This helps me appreciate a previous piece you wrote on why climate optimists are the real threat. If you think climate change is about to be stopped with a new technology and are hell bent on ignoring bio-diversity collapse, then you will of course not be taking the need to prepare for this seriously.
Fantastic as usual David! As a "fruitarian" I was fascinated to read what you wrote about fruit trees and how dependent they are, more than most other food crops, on a reliable, consistent climate. I've noticed that in recent years in the wild extremes of fruiting (or not) of my plum trees in Oregon. Now I've just got to convince my kids to move on to land and try to become regen farmers at the same time they are working jobs to support themselves and raise their kids. Don't even know where to start on that one . . .
So you're actually a fruitarian, eating only raw fruit? Who would've thought! I have a friend who was basically raw vegan for 20 years, following the teachings of one Guy Claude Burger (Instinctotherapy) - and he only had positive things to report about this diet. He remains healthy at almost 60 years of age, so I don't dispute that a diet like this can indeed be beneficial for some individuals. But, on a related note, a fruitarian influencer recently died of starvation on Koh Phangan...
As with so many other topics, I beg to differ on a few important details in the underlying justifications though - but that would be stuff for another essay!
Moreover, it's true: the situation is so damn difficult - especially when most family members remain trapped within the system, with limited opportunity (or motivation) to change that... Well, many things *will change eventually,* either way, but the longer we prolong the necessary & inevitable changes to our own lifestyle, the more chaotic it will be in the future.
Who was it that said "collapse now and beat the rush" - John Greer?
Yes that was John Greer. And ha ha, no.I'm not really a fruitarian.Just my favorite food and I need plenty of fruit all the time but yes I would probably starve if that's all I ate!
Thank you for articulating what I have struggled to for a long time. The binary thinking of "we need to stop climate change" and "what makes you hopeful" fall far short of the nuance we need now, like this piece. But much like it's true that far more people can, in various ways, participate in small-scale subsistence polyculture-based agriculture, the kind of nuance you present here is ALSO attainable. I think it's a kind of nuance people labored and leisured under for most of human history.
I'm so glad you enjoyed this rather lengthy piece - it's feedback like this that motivates me to keep going, to be honest. Thank you so much for your kind words, and for taking the time to share your perspective.
Late to the party reading this but it is a great summation of where we are standing at this point in history. The crops that get us through the next thousand years will often need to be different to the ones that got us this far.
Yeah, that's definitely another very important aspect - thanks for the link. I have the feeling the above essay could have easily been twice as long, but I had to cut it as short as possible; hence many a topic was swept under the rug for reasons of maintaining at least some remote semblance of brevity. Demanding 30 minutes of your attention is already more than I could ever ask for.
Another thing I thought about including (and that I now regret not having worked into the essay) is a discussion of *how* the food crisis will start playing out and make itself being felt for commoners throughout the world. Arnold Schroder (from the World Tree Center for Evolutionary Politics and Global Survival) said in an interview that - at first - the whole crisis will likely not even be talked about in those terms. It will be first noticed as *constantly rising food prices* for the consumer (which has already been happening for some years), and the media will try their best to conceal (or turn a blind eye to) the broader issue underlying this trend. Anything to keep the peace and don't frighten the masses - maintain the illusion at any cost, for as long as anyhow possible.
So we will hear a lot about "inflation," "rising costs," "sanctions" and "economic turmoil" - and comparatively little about failed harvests and crop losses. People will complain, and play round after round of the blame game, pointing to politicians, policy makers, farmers, scientists, corporations... Without being fully able to comprehend the sheer magnitude of the flood that's about to be unleashed.
Beautifully written, and powerfully put. We are on a similar journey into climate choas, setting up food growing and sharing systems for our small isolated community in the face of the coming storm. It's interesting to hear your wisdom from a fruit growers perspective. It gives context to our temperate region trials of failed fruit crops. Thank you.
