Chapter 1: Moving Toward a New Way of Living 1 C H A P T E R Moving Toward a New Way of Living

Learning Outcomes Define sustainability. Understand how your current lifestyle may work against your basic needs and your wants. See how worldviews about life are derived from historical thinking. (continued)

Learning Outcomes (continued) Understand why outdated ways of thinking can still control current worldviews. Discuss the constraints to improving lifestyle choices. Become a critical thinker.

Sustainability Sustainability – Making decisions that do not undermine the environmental, sociocultural, or economic systems on which people depend. –Involves utilizing the Earth’s resources in such a way that they allow all people to live a good lifestyle for the long term without the degradation of those resources (continued)

Sustainability (continued) Components of sustainability (continued)

Sustainability (continued) People need to understand the faulty assumptions and failures of the current economic system and determine how economics plays a role in reaching sustainability. –Misconception that money solves everything

Consumerism Developed countries – Created most of the technologically-related environmental problems. –15% of the world’s population Developing countries – Monetarily poor and aspire to live a lifestyle similar to developed countries. –85% of the world’s population

Titanic Syndrome How might the catastrophe of the Titanic serve as a metaphor for the lifestyle of those in the developed nations?

Worldviews Arose from centuries of attitudes and beliefs passed from one generation to the next. Essentially how people do things. What worldview do you believe the people of developed nations hold? –Think about lifestyle. –Think about relationship to nature.

History of Human Thinking Human heritage is about 4 million years old. Homo sapiens appeared about 200,000 years ago. Evolving consciousness appeared around 35,000 years ago. Agricultural Revolution began around 10,000 years ago. (continued)

History of Human Thinking (continued) Agricultural Revolution –Use of technology to manipulate nature –Indigenous peoples versus new agricultural mindsets Was agriculture the problem? (continued)

History of Human Thinking (continued) Industrial Revolution –Late 1700s in Britain Myth of cornucopia –Endless supply of resources (continued)

History of Human Thinking (continued) Late 1800s – The United States became the first country to establish a National Park System. Early 1900s – President Theodore Roosevelt established the United States Forest System. –Utilitarian conservationism (continued)

History of Human Thinking (continued) Post–World War II Green Revolution –Chemicals allow mass production of food 1960s –Greatest increase in standard of living –Consequences of science and technology began to show –Creation of the modern environmental movement (continued)

History of Human Thinking (continued) 1964 – The Wilderness Act –Preservationism 1970s and 80s –Environmental legislation –Is this legislation working? 2000s –Sustainability Revolution (continued)

History of Human Thinking (continued) Earthrise. How do you think this photo inspired people to think differently about their lifestyles?

Transition to a Sustainable World Indicators of Success Standard of living versus quality of life

Barriers to Change Thinking that changing current standards of living means losing quality of life Thinking that consequences of lifestyle will happen in future so no need to worry about them now Thinking that major consequences never seem to come to fruition

Faulty Assumptions That Hinder Progress Toward Sustainability Possible consequences of assumptions of the current world: Disempowerment Misconceptions Faulty economic thinking Separation from nature

Using Scientific Thinking Science is a process of understanding how the world works. Science research is logical and objective. Scientists weigh evidence, test and explore ideas, and explain them in a rational manner. Scientists rethink their conclusions when new evidence arises. Scientific theories account for known facts.

Scientific Method Research testing

Considerations When Reading Scientific Literature Who is the source of the information? Are the “facts” placed in a context of accepted knowledge? Does the argument make sense? How was the information obtained? Were statistics used properly? Examine the big picture!

Knowledge Filter See figure 1.2 on page 17 for the various levels of filtering that occur through the scientific process.

Esperanza How can you relate to Esperanza? Envision life in 2099 and describe how it might look. What kind of life story do you want to tell your grandchildren on your 90 th birthday?