David Korten: Making a Living (Economy)

[marmar]

from YES! Magazine:




Making a Living (Economy)
We're wasting our resources subsidizing a war economy, sprawl, and consumerism. What we could do differently in a living economy.

by David Korten
posted May 09, 2011


In a world rushing toward environmental and social collapse, there is no place for war, speculation, auto-dependent sprawl, toxic contamination, and wasteful consumption —activities that generate a major portion of current GDP. This massive misallocation of resources is an artifact of a mistaken belief that human prosperity is maximized by unrestrained global competition for resources, markets, and money to drive growth in the consumption of whatever goods and services generate the greatest private financial profit.

The living economy frame shifts the focus from making money to making a living. This simple shift in perspective shines a spotlight on the many ways we can simultaneously improve the quality of our lives while reducing our human burden on the biosphere. For example:

* We can renounce war as an instrument of foreign policy and dismantle the military establishment;
* We can reorganize and retrofit our built spaces to roll back urban sprawl, reduce auto dependence, increase energy efficiency, strengthen community, and restore the natural beauty of place by reclaiming and restoring forests, agricultural lands, and wild spaces;
* We can eliminate the advertising pollution of public spaces and the promotion of compulsive consumption of harmful or wasteful products.

Unrealistic? Perhaps. But so is the assumption we humans can continue our current path of military conflict, sprawl, auto dependence, consumerism, and toxic pollution and still have a livable future. .............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.yesmagazine.org/blogs/david-korten/making-a-living-economy

[grasswire]

1. yesmagazine continues to provide food for thought

thanks