Thank you so much for sharing your perspective, I'm glad my writing resonates! It seems most of what I do in my writing lately is to simply spell out "difficult truths," things that a great many people are already aware of or are able to perceive on some level. But I've found that *talking about those issues* - hard as it is - is always better than ignoring them. The cognitive dissonance & mental exhaustion resulting from this repression of terrifying but inevitable truths is even more harmful in the long term than being honest, grieving.... and consequently getting busy saving whatever might be saved.
I am often asked why I bother, if "it's all doomed, anyway", and my response always is that nothing is set in stone. There are too many variables for anyone to honestly know what will happen. But, if I can ensure that the innocent lives of the non-humans that surround me can continue without pain and suffering for awhile longer, then that's worth doing. The only way I can do that is by being honest about what is happening right now. Repression serves no-one.
David, I am so glad we have stumbled upon one another. Reading your work has left me with an overwhelming sense of gratitude. Among the chaos of these *really* difficult truths, finding someone grounded in the local land of Thailand, dedicating every ounce of their energy to healing and understanding it, feels incredibly rare.
Your words aren't just theory or intellectual analysis, in tending to the earth and witnessing and living with these struggles first hand makes your story that much richer. Honestly, your writing has really inspired me - to know that even things are 'falling apart', there are people who choose to nurture and connect with the things that really matter.
On your other pieces, I have to say that I loved that you didn't hold back when calling out 7-Eleven's greenwashing tactics. So refreshing, honest and much needed!
It feels like we're both trying to hold onto something real in the middle of it all and I'm really grateful for this connection, it feels meaningful in ways that I didn't expect.
I'm still surprised when people occasionally tell me those kinds of things - for me, most of my essays are simply overly extensive, angry rants I do (mostly) to let off steam!
And, from the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU for your acknowledgement of what we're doing here - we haven't met many Thai people who understand (let alone appreciate!) what we're trying to accomplish with our project. Really, you have no idea how much this means to me.
Most of the villagers think we're batshit crazy. Or secret millionaires that are at the same time world-champion-level ขี้เหนียว, and who can thus afford to waste their time with things other than growing massive durian for the Chinese middle class. Many disregard our experiments as playful pastimes, merely ทำเล่น.
Damn, you dug down deep into my archive... It's somehow a bit scary to think about how easily accessible my personal thoughts are - well, I should have thought about that earlier! In case you saw it, I hope my rather smug piece on AI didn't offend you, hahaha
As soon as I have some time, I will have to go through a LOT more of your essays as well. (Just finished your latest piece and absolutely loved it. I'll share some more thoughts in the comments ASAP.) Incidentally (or not?) many of our thoughts, fears and hopes (& perhaps even dreams) seem to overlap substantially, and we share quite a few common interests and views. I had to laugh when I saw that you published a piece on Elon fucking Musk - can't wait to read that one! I'm sure there will be plenty that I'll agree with, and many more perspectives/issues I haven't even considered thus far.
Again, I'm so glad we've connected! Looking forward to reading your work and private correspondence!
Your essays are definitely long and admittedly I am nowhere as hardcore as you when it comes to reading! But that said, I enjoyed every word you've written, from the simple fact that they're genuine, passionate and rational. And the fact that we clicked in the first instance also goes to show that we've been noticing and rationalising the same set of patterns.
In some ways, I can imagine what it feels like being surrounded by people who think you're out of your mind. Since my husband and I relocated back to Bangkok four years ago, it's been a constant "social" battles with his family, my family and our friends. When you're not chasing the same things as everyone else is, suddenly no one takes the time to understand you anymore. So from where I stand, what you and Karn are doing is both brave and essential. I've been talking about you and your project non-stop with my husband for days now and the fact that you're holding space for experimentation and openly sharing them, for ecology newbie like me to follow and discover is just super impressive.
Not sure if you came across a role-playing game called "Stardew Valley" before. It was created by an indie developer - possibly was going through depression himself - took him 4.5 years to create everything himself from designing, composing the music, and programming. It became such a hit within the gaming community and it's just funny because, whatever you're doing is very similar to what the players have to do in the game. Inheriting a dilapidated farm, and having to clear the land and become the best farmer as well as good community member fighting against a giant corporation.
