Local Politics of Global Sustainability

Review: Allocation Matrix Rival Non-rival ExcludableNon-Excludable Market Good: Ecosystem structure, Waste absorption capacity (e.g. SO 2 ) Tragedy of the non- commons: patented information Pure Public Good: Street lights, national defense, most ecosystem services, unpatented information Open Access Regime: Unowned ecosystem structure, waste absorption capacity (e.g. CO 2 ) Non-rival, congestible Club or Toll Good

Private property and ecosystem structure Inefficient: Owner ignores critical ecosystem services Unjust: Ecosystem services are public goods, destroyed for private gain Unsustainable: Profit maximization may still lead to extinction

Example: Brazil’s Atlantic Rainforest Ecosystem services of rainforest valued at $2006/ha/yearEcosystem services of rainforest valued at $2006/ha/year World’s highest biodiversity humid forest converted to pasture yielding $20/ha/yearWorld’s highest biodiversity humid forest converted to pasture yielding $20/ha/year Causes droughts, floods, erosion, biodiversity loss, microclimate change, etc.Causes droughts, floods, erosion, biodiversity loss, microclimate change, etc. Greedy self interest creates invisible footGreedy self interest creates invisible foot

Private property and information Inefficient: –Creates artificial scarcity –Patent = monopoly –Research ignores public goods Unjust –Knowledge is cumulative –Raises costs for research that promotes the public good or serves the poor –Example: Golden rice, AIDS medicine

Patents and distribution (cont.) Samuel Slater, “Father of American Industry” Developed countries own 97% of all patents

The “Tragedy of the Non-Commons” Occurs when private ownership is ecologically unsustainable, socially unjust, and/or economically inefficient Any privately owned resource that provides non-rival benefits Sustainability is a non-rival benefit of healthy ecosystems

What is the Solution?

It’s the system, stupid How do we create a system that allocates non-rival and/or non-excludable resources? –Must be fair –Must be sustainable –Be nice if it was efficient, too (policy lecture)

Capitalism vs. socialism Ownership by the individual or ownership by society? What is appropriate depends on the nature of the resources and desirable ends We need a hybrid system: –Market allocation works for rival/excludable goods and services that only affect individual well-being –We need another allocative mechanism for non-rival and/or non-excludable goods/bads that affect public well-being

Can Science Tell us How to Allocate? How much natural capital needs to be left for future generations? How do we deal with uncertainty? How do we deal with needs vs. wants? Values matter If the market economy can’t do it, and science can’t do it, what is left?

Can the Political Process do it? As many types of political systems as economic systems

What we have Representative democracy (?) –Defends our rights and freedoms (?) –Is it participatory? Feeling of participation Participation levels Would you opt out of participating in the market? –Is it democracy? "We can have concentrated wealth in the hands of a few or we can have democracy, but we cannot have both." -Justice Louis Brandeis

What we Have (cont.) Economic sphere (wealth) dominates political sphere (power) and public sphere (participation) –Public sphere: “psychic and political space and process within which people, acting as citizens, consider their common dilemmas and seek solutions” –We are consumers first, citizens second Unregulated capitalism destroys the means of production

What we need Participatory, democratic decision making processes – “strong democracy” –E.g. town meetings

What this requires Equal political rights –One person one vote vs. one dollar one vote –Can’t let economic sphere influence political sphere –Nature abhors a vacuum Educated public –What do we learn and where do we learn it? –Who owns the airwaves? –We must educate each other in public dialogue Engaged public Empowered public

Strong democracy and the political condition Action –Participatory democracy is not a spectator sport. We need to opt in. Publicness –Must continually answer question “when do private acts become public?” Necessity –“events have lives of their own. To refuse to act is also to act”

(cont.) Choice –Citizens set the agenda. Reasonableness –We must both talk and listen. Dialogue not debate Conflict –We must “transform conflict into cooperation through citizen participation, public deliberation, and civic education.” Absence of an independent ground –E.g. divine will, rights, freedoms

PDMP and sustainability

PDMP and built capital How do we supply public goods such as roads, bridges, streetlights, sewage systems? What would happen if we applied PDMP to urban sprawl? How does this relate to Diane Gayre’s and Melinda Moulton’s lectures? What is the impact of unregulated capitalism? (e.g. electricity)

PDMP and natural capital What belongs to the public (THE COMMONWEALTH) and what belongs to individuals? How do we deal with parks, air quality (SO 2 ), water quality, etc.? The public determines scale, scale determines price –We decide as a society how to allocate natural capital between ecosystem services and economic production. –Market can decide how to allocate among different sectors of economy.

PDMP and social capital Continual process of education into citizenship “community is fostered by participation, and participation by community” –Working with people to solve common problems transforms them into a community –E.g. US senate (in a good year) Builds institutions, networks and trust What is the impact of unregulated capitalism on social capital?

PDMP and human capital Participatory dialogue educates us on the critical issues Appropriate technologies and government sponsored research National health care Mandatory education –Whatever happened to civics?