Capitalism is the root cause of our ecological crisis and the key barrier to solving it.
There are two reasons for this. Firstly, capitalism cannot exist without economic growth, and economic growth is the main reason why our emissions have been increasing over the last 30 years and further growth will make it impossible to decarbonise in time to avoid activating tipping points.
Secondly, our minds have been shaped by capitalism and it is stopping us from seeing both the role capitalism plays in the cause of climate change and the full scope of solutions available to address the crisis. Social psychologist, Professor Harald Welzer, sums this up well, describing economic growth of industrial societies as “enshrined in business and politics, but also in the psychological structure of the people who grow up in such societies.”
https://erinremblance.substack.com/p/decapitalising-our-minds-the-key
There are six key ways in which capitalism shapes our minds. Under capitalism we, collectively, believe:
- Nature is nothing more than a ‘resource’ to be exploited
- Our power lies in either our consumption habits or our employment
- Success lies in evermore material items and novel experiences
- People are a ‘resource’ and must earn their living
- Money is scarce and the government must make choices
- We must compete with others
This ‘capitalisation’ of our minds creates a barrier to solving the climate crisis in many ways, including:
- denial that the crisis exists because the solutions don’t fit one’s capitalistic ideology;
- disinterest and disengagement with the crisis because nature is for others to focus on;
- unconscious of how our minds are shaped by capitalism, we:
- champion solutions that are well-intentioned but inadequate because they assume mythical ‘green-growth’;
- implement targets that aren’t supported by policies to achieve them, instead relying on technology that doesn’t currently exist to cover the gap.
Unsurprisingly, the mindset we need to address the climate crisis is the exact opposite of the mindset described above.
Sono molto solo: non terribilmente solo. Perché io amo esser solo. Ho bisogno di essere solo: per contemplare, per pensare. A volte mi danno noia perfino le persone che amo: mia figlia, mia moglie. E, quando accade, zitto zitto, mi alzo e vado in camera mia. Sì, è difficile viver con me: questo è un rimprovero che le mie compagne mi hanno sempre rivolto, che all’ inizio mi rivolgeva anche Franca. Ora Franca vi si è assuefatta, trova questa vita normale sebbene sia giovanissima.
La capivo, sa? Capivo che le sarebbe piaciuto andare nei posti, nei night. Ma a me non piace, non è mai piaciuto. Io, quando vedo quel divertimento falso non posso fare a meno di pensare che dietro a ciascuna di quelle persone v’è un dramma: il pianista magari ha le scarpe rotte, l’industriale ha le cambiali che scadono, l’entraineuse ha il figlio ammalato… Gliel’ho detto: sono un misantropo, la base della mia vita è la casa.
La casa, per me, è una fortezza, quasi una persona. Quando vi entro la saluto sempre come una persona: «Buonasera, casa». Oggi, per esempio, Franca è a Lugano e in casa son solo. Be’: ci sto benissimo.
Antonio de Curtis, Totò