Another fascinating and knowledgeable article from the tireless and brilliant Helena Norberg-Hodge.
The evidence is indeed undeniable: we desperately need human-scale relationships and a connection to nature to build a healthy society.
A sustainable future, in all probability, depends on our living in co-operation with each other and our earth, but it needn’t be a choice between global or local. An interconnected global network of environmentally and socially beneficial local communities would give us the best of all worlds.
How we live with each other and our earth is currently dictated by our planning instruments which, in turn, are limited to the available options. Almost all our available options are variations on suburbia which, with the best intentions in the world, can only hope to be a little less unsustainable. Still unsustainable and, by definition, terminal.
We have the knowledge to create environmentally beneficial, community-based development models that are potentially considerably more attractive, affordable, and prosperous than anything else available. A multinational corporate organism marketing these options could provide that interconnected global network of local communities and become an extremely powerful economic force.
Imagine environmentally beneficial living becoming a major global economic entity, which is probably needed if our species is to survive.