Thanks again for the kind words. My to-read list actually grows longer and longer the more I read, so I'm forever behind on how much there is to learn. One human lifetime isn't enough to deal with the absolute overabundance of interesting material that's out there today.
I can definitely relate to the struggle of thinking differently in a (culturally tight) collectivist culture.
"Why don't you do something that pays better?"
"What's the point of being so stubborn?"
"Why even bother wasting your time with this?"
"What shall the neighbors think?"
"Don't you care what others think of you?"
"Ah, you worry/think too much!"
I stopped counting how many times people have given us unwanted business advice so we can become "rich" like everyone else, eat KFC and drive the latest Ford Ranger. One example: "You know, all those useless trees [sic], you can cut them down and make charcoal, that way you can still get some money for them! 200 Baht per bag!"
Pretty much like you wrote in The Illusion of (self) Control: “Our culture and society does not encourage or value self-exploration (or expression for that matter), and instead focuses more on external achievements and conformity.”
The Japanese have a proverb that describes the attitude of collectivist Asian cultures: "the nail that sticks out gets hammered down."
Being part of a collectivist culture is only fun as long as you're part of that collective. It can be downright punishing otherwise.
No, I've never heard of that game before, I haven't played videogames in a loooong time - I used to think I'll get to play all the games I missed out on while farming "once I retire" (hahaha) but now, with the collapse of techno-industrial civilization and all that, I'm not sure if that plan will work.
That being said, I think it's extremely telling how attractive & compelling games like this are for so many people. In some ways, it shows the sort of thing people are missing in their lives, and at the same time provides them with a way to access certain aspects of it (without subjecting themselves to the unpleasant things like mosquitoes, wasps & leeches!) - just sadly without the ecological benefit for the real world.
Vervaeke's comments on why video games have such a strong pull for people these days are an excellent frame of reference: folks are getting things from video games that they are obviously lacking in the real world. A compelling story, meaning, purpose, access to the flow state (which, by the way, feels SOOOO GOOD when gardening), a way to self-transcend (to "level up")... And the list goes on and on.
I just wish more people would discover how rewarding it feels when "Stardew Valley" becomes your actual life, and you see your environment heal, develop and prosper...
Agricultural research has fostered productivity growth, but the historical influence of anthropogenic climate change (ACC) on that growth has not been quantified. We develop a robust econometric model of weather effects on global agricultural total factor productivity (TFP) and combine this model with counterfactual climate scenarios to evaluate impacts of past climate trends on TFP.
Our baseline model indicates that ACC has reduced global agricultural TFP by about 21% since 1961, a slowdown that is equivalent to losing the last 7 years of productivity growth.
The effect is substantially more severe (a reduction of ~26–34%) in warmer regions such as Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean. We also find that global agriculture has grown more vulnerable to ongoing climate change.
The lead author of “Anthropogenic Climate Change Has Slowed Global Agricultural Productivity Growth,” published April 1 in Nature Climate Change put it this way.
“It is equivalent to pressing the pause button on productivity growth back in 2013 and experiencing no improvements since then. Anthropogenic climate change is already slowing us down.”
Also, I think you might really enjoy this essay by Erik Assadourian from 2021. It speaks to your thesis about the necessity of moving people "back to the land". Erik talks about HOW the sacrifices required to prevent COLLAPSE will be painful.
He makes the point that while "Collapse Living" and "Low Impact Living" aren't going to be that different materially. They are VERY different in non-material ways.
Collapse may visit you, too, one day. Have you imagined living through this?
Funnily, the differences in lifestyles between living in collapse and intentionally preventing collapse aren’t all that great — in both cases, gone are the cars, the larger homes, the rich diet, the extreme levels of comfort.
But there is one key difference that is deeply undervalued: security and a feeling of control.
