Choices & Change on the Path to a Sustainable Existence - Best Choices for Navigating Through a Monumental Crisis

By Scott C. Haley

Below is a list of major topics in the book---

why we're blind to the Big Picture regarding the "carbon pulse" (fossil energy), and what it will take to transition away from it;

why the pursuit of infinite economic growth must be abandoned ASAP;

our blindness regarding mineral requirements for a Green economy;

while "Going Green" is necessary, unfortunately the present approach by the Powers-That-Be is insufficient;

why we are not superior to and separate from Nature;

why our society must convert from high-energy use to low-energy use;

the complex feedback loop involving constant economic growth, which requires more energy, which then creates more complexity in society, which then requires more energy, which then creates even more complexity, etc. is ruining our habitat;

ecological overshoot is THE problem, but Powers-That-Be mostly are trying to address only the symptoms of that;

why there's a soil crisis, and the best choices for resolving it;

ditto for the fresh water crisis;

ditto for the food crisis;

why healthy ecosystems and biodiversity are the bedrock of our existence;

how factory farming is ruining agriculture, and the best choice forward;

what many people don't seem to understand about science;

what is "sustainability", and numerous examples of it;

the shift in our ethics which is necessary for humans to survive and thrive;

the propaganda coming from the Corporatocracy;

why the petrochemical industry must be reined-in;

why "The Market" can't solve the ill effects of Climate Change; and

what's needed for a bright future for us and our descendants.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Scott C. Haley
• Release date: Mar 21, 2024
• ISBN: 9798224938285

Book preview

by Scott C. Haley

Copyright © 2024 Scott C. Haley

Author’s current professional association memberships:  Society for Conservation Biology; International Society for Ecological Economics; American Association of Geographers; International Society for Environmental Ethics.

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Important Note to Readers

This book contains ideas and concepts about our current socio-eco-econ-ethical Crisis and the path to sustainability.  A portion of the ideas are presented in YouTube interviews and talks by top-notch scientists in the fields of ecology, biology, environmental science, geology, physics, economics, engineering, and political science.  I provide the links, commentary, and often summaries of the presentations.  Some of these concepts are controversial.  Many are new and unorthodox.  Almost all are based on solid work by research PhDs and their teams.  A few others are educated opinions and/or speculation.  [You don’t have to watch the videos to grasp the content of this written work, but doing so considerably adds to your understanding.]

BOTTOM LINE:  the person who will get the most out of this book is open-minded, flexible, not dogmatic, and interested in many serious topics.  If such is not you, that’s okay, but then I suggest you may want to skip this read.  Chances are, you won’t like it.  To those of you who tend to be more unbiased, nonjudgmental, nondogmatic, and objective, there’s a high probability you’ll find this book extremely interesting and informative.

Happy Trails,

Scott Haley

Dedication

This relatively short book with big concepts is dedicated to my grandchildren, Logan and Olivia.  They’ll never know the full extent of the joy they’ve brought me.  It is my fervent hope that they live in times when the Powers-That-Be in the world pay meaningful attention to the ideas and thoughts contained herein and elsewhere.

Table of Contents

Important Note to Readers............Page 2

Introduction............  Page 6

Chapter 1:  Ecological Overshoot is THE Problem............  Page 14

Chapter 2:  Soil, Not Oil............  Page 18

Chapter 3:  Water............  Page 23

Chapter 4:  Ecosystems, and Ecological Literacy............  Page 27

Chapter 5:  Factory Farming............  Page 32

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Chapter 6:  Biodiversity: the Bedrock of Human Existence..........  Page 37

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Chapter 7:  Food: Crisis and Choices.........Page 42

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Chapter 8:  Climate Disruption........Page 54

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Chapter 9:  Propaganda, Ethics, Economics, and Energy........Page 64

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Chapter 10:  Final Thoughts........Page 77

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Appendix I:  Not Understanding Aspects of Science Can be Problematic.........Page 87

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Appendix II:  Genuine Sustainability..........Page 93

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References........Page 101

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Recommended Reading............Page 112

Introduction

There are numerous changes in the essential global transformation we humans must undergo in order to attain sustainability.  For most of us, it's too overwhelming to think globally relative to solutions/resilience to problems Earth faces.  But that's not true if our starting point is the individual - each of us - then family, then neighborhood, then community, and then region.

In order to survive and thrive as a species, we must deal decisively with all the current stressors:  ecological, economic, social, ethical, spiritual, and technological.  At the root of it all are ethics and our worldview, including our spirituality (not religion).  In general, aggregate humanity clearly is on a destructive path.  Changing that starts with each of us changing our own awareness.  Fortunately, many people have done that.  It's important, though, to not become self-righteous about it, and intolerant of opposing views.  Unfortunately, especially in highly developed countries, intolerance often seems to be the norm nowadays, on all sides.  We all need to work on overcoming such a mindset, but that doesn't mean we should become tolerant of criminals.  Some actions are known by all stakeholders to be unquestionably wrong.

We humans all need to concentrate on cooperation rather than competition, being open-minded rather than narrow-minded, viewing Nature for its intrinsic (not just utilitarian) value, and viewing existence as a joyous journey rather than a dog-eat-dog rat-race.  If we don't do all that, it's a safe bet that Nature will put us in a place much worse than the one we're in now.  Earth will survive; organized human existence may not.

https://mahb.stanford.edu/blog/surviving-the-perfect-storm/

Here's a project worth exploring:  https://resilienceproject.ngo/

There is a fruitful, reasonable path forward.  What's needed is the will to take it.  With education, application, cooperation, and perseverance, I believe we can do it.  We must do it.

