Getting unstuck or coming unstuck?

The Earth is reaching its limits with regard to human consumption on the earth.  I know this is not news because scientists have been talking about this for at least half of the last century.  However it still seems important!  None of us can predict exactly what will happen over the next 50-100 years.  But we do know that serious issues are arising now.  Our climate IS changing, our energy consumption is not sustainable, fresh water is becoming scarce in many places, sea levels are rising, to name a few.

Stand by a busy road one day and watch the endless line of stuck cars.  See if you think there is anyway that this could be remotely sustainable after you have been there for 10 minutes, and think about how much this consumption makes us happy while you  are there!  I'm gobsmacked sometimes when I look at our nonsensical way of life that makes many very unhappy at the same time as it destroys our own unique, miraculous planet and life support system.  The only way this can change and that people can get out of the many binds that they are in is to work out how to act collectively to change the broader system.   While individuals can change, we do need to find ways to make these changes easier and more likely - more ecologically probable as WR Catton put it some years ago, and to do that we need to consider things like the mutual cooercion mutually agreed upon that Garret Hardin talked about in the 60s. 

Governments and transnational organisations such as the World Bank and the UN need to take action now to encourage people to change before the bite comes. An international carbon tax is the idea that currently makes the most sense.  We have already seen that governments will need considerable pressuring to do this – and this means all of us need to be working to get action across the population  –  convincing voters not to vote for governments that refuse to take action,  attending rallies, letter writing, submissions, and educating people about the connections between energy, climate change, our capacity to adapt and our current way of life.  

Overall, we need to build our capacity to act collectively, locally, nationally, and internationally.  We need to minimise the disaster that looms, and we need to increase the likelihood of pulling together to weather disasters and the changes that face us. We can do these things and the need to all be happening at once.  Almost anything you do from writing letters to ministers, to organising or attending rallies, to building community at your place or simply getting to know your neighbours a little better and talking to them about how you’ve stopped using your car or thought about your power consumption, can help!