Sustainability 2.0

The concept of sustainability is not just a mindset or way of protecting the environment, but a way of life that serves a number of arenas.  The social justice aspect of sustainability is something that really sticks out to me as an important element of the cause for a better earth.  Communities, and not just human communities, need to prosper in harmony with the land available to them.  When one country has a number of unsustainable practices which harm a third world country that has little negative environmental footprint for the benefit of the wealthier nation, an imbalance occurs that is just as bad as any economic, educational, or health imbalance between the two countries.  The fact that sustainability, a lifestyle of living in harmony with nature, can bring so many social justice issues to the table greatly raises the significance of the term.  I was reading a blog this morning on CNN.com about the Copenhagen climate conference, and I was appalled at how ignorant and backwards-thinking many (at least half of the responses) were.  The basic science is there, and the ignorance and denial that is so evident in the American public for the sake of protecting a wasteful way of life is astounding.  Environmentalists simply saying "down with capitalism" will not solve anything.  America is centered on capitalism.  We have to work with the system already in place to achieve any kind of solution that will bring a nation together.  This goes back to the concept of culturally adaptable versions of sustainability.  I think many Americans would be surprised how little their standard of living has to diminish to achieve a respectable level of sustainability, a level that doesn't achieve its success at the expense of another nation.  We need to re-evaluate the ways in which our consumption patterns relate the the natural world.  While the global economy is important in todays world on a number of levels and will remain intact, a shift to a MORE local economy is possible if we re-think our relationship with the local ecosystem and the resources available.  The blueprints for sustainable models of cities are available.  America just needs the incentives and trust from the public to embrace those models.  If we can fully accept the fact that the earth is all we have to fight for, we can start to embrace some of the sustainable practices that come about from accepting cultural differences and working in harmony with the local ecosystem.  Nothing would exist without it!  A healthy earth=healthy people.