In the No Impact scenario, there are no gangs roaming, no threat to life and limb (other than climate disasters, which we can only make less probable in the No Impact scenario but cannot stop them in either case).
No shortages of basic foodstuffs, though electricity and heat, being so expensive (or even rationed), may be in short supply, forcing people to get used to colder homes in the winter and hotter ones in the summer.
But there’d be a positive side too, public transportation might grow in scope so being car-free wouldn’t mean you’d be trapped in your neighborhood.
Public services — from water and sewage treatment to libraries and the humble street light (often taken for granted but even that does not work in Beirut) — would still be available.
Medicines would be accessible as would bread and at least seasonal produce.
I find his argument more and more compelling as time goes on.
REALLY loved this post. I will be referencing it in the future I am sure.
Great piece. One thing I'd add to your discussion of antibiotics: the herbicide and dessicant glyphosate, widely used as RoundUp in conventional farming and in "climate smart" farming, as well as on lawns, was patented by Monsanto as a broad spectrum antimicrobial/antibiotic. This chemical is an antibiotic that permeates our food and eco-systems. Notably sprayed directly onto certain crops to dry them for harvest, (not just for killing "weeds"). Beer, tea, oats all off the charts in glyphosate residue. (My book The Ecology of Care goes into the implications of this in depth.--as our microbiome turns on brain development and regulates most of our body's processes.)
This helps me appreciate a previous piece you wrote on why climate optimists are the real threat. If you think climate change is about to be stopped with a new technology and are hell bent on ignoring bio-diversity collapse, then you will of course not be taking the need to prepare for this seriously.
Fantastic as usual David! As a "fruitarian" I was fascinated to read what you wrote about fruit trees and how dependent they are, more than most other food crops, on a reliable, consistent climate. I've noticed that in recent years in the wild extremes of fruiting (or not) of my plum trees in Oregon. Now I've just got to convince my kids to move on to land and try to become regen farmers at the same time they are working jobs to support themselves and raise their kids. Don't even know where to start on that one . . .
Thanks, Daniel!
So you're actually a fruitarian, eating only raw fruit? Who would've thought! I have a friend who was basically raw vegan for 20 years, following the teachings of one Guy Claude Burger (Instinctotherapy) - and he only had positive things to report about this diet. He remains healthy at almost 60 years of age, so I don't dispute that a diet like this can indeed be beneficial for some individuals. But, on a related note, a fruitarian influencer recently died of starvation on Koh Phangan...
As with so many other topics, I beg to differ on a few important details in the underlying justifications though - but that would be stuff for another essay!
Moreover, it's true: the situation is so damn difficult - especially when most family members remain trapped within the system, with limited opportunity (or motivation) to change that... Well, many things *will change eventually,* either way, but the longer we prolong the necessary & inevitable changes to our own lifestyle, the more chaotic it will be in the future.
Who was it that said "collapse now and beat the rush" - John Greer?
Yes that was John Greer. And ha ha, no.I'm not really a fruitarian.Just my favorite food and I need plenty of fruit all the time but yes I would probably starve if that's all I ate!
Thank you for articulating what I have struggled to for a long time. The binary thinking of "we need to stop climate change" and "what makes you hopeful" fall far short of the nuance we need now, like this piece. But much like it's true that far more people can, in various ways, participate in small-scale subsistence polyculture-based agriculture, the kind of nuance you present here is ALSO attainable. I think it's a kind of nuance people labored and leisured under for most of human history.
I'm so glad you enjoyed this rather lengthy piece - it's feedback like this that motivates me to keep going, to be honest. Thank you so much for your kind words, and for taking the time to share your perspective.
Late to the party reading this but it is a great summation of where we are standing at this point in history. The crops that get us through the next thousand years will often need to be different to the ones that got us this far.
*Tubers not grains* is a slogan I would rally behind. Yams in particular seem utterly indifferent to the crazy weather we've had here.
Really appreciating your writing lately, thank you.
Thank you, Max - coming from you (land defender, indigenous ally, and phenomenal environmentalist author in one), your kind words mean so much to me!
