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Nature and Society Editorial - December 2005 - January 2006 As we approach Christmas headlines announce the expected record spending and people tend to ask “Have you done your Christmas shopping yet?” So have you done your shopping and what do your want for Christmas? A small exhibition mounted by ChildFund Australia, that is currently at Questacon in Canberra, gives us a different perspective on this shopping spree. Called “Not sold in stores” it features toys made by children in some of the most dollar-poor countries in Africa and Asia. The inspiration for the exhibition came when Dr Schultz, the American director of ChildFund International, was travelling in Africa. He saw a boy playing with a boat made out of an old thong, a plastic bag and a stick. He complimented the boy, who promptly gave him the boat. That toy is one of the least sophisticated in the exhibition. There are dolls and toy animals made from plant fibre and scrap material, musical instruments, cars, bicycles, a soccer ball made out of plastic bags and a petrol tanker made from pesticide spray cans. The makers own very little, but they are creative and happy to share what they have. Humans in general need to be creative and to share, whatever their personal level of wealth. Although we have all been shocked by the enormity of natural and unnatural disasters of recent years, they have shown that many people everywhere are willing to share both goods and money to help alleviate the ensuing suffering. The other trait displayed by the ChildFund children is creativity. That too is common to all humanity. Creativity combined with curiosity have given us science, a wonderful gift that has benefited humankind in many ways. But it is not uniformly beneficial, for as we have learnt to exploit the world’s resources with ever more technical skill we find that we do harm as well as good. This reflection reminds me of the Greek legend of Pandora’s box, the present Pandora was given by the gods, who instructed her not to open it (parallels there with the Tree of Knowledge in Eden). Pandora could not control her curiosity, so took a peek inside. As she lifted the lid, out flew all the ills humankind is heir to: pestilence, famine war, the whole works. Once they were out they could not be put back. But in the bottom of the box was a small, silvery thing – Hope. Hope remained. Maybe that is why, when Barbara Ward, the British economist and environmental commentator, was asked whether we can reconcile conservation and development, she replied that nobody knows but we have a duty to hope. Certainly we need hope. Without it we slump into misery and despair. People are paralysed by hopelessness, or they resent being told that the sky is falling and discount it completely. Returning to Pandora (whose name means all-gifted), she was sent by the gods to punish all humankind for Prometheus’ effrontery (sin) in stealing fire from the gods. Fire was obviously very important for the ancients, not only for comfort and cooking but for the emerging technology of smelting metals. When the legend originated no one could have realised how significant that was. Fire, along with the demand for building and shipbuilding, led to the deforestation of the Middle East and the Mediterranean. It enabled the advance of the bronze and iron ages. Europe was saved from disaster as wood ran out by the discovery that coal would do the job, ushering in the age of steam. Humans survived ‘peak wood’; now they are facing ‘peak oil’, and we still have all Pandora’s legacy to live with. By now, however, our ever-growing wants, and demands on the natural world are so obvious that many thoughtful people are greatly concerned. For solutions we can turn partly to our wonderful technological prowess but we must also reduce our demands on the world. The understanding that we are part of the natural world, on a finite planet, and that we must live within the planet’s regenerative capacity is growing, although too slowly. That understanding is what NSF’s Futures Forums seek to address (see last issue). So, though we must hope, we must not just hope that a technological fix will solve our problems and allow our profligacy to continue. We must hope and work to get governments to change their policies, businesses to lead the way in wise resource use. New technologies are available to reduce energy use, build better houses, cut back on waste, and technology will improve further. But we must be prepared to let go of the ‘more is better, growth is good’ mantra that has been espoused for so long. For our Christmas gift to the world, we would wish for a brighter, sustainable and more peaceful world. For our New Year’s Resolution we must resolve to keep working towards that end, and keep beavering away furiously. Have a convivial Christmas with good company, but try not to overconsume anything!
December 2005 - January 2006 edition accessible here
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