Summary: <p>“It’s all very well consumers purchasing products and services that are more sustainable, but isn’t that just pratting about at the edges of the challenge? What we need to focus on is the big economic and political stuff. Yes we can fly less and eat less meat, as those industries have big impacts until they change and evolve, but limiting the use of plastic cups, changing our cotton buds, etc etc, is ineffective pratting about at the edges of the issues we face.</p> <p>I agree though, as consumers we can make a difference, but we’re too often distracted by miniscule pathetic micro consumerist improvements we can make as individuals, by those who want to perpetuate a system, and set of processes, that are innately toxic to humankind. We need to overhaul and overthrow the systems and the capitalist drivers behind all this.</p> <p>When was GDP ever a good sensible measure of the population's wellbeing? Yet that's the main focus of most governments, boosting GDP. That system’s already destructive yet we want to grow it, double it and then, wait for it, quadruple it again. The poor don’t get richer as the rich get richer, (which is what Mrs Truss, your Prime Minister in the UK still seems to be hoping) rather the poor die out and the rich get poorer, as they don’t have anyone to make their wealth out of.</p> <p>Perpetual growth will kill most of us off, it's madness, do you two agree with that? Ecological restoration and rewilding will draw down huge amounts of the carbon, and make the world nicer, yet as there's less profit in it, so we don’t do it.</p> <p>The ultimate floor in profit and perpetual growth systems is they die as their fuel burns out. Like our sun will. Any thoughts?”</p> <p>The above is a fantastically thought out question from listener Adriana in Utrecht, in the Netherlands, which Stuart and William discuss in wide ranging conversation, talking about consumerism, the influence of the media, and whether GDP is really the true measure of success and a population's wellbeing?</p> <p>Are we really just pratting around the edges when it comes to buying greener products, are we really making a difference? We need to get into the habit of taking on personal responsibility: for example, we don’t need to just fly less, we need to do everything less, we need to do everything sustainably.</p> <p>There’s also the clothing industry and its impact to the environment, as that’s even bigger than say the flight industry and shipping industry combined. Though its impacts are hidden away, whereas you can see the planes in the sky. It’s time we all took responsibility for how we act and what we buy, but also a responsibility to put pressure on the decision makers to make the changes needed.</p> <p>During this episode William mentions the youTube channel Kurzgesagt, and in particular one of their videos, here is a link to that episode title <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEENEFaVUzU&ab_channel=Kurzgesagt%E2%80%93InaNutshell"><u>The Last Human – A Glimpse Into The Far Future</u></a>.</p> <p>What do you make of this discussion? Do you have a question that you'd like us to discuss? Let us know by sending an email to <a href="mailto:thepeoplescountryside@gmail.com"><u>thepeoplescountryside@gmail.com</u></a>, or record us a message in your own voice by going to <a href="https://anchor.fm/thepeoplescountryside/message"><u>https://anchor.fm/thepeoplescountryside/message</u></a></p> <p>This podcast's overall themes are nature, philosophy, climate, the human condition, sustainability, and social justice.</p> <p>Find out all about the podcast via this one simple link: <a href="https://linktr.ee/thepeoplescountryside"><u>https://linktr.ee/thepeoplescountryside</u></a></p> <p><br></p> <p><br></p> --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thepeoplescountryside/message
