More and more people in the recent years are conscious of resorting to mindful eco-choices and ‘green habits’ as an alternative way of life.
A Francis OFM
If we are in sync with the eco-thinking of the day, we probably deem like many trenchant environmentalists who live in an age of environmental guilt and shame. Try conversing with someone on the topic of planetary meltdown; It is no surprise that we soon end up speaking about the human culpability that seeds as well as breeds all sorts of ‘environmental crimes’, a term that is gaining traction, these days.
In our conversation, perhaps, we may not go to the extreme of calling ourselves, ‘environmental criminals’, a view proposed by professor Richard Maxwell and social scientist Toby Miller in their article, “Are We Environmental Criminals?” But we would certainly insinuate an array of behaviours we habituate, both in terms of omissions and commissions which are perversely counterintuitive to the survival of the environment.
Our perspective of omission in all likelihood, may include a list of acts pointing to our complacency of not processing the household waste, not segregating it as organic (biodegradable such as kitchen waste) and inorganic (recyclable such as bottles, papers etc.), not being committed to recycling, etc. In the category of commission, we would hastily enlist anything that triggers environmental destruction, such as war-related ecocides, pernicious chemical/gas spills (remember Bhopal chemical disaster), use of plastics, dumping e-waste in landfills, disposing plastic waste into the sea, hunting protected species etc.
A Silver Lining
On a brighter side of the spectrum, beyond the enumeration of the environmental accusations and confessions over the green felonies we are responsible for, there is a small degree of relief, a ‘sliver lining’ which we could genuinely subscribe to our credit: that is, more people in the recent years are conscious of resorting to mindful eco-choices and ‘green habits’ as an alternative way of life.
Undeniably, there are the ‘daily environmental heroes’ scattered in every nook and crannies of the world, who are committed to buying green gadgets for their personal use, opting out from unnecessary travels, shopping for locally manufactured products, walking to places which do not require the comfort of a vehicle propelled by fossil fuel, promoting circular economy, etc. Like every drop of water converges in perfect synchronicity to form a mighty ocean, our daily eco-practices and green habits do contribute to the protection of the environment. These, indubitably, minimize the carbon footprint on the environment.
Aligning Ourselves with ‘Environmental Correctness'
The green initiatives of a portion of the global population, by far and wide, are commendable, but not enough to rid us of the environmental guilt and shame for which we are justifiably held to beat our breast in public. Environment cannot rightly be saved by the selective eco-friendly, caring and conscious effort of a small group of people. It has to be an inclusive project in which everyone contributes their share of commitment, effort and expertise.
Galvanizing everyone with an effective eco-perspective is not easy because it requires education, encouragement and motivation as to why they need to integrate such a perspective into their lives. More than that, it requires adapting an attitudinal change and life transition in support of the environment. This fundamentally demands from us a new pattern of thinking, acting and living, which scholars call as an ethic of ‘environmental correctness’. This means that we live our lives with an ‘ecological worldview’ as authors Dominique Hes and Chrisna du Plessis suggest.
On a practical level this would imply that we regularly assess and analyze our behaviours, choices and actions whether they promote the health and wellbeing of the environment. In planning and implementing any action, project etc., we first make a reality test as to how they impact our environment.
This is easily said than done. But had we implemented environmental correctness as the measuring standard, the yardstick of our daily living, our oceans and seas would not have piled up so much of the throwaway plastic into their surface; they would not have accumulated the staggering level of acidity which is irreversibly changing the water chemistry, to the extent, that the survival of the marine species is highly endangered. Reports from the Convention of Biological Diversity released in 2010 the International Year of Biodiversity, indicated that ocean acidification is happening 100 times faster than it ever did in the last 20 million years. The report predicted that by 2050, the level of acidity will increase by 150%.
With the adaptation of a practical ethic of environmental correctness, we would probably have prevented the megafires and devastating floods that are taking place in different parts of the world; presumably, we would not have had the series of (garbage) dumpsite fire reported in our country amidst the scorching heat of the summer months. In April alone, the country’s capital reported four of those incidents of fire, two of which were considered as megafires.
Likewise, if we had integrated the ethic of environmental correctness, we would not have caused the rapid melting of world’s glaciers; and we would definitely have prevented the severe consequences of the increasing global warming and the rapid change of climate which are pushing the world into being in-a-pressure cooker like situation!
What is bygone is bygone. But it is still not too late to start using environmental correctness as the yardstick of our thinking, acting and living!
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