Keep up the good work, my friend!
Thanks David! Cheers!
Additional to crop yields diminishing, as the level of CO2 increases the nutritional value of crops decreases in a double wammy.
Added below thanks.
https://kevinhester.live/2023/03/23/on-the-verge-of-starvation/
Yeah, that's definitely another very important aspect - thanks for the link. I have the feeling the above essay could have easily been twice as long, but I had to cut it as short as possible; hence many a topic was swept under the rug for reasons of maintaining at least some remote semblance of brevity. Demanding 30 minutes of your attention is already more than I could ever ask for.
Another thing I thought about including (and that I now regret not having worked into the essay) is a discussion of *how* the food crisis will start playing out and make itself being felt for commoners throughout the world. Arnold Schroder (from the World Tree Center for Evolutionary Politics and Global Survival) said in an interview that - at first - the whole crisis will likely not even be talked about in those terms. It will be first noticed as *constantly rising food prices* for the consumer (which has already been happening for some years), and the media will try their best to conceal (or turn a blind eye to) the broader issue underlying this trend. Anything to keep the peace and don't frighten the masses - maintain the illusion at any cost, for as long as anyhow possible.
So we will hear a lot about "inflation," "rising costs," "sanctions" and "economic turmoil" - and comparatively little about failed harvests and crop losses. People will complain, and play round after round of the blame game, pointing to politicians, policy makers, farmers, scientists, corporations... Without being fully able to comprehend the sheer magnitude of the flood that's about to be unleashed.
Beautifully written, and powerfully put. We are on a similar journey into climate choas, setting up food growing and sharing systems for our small isolated community in the face of the coming storm. It's interesting to hear your wisdom from a fruit growers perspective. It gives context to our temperate region trials of failed fruit crops. Thank you.
Thank you so much for sharing your perspective, I'm glad my writing resonates! It seems most of what I do in my writing lately is to simply spell out "difficult truths," things that a great many people are already aware of or are able to perceive on some level. But I've found that *talking about those issues* - hard as it is - is always better than ignoring them. The cognitive dissonance & mental exhaustion resulting from this repression of terrifying but inevitable truths is even more harmful in the long term than being honest, grieving.... and consequently getting busy saving whatever might be saved.
So, so true, David.
I am often asked why I bother, if "it's all doomed, anyway", and my response always is that nothing is set in stone. There are too many variables for anyone to honestly know what will happen. But, if I can ensure that the innocent lives of the non-humans that surround me can continue without pain and suffering for awhile longer, then that's worth doing. The only way I can do that is by being honest about what is happening right now. Repression serves no-one.
David, I am so glad we have stumbled upon one another. Reading your work has left me with an overwhelming sense of gratitude. Among the chaos of these *really* difficult truths, finding someone grounded in the local land of Thailand, dedicating every ounce of their energy to healing and understanding it, feels incredibly rare.
Your words aren't just theory or intellectual analysis, in tending to the earth and witnessing and living with these struggles first hand makes your story that much richer. Honestly, your writing has really inspired me - to know that even things are 'falling apart', there are people who choose to nurture and connect with the things that really matter.
On your other pieces, I have to say that I loved that you didn't hold back when calling out 7-Eleven's greenwashing tactics. So refreshing, honest and much needed!
It feels like we're both trying to hold onto something real in the middle of it all and I'm really grateful for this connection, it feels meaningful in ways that I didn't expect.
Thank you so much for your kind words (again)!!
I'm still surprised when people occasionally tell me those kinds of things - for me, most of my essays are simply overly extensive, angry rants I do (mostly) to let off steam!
And, from the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU for your acknowledgement of what we're doing here - we haven't met many Thai people who understand (let alone appreciate!) what we're trying to accomplish with our project. Really, you have no idea how much this means to me.
Most of the villagers think we're batshit crazy. Or secret millionaires that are at the same time world-champion-level ขี้เหนียว, and who can thus afford to waste their time with things other than growing massive durian for the Chinese middle class. Many disregard our experiments as playful pastimes, merely ทำเล่น.