In about ten years or so (maybe less, maybe more), none of the current crazy politics will matter.  WHY?  Humans will be spending most of their time trying to survive the multi-faceted Eco-Crisis.  Multiple millions of people will be migrating, trying to find a livable habitat.  Even those not migrating will be suffering as never before.  If we don’t act now, because of trophic cascades and feedback loops in the ecosphere (already started) as well as no truly significant mitigating actions by humans at the required scale, it will be an unprecedented catastrophe.  

People finally will pull their heads out of the sand and wake up, but it will be too late.  OR, they won't wake up and instead remain in the dark while blaming (in the USA) the Republicans or the Democrats.  Such is the degree of ecological ignorance in our country today.  The dark side of tribalism (along with the Plutocracy) wins, and the prize is an unmitigated disaster.

Finally, it isn't only climate disruption which is a symptom of our existential crisis.  More symptoms which should addressed immediately:  the fresh water crisis, the soil crisis, the disease crisis, the food crisis, the ethical crisis, the biodiversity crisis, the overpopulation crisis, and others.  They're all systemic and deeply interconnected.  The main cause of it all is eco-overshoot by us.  [More on that in a bit.]

The ecological economist, the late Herman E. Daly, once stated:  the economics profession is in a dogmatic slumber.  He was referring to the democratic portion of the world being stuck in the rut of neoliberal (aka, neoclassical) economics for the last forty years or so.  The results have been good for the Rich and Powerful, but egregiously bad for Main Street, the ecosphere, and our society in general.  Arguably, Daly’s statement applies not only to economists, but to most other professions and institutions as well, including politics. 

Any informed, reasonable assessment of the current state of humanity on finite Earth surely would conclude with the following.

1.  The Powers-That-Be and too many Main Street people apparently believe we humans are separate from and superior to Nature, thus not subject to the Laws of Nature.

2.  As a consequence, we have been and continue to be on a path of subduing and exercising dominion over Nature, rather than extracting necessary natural capital in a reasonable,

respectful, and sustainable manner.

3.  The results have been:  overuse, degradation, dangerous disruption of our natural habitat, and pollution beyond the pale.

4.  Much of the above is due to propaganda, a lack of knowledge concerning natural science (especially ecology), a poor grasp of economics, ethics, and politics, and a deep denial of

readily apparent facts.

5.  Too many people have bought into the fallacies of unlimited population and economic growth, expanding consumption/consumerism, and the supposed ability of technology to overcome any problem whatsoever.

Fortunately, amid all the short-sightedness and denial, many institutions and people are working hard to provide valuable education and action toward a sustainable, ecological path forward.  That’s primarily what this book covers, and we’ll get to it later in the story.

In the USA and much of the rest of the world, decades of neoliberal policies implemented by the State-Corporate-Financial Complex (the Corporatocracy), as well as a flawed worldview, have fueled the fires of—-

1. a racial crisis,

2. a social class crisis,

3. an economic crisis,

4. a health crisis,

5. an ecological/environmental crisis, and

6. an ethical crisis.

They are all interrelated, and such will become clear throughout this entire narrative.

The policies to which I refer include:  austerity (except for the war machinery), the militarization of law enforcement, privatization, deregulation, wage stagnation, an inadequate healthcare system, a gross distortion of conflict of interest, an ugly conversion of our educational system to one which produces compliant robots, bizarre financialization (which produces little to no employment), so-called free trade, the almost complete destruction of labor unions, ditto for decent retirement plans, and more.  In addition to all that, too many private and public Powers-That-Be have demonstrated a blatant disregard for both common people and the environment.  Equity seems to have become a long-forgotten concept.  Inequality (including income inequality) is the flavor of the day.  Nature is nice, but basically unimportant.  And so it goes in these trying times.  All that must change.

Meanwhile, the ecological crisis of the century-—Climate Disruption—-appears to have been put on the back burner.  [COP 27 failed to endorse the phasing out of all fossil fuels.  COP 28 was run by a CEO of a large oil producing company.]  On top of that, the gross degradation of necessary biodiversity, the interference with crucial ecosystem functioning, pollution, corporatist propaganda, etc. are all ongoing.

Best guess:  within perhaps ten to fifteen years, even in North America (meaning the continent, not just the northern USA) there will be more severe storms, more desertification, recurring and severe food shortages, large areas without year-round access to adequate amounts of fresh water, pandemics more often, more pollution, more poverty, more human migration, and more social unrest.  All that can be mitigated, but not without a paradigm shift in worldview and ethics.  It will take such to reduce the ecological overshoot we're in now.

As a species, we're at an important crossroad.  Shall we continue on the path of unlimited growth and overconsumption, or choose a different path?  In other words, shall we continue producing an ever-increasing mountain of rubbish (both products & wastes) which pollutes our finite habitat, or choose another route?

When goods eventually are discarded, they’re either buried in landfills, incinerated, or recycled.  Eighty percent of all goods either initially wind up in garbage dumps (landfills) or high capacity incinerators.  Sooner or later, even recycled goods are disposed of in such a manner.  In both cases, carbon dioxide is produced (and often other greenhouse gases as well).  Such is one major way rubbish pollutes.  Another is the burning of fossil fuels in order to obtain the energy required for the manufacturing process in the first place.  Anytime something containing carbon is burned, carbon dioxide is produced.  Worldwide, billions of tons of it are released into the atmosphere because of artificial processes (such as burning fossil fuels); and that’s over and above CO2 production from natural processes, such as respiration in all living things, volcanic eruptions, and a few others.

For decades, and continuing presently, we've chosen a path mostly based on myths and falsehoods.  That path has brought about a multi-faceted disaster which is unfolding before our eyes.  We've yet to encounter the worst of it, thus some people