





















Bibliography
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