Damn, you dug down deep into my archive... It's somehow a bit scary to think about how easily accessible my personal thoughts are - well, I should have thought about that earlier! In case you saw it, I hope my rather smug piece on AI didn't offend you, hahaha
As soon as I have some time, I will have to go through a LOT more of your essays as well. (Just finished your latest piece and absolutely loved it. I'll share some more thoughts in the comments ASAP.) Incidentally (or not?) many of our thoughts, fears and hopes (& perhaps even dreams) seem to overlap substantially, and we share quite a few common interests and views. I had to laugh when I saw that you published a piece on Elon fucking Musk - can't wait to read that one! I'm sure there will be plenty that I'll agree with, and many more perspectives/issues I haven't even considered thus far.
Again, I'm so glad we've connected! Looking forward to reading your work and private correspondence!
Warm greetings from the forest!
Your essays are definitely long and admittedly I am nowhere as hardcore as you when it comes to reading! But that said, I enjoyed every word you've written, from the simple fact that they're genuine, passionate and rational. And the fact that we clicked in the first instance also goes to show that we've been noticing and rationalising the same set of patterns.
In some ways, I can imagine what it feels like being surrounded by people who think you're out of your mind. Since my husband and I relocated back to Bangkok four years ago, it's been a constant "social" battles with his family, my family and our friends. When you're not chasing the same things as everyone else is, suddenly no one takes the time to understand you anymore. So from where I stand, what you and Karn are doing is both brave and essential. I've been talking about you and your project non-stop with my husband for days now and the fact that you're holding space for experimentation and openly sharing them, for ecology newbie like me to follow and discover is just super impressive.
Not sure if you came across a role-playing game called "Stardew Valley" before. It was created by an indie developer - possibly was going through depression himself - took him 4.5 years to create everything himself from designing, composing the music, and programming. It became such a hit within the gaming community and it's just funny because, whatever you're doing is very similar to what the players have to do in the game. Inheriting a dilapidated farm, and having to clear the land and become the best farmer as well as good community member fighting against a giant corporation.
Thanks again for the kind words. My to-read list actually grows longer and longer the more I read, so I'm forever behind on how much there is to learn. One human lifetime isn't enough to deal with the absolute overabundance of interesting material that's out there today.
I can definitely relate to the struggle of thinking differently in a (culturally tight) collectivist culture.
"Why don't you do something that pays better?"
"What's the point of being so stubborn?"
"Why even bother wasting your time with this?"
"What shall the neighbors think?"
"Don't you care what others think of you?"
"Ah, you worry/think too much!"
I stopped counting how many times people have given us unwanted business advice so we can become "rich" like everyone else, eat KFC and drive the latest Ford Ranger. One example: "You know, all those useless trees [sic], you can cut them down and make charcoal, that way you can still get some money for them! 200 Baht per bag!"
Pretty much like you wrote in The Illusion of (self) Control: “Our culture and society does not encourage or value self-exploration (or expression for that matter), and instead focuses more on external achievements and conformity.”
The Japanese have a proverb that describes the attitude of collectivist Asian cultures: "the nail that sticks out gets hammered down."
Being part of a collectivist culture is only fun as long as you're part of that collective. It can be downright punishing otherwise.
No, I've never heard of that game before, I haven't played videogames in a loooong time - I used to think I'll get to play all the games I missed out on while farming "once I retire" (hahaha) but now, with the collapse of techno-industrial civilization and all that, I'm not sure if that plan will work.
That being said, I think it's extremely telling how attractive & compelling games like this are for so many people. In some ways, it shows the sort of thing people are missing in their lives, and at the same time provides them with a way to access certain aspects of it (without subjecting themselves to the unpleasant things like mosquitoes, wasps & leeches!) - just sadly without the ecological benefit for the real world.
