ConserveLand Blog

Over the past century, we have seen the industrial revolution in full force as generations of workers were told to build more, consumers were told to consume more and the nation and the world conspired to grow, grow, grow despite a finite world that consists of finite resources.  The short-term gain of industrial progress has left us time and time again with long-term environmental, social and economic disasters when no considerations were given to future generations or the good of society as a whole.

Making matters worse, to fuel our industrial compulsion, we have and continue to rely on some of the dirtiest and most dangerous forms of energy – mainly fossil fuels –  because we have conceived them as the cheapest and most accessible forms of energy to harvest.

Accessible seems to be defined loosely. After all, drilling several miles into our ocean floor for oil; demolishing entire mountainsides to access coal; fracturing through 10,000 feet of layered rock using millions of gallons of water and hundreds of thousands of gallons of chemicals to harvest natural gas is hardly accessible.

And cheaper by what standards?  The impacts from fossil fuels on our environment and our communities continue to take their toll.  If these sources of energy pollute our air and water, despoil our land and devastate our communities, are they really cheaper? If they warm our planet to the point that climates are changed, weather patterns are intensified, is this progress? If they destroy the finite resources that we rely on for survival, who benefits in the long run?

There are those that believe that fossil fuels must continue to play a key role in our quest for prosperity despite their true cost.  They seem to forget what our basic survival needs really are:  clean water, clean air and safe and healthy foods.

The question is: can we sustain these basic necessities of life, without sacrificing them to what we perceive as progress?  Can we continue to grow and grow at the current rate without reaping devastating impacts on society and our natural world?

I am doubtful that we can continue on this track and live happily ever after. Though, if we start to live our lives differently, we may be able to prosper responsibly.   We must first choose smart energy solutions to fuel our sustainable lifestyles, like solar, wind, geothermal and of course, energy efficiency.

More importantly, we must drastically reduce our consumption.  The sustainability of the future means NOT building bigger, not building more – but building only what we need and reducing our need so we build less.  Prosperity for mankind means consuming less and producing less waste, and therefore, inflicting less harm to the collective society, including future generations.

This is a new definition of prosperity especially for the last two or three generations, who were told time and time again to grow, grow, grow.  We’ll need strong leadership to guide us through to prosperity, or at the very least, good survival skills.