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Redeeming recession
Our whole first-world civilization is based on growth. Technology improves really fast, we enjoy more and more facilities, and economy needs us to consume, to develop new needs. Throwing away an appliance is much faster and beneficial than lending it. But we have started to see that this won't last forever, since the planet and the countries we exploit are getting exhausted. The only way forward is to recycle, to reuse every bit of paper or water, to consume less energy for the same tasks, to lend things again. But... are companies willing to see their sales drop? Is our world prepared to work peacefully with an economy in recession?
6 comentarios:
«¿Is our world prepared to work peacefully with an economy in recession?»
Ecology economy hasn't to be an economy in recession. It only needs new bussines views and ideas.
With the new upcoming markets based not in material products but in logical ones, like software or cultural services, it's possible to develope a growing ecological economy.
Look videogames, for example :)
I agree with you, and I would say more: apart from the "virtual" playground, recycling and lending things can actually be a huge "material" market. But in spite of that, existing oil or electrical companies wouldn't like to see consumption drop, since they're happy with their business just as it is now. They don't want to change their companies; they just want to invade Irak to extract more oil and make it burn in our polluting cars.
Actually, when I say "recession", I mean "recession for some old-fashioned but influential and powerful companies".
Part of the problem is that products are cheap(er) because the cost of disposal of these products is not in their price tag.
So: a) We throw them away when broken or old, and b) The products themselves are not made to last long. A vicious circle.
Mmmm. This deserves a post in itself :-)
«Actually, when I say "recession", I mean "recession for some old-fashioned but influential and powerful companies".»
I am sure it will ends like Middle Ages with the gunpowder and the printing-machine (and the compass). Phosil fuel companies could slow it but they are not strong enought to stop civilization.
When scientists develope real alternative energy sources, capitalism itself will ends with the old fashioned companies.
"to develop new needs"
Thats a big misconcept. No NEW needs are or can be "developed", at least with current technology, human needs are and will always remain the same. To eat, to drink, to dress, to communicate, to move yourself, to enjoy your spare time, to rest, to keep your body temperature, to heal yourself, to find your identity within the group, a place to live, a mate...
As time goes by we do develop better and more WAYS in order to satisfy those SAME NEEDS, which are virtually limitless if we have enough resources to cover them. That should make us proud.
We must find the way to keep it going on, with the minimal impact on Nature, these shouldn't be incompatible things. Recycling (which is a big concept) is one of the right ways. But, at least, in my opinion, stopping ourselves from consuming is not a solution.
The show must go on, we all have a role in it :)
No NEW needs are or can be "developed", at least with current technology,
No way :-)
Well, that's an old debate. But I'm firmly convinced that new needs can be developed, induced, promoted, created. Marketing guys are doing exactly this job.
Yes, I know the theory, I've received some seminar at my former company: they are not creating new needs, they are only discovering them. That's probably their most valuable axiom.
I don't know about any scientifical way of establishing who's right, so this is probably a dead end discussion. But I simply can't help but seeing new needs developed around every day.
As for stopping from consuming, I agree: that's not the solution. But "consuming" can also be massively repairing or reusing things, or buying every system that prevents us from discarding even a water drop. That's the way to go for keeping the show on stage :-)
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