sustainable principles

subject:	Our future depends on the use of sustainable principles
problem:	We are not living on this Earth in a sustainable manner. If we don't change our thinking, the future will be very difficult.

We are so busy dealing with our daily lives that we never look up to see where we are going. The road we are on cannot continue for much longer and we must change direction. There is huge resistance to change - maybe you are a part of it - but we all need to find a way to live within the finite means of this planet.

problem:

When any form of life finds an abundant supply of energy, it grows exponentially until that source is exhausted. Once the source has been used, the life form declines, or collapses entirely. This is true from algae in a petri dish or a pond, to swarms of locusts: it is also true of humans. We think because we have technology, we are secure from the cycles of nature, impervious to it, in fact. But this is an illusion and as a race, we enter the new millenium in a state of great fragility - if only we could step back from our lives and see it.

It is true that warnings of global warming are finally being heeded, right at the last possible minute. Indeed, as I write (April 2006) some eminant scientists, such as James Lovelock, the originator of the Gaia principle, think it is already too late to avoid major and potentially catastophic changes to the Earth's regularitary systems. Unfortunately, global warming isn't our only concern. We are also reaching the peak of oil production and many specialists predict that from this year on, energy availability (from oil) will start to decline by about 2% per year. Given that the world's economy is growing on average at 2% and is geared to such perpetual growth, it seems inevitable that the decline of energy availability is going to cause massive economic instability. It's not just oil that is the problem; as a technical society, we depend on minerals such as copper for our motors and electronics, yet that source too has peaked and is in decline.

solution:

We have to understand that straight line energy and resource use, ie. resource > energy > product > pollution > waste, is not a viable way to live. We cannot recharge the Earth's finite supplies, yet we continue to consume, pollute and bury mountains of waste. We have to understand the natural method of resource and energy looping. Resources that are reabsorbed into the system and reused are never a disposal problem or (if done correctly) a source of pollution. Energy that is not fossil based can be captured in perpetuity.

Within the lifetimes of most of us, we will have to learn to live again with less. Technology will solve some problems but unlimited, unpolluting energy is not likely to be one of them. Local and regional systems will take precidence and be responsible for meeting most of our needs. National and global requirements will be those of order and communication, whilst most food, energy and material needs will be as locally sourced as possible.

All human activity takes place within the landscape, so landscape is fundamental to solving these problems and meeting human needs. Many needs can be met by individuals and small communities working together to micro-generate energy and food. Good design and understanding is vital to meet these needs and still deal with the more aspirational side of landscape. People will still want their private sanctuaries, but alongside their roses, will tend to the fruits, nuts and vegetables, as we have always done until recently.