RE: [GBlist] Incremental change

["Ralph Bicknese" <ralph.bicknese@christnerinc.com>]

Ted:

There are plenty of predictions about how fast we are moving and should
move. George Orwell's  book, was it "1984"?, Adam? or Allan Tofler's book,
was it called "Future Change"?, Stobaugh and Yergins's book, "Energy
Future", etc., etc. etc., all predict the future based on different rates of
change.  There are dozens of them.  Energy Future was written ca 1979 and
seems to be running reasonably true to form.

Is the change happening fast enough, too fast, too slow?  I will let you
draw your own conclusions.  Some predictions say we should, by rights, all
be dead today and just because we are alive today we probably will not be
tomorrow, and there is not a thing we can do about it. A variation of this
line of thought suggests we will continue as is and have mass catastrophe
and that will cut the population sufficiently to solve the
consumption/pollution problems.   Others say there is really no problem, we
will continue along our uninhibited merry way and eventually figure things
out.  Personally I take the middle ground.  We will suffer some
catastrophes.  Much has been lost that will create difficulty and more will
be lost. There will be more significant and severe hardships than we have
today until we do a better job of taking care of our world and ourselves.

Is meaningful change happening as fast as I would like it too.  No way!  Is
it happening as fast as it should or can?  I doubt it. Will humanity act
fast enough to avert global scale death and destruction.  I sure as heck
hope and think so. (But tell that to the Micronesians when global warming
puts their country under the ocean, and see what they say).  Hey, if some of
us push for fast change and some of us push for no change we will likely
come out in between.  If we want it to happen faster we have to push and act
harder/faster.

There are plenty of warning signs.  The energy crises of the late 70's and
early 80's was just a minor hiccup, a tremor of what can come.  I truly
think enough people have their ears open to realize the problem and to reach
the critical mass needed to affect major, long term change to the way we
behave.  But there are still many factions out there and much to sort out.
If enough people make their needs and desires known, keep doing it, and act
according to their consciences the path will have been forged and the world
will forever be changed for the better. I think the tide has turned and most
people realize we cannot keep fouling our nest indefinitely and survive.
Most people just do not know what to do about it.  That is where we, you and
I and others who are acting to affect positive change, come in.  We have to
talk the talk and walk the walk.

If businesses do not pick up on this and provide the products and services
needed, they will not survive.  If they cannot help provide a sustainable
future, they will have no future.  They will whither away.  If the people
can cause the largest force in the world, business, to change their ways,
then we will be well on our way.  It is happening.

The political leadership is catching on too.  The people of the
industrialized countries of Europe seem to understand this and are causing
their political leaders to pick up the banner.  Given enough domestic and
foreign pressure the US leadership will catch on too.  If they do not they
will not hold office long and the next bunch will be that much "greener".

I would not be surprised to see the religious leadership begin to speak
louder about sustainability too.  Here is an opportunity. When the religious
leadership looks at the links between nature and spirituality and what in
nature is being lost (and what spiritual connections are being affected)
perhaps they too will begin to shout. Some are. I am designing for a
Methodist based institution that realizes this and is acting on it.

How is that for stirring the pot?  I have managed to mix business, politics
and religion into this. Strange but important bedfellows they are.

Cheers,
Ralph

-----Original Message-----
From: Ted Shelton [mailto:ted655@hotmail.com]
Sent: Friday, June 29, 2001 1:06 PM
To: greenbuilding@crest.org
Subject: [GBlist] Incremental change


        Catastrophe and pending doom can both be a catalyst that speeds
things up. If we knew (or could agree), at what speed we were moving now, we
would know how fast to move tomorrow. Speed at the wrong time leads to
chaos, speed at the right time leads to safety. Are we building and changing
at about the right increments?
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______________________________________________________________________
This greenbuilding dialogue is sponsored by REPP/CREST, creator of
Solstice http://www.crest.org, and BuildingGreen, Inc., publisher of
Environmental Building News and GreenSpec http://www.BuildingGreen.com
______________________________________________________________________


______________________________________________________________________
This greenbuilding dialogue is sponsored by REPP/CREST, creator of
Solstice http://www.crest.org, and BuildingGreen, Inc., publisher of
Environmental Building News and GreenSpec http://www.BuildingGreen.com
______________________________________________________________________