Vervaeke's comments on why video games have such a strong pull for people these days are an excellent frame of reference: folks are getting things from video games that they are obviously lacking in the real world. A compelling story, meaning, purpose, access to the flow state (which, by the way, feels SOOOO GOOD when gardening), a way to self-transcend (to "level up")... And the list goes on and on.
I just wish more people would discover how rewarding it feels when "Stardew Valley" becomes your actual life, and you see your environment heal, develop and prosper...
Loved your article. Re: On reaching the point of diminishing returns I remembered this paper, which strengthens your argument.
Anthropogenic climate change has slowed global agricultural productivity growth.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-021-01000-1
Ariel Ortiz-Bobea, Toby R. Ault, Carlos M. Carrillo, Robert G. Chambers & David B. Lobell
Nature Climate Change volume 11, pages 306–312 (2021)
Abstract:
Agricultural research has fostered productivity growth, but the historical influence of anthropogenic climate change (ACC) on that growth has not been quantified. We develop a robust econometric model of weather effects on global agricultural total factor productivity (TFP) and combine this model with counterfactual climate scenarios to evaluate impacts of past climate trends on TFP.
Our baseline model indicates that ACC has reduced global agricultural TFP by about 21% since 1961, a slowdown that is equivalent to losing the last 7 years of productivity growth.
The effect is substantially more severe (a reduction of ~26–34%) in warmer regions such as Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean. We also find that global agriculture has grown more vulnerable to ongoing climate change.
The lead author of “Anthropogenic Climate Change Has Slowed Global Agricultural Productivity Growth,” published April 1 in Nature Climate Change put it this way.
“It is equivalent to pressing the pause button on productivity growth back in 2013 and experiencing no improvements since then. Anthropogenic climate change is already slowing us down.”
Also, I think you might really enjoy this essay by Erik Assadourian from 2021. It speaks to your thesis about the necessity of moving people "back to the land". Erik talks about HOW the sacrifices required to prevent COLLAPSE will be painful.
He makes the point that while "Collapse Living" and "Low Impact Living" aren't going to be that different materially. They are VERY different in non-material ways.
Lessons from Lebanon: A Meditation on Collapse.
https://medium.com/climate-conscious/lessons-from-lebanon-a-meditation-on-collapse-86efdecedb6e
Collapse may visit you, too, one day. Have you imagined living through this?
Funnily, the differences in lifestyles between living in collapse and intentionally preventing collapse aren’t all that great — in both cases, gone are the cars, the larger homes, the rich diet, the extreme levels of comfort.
But there is one key difference that is deeply undervalued: security and a feeling of control.
In the No Impact scenario, there are no gangs roaming, no threat to life and limb (other than climate disasters, which we can only make less probable in the No Impact scenario but cannot stop them in either case).
No shortages of basic foodstuffs, though electricity and heat, being so expensive (or even rationed), may be in short supply, forcing people to get used to colder homes in the winter and hotter ones in the summer.
But there’d be a positive side too, public transportation might grow in scope so being car-free wouldn’t mean you’d be trapped in your neighborhood.
Public services — from water and sewage treatment to libraries and the humble street light (often taken for granted but even that does not work in Beirut) — would still be available.
Medicines would be accessible as would bread and at least seasonal produce.
I find his argument more and more compelling as time goes on.
REALLY loved this post. I will be referencing it in the future I am sure.
Great work.
In India, which was an agrarian state, for centuries, it clearly has.
Great piece. One thing I'd add to your discussion of antibiotics: the herbicide and dessicant glyphosate, widely used as RoundUp in conventional farming and in "climate smart" farming, as well as on lawns, was patented by Monsanto as a broad spectrum antimicrobial/antibiotic. This chemical is an antibiotic that permeates our food and eco-systems. Notably sprayed directly onto certain crops to dry them for harvest, (not just for killing "weeds"). Beer, tea, oats all off the charts in glyphosate residue. (My book The Ecology of Care goes into the implications of this in depth.--as our microbiome turns on brain development and regulates most of our body's processes.)