SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
The 8 Green Steps to Solartopia
May 28, 2009
The noble vision of a Solartopian green-powered Earth is at last upon us.
Our eco-future is defined by the four Great Green Truths: we have a
global crisis, it has a solution, the solution is winnable, and winning
requires a "middle path" of action that is both non-violent and
non-stop.
There are technological solutions to the crisis, but they demand
political action. Together they comprise the Eight Green Steps to a
sustainable world:
1.BAN WASTE AND WAR: Nothing may be produced that cannot be fully
recycled or that will not completely bio-degrade. This includes weapons
whose sole purpose is death and destruction, and whose manufacture and
use must be ended by a global community that knows war to be the
ultimate act of ecological suicide.
2.MAXIMIZE EFFICIENCY & CONSERVATION: From energy to building
materials, food to fiber, water to paper, our resources must be
preserved. Our unsustainable consumption and wasteful industries must
be made appropriate and efficient, starting with a reborn mass transit
system and complete preservation of all remaining virgin land and
waters.
3.TRANSCEND FOSSIL/NUKE: King CONG (Coal, Oil, Nukes & Gas) must
take its place in the compost heap of history. Our addiction to filthy,
finite fossil/nuclear fuels has led us to the brink of economic and
ecological collapse. In the new green millennium, we either kick the
habit, or it kills us.
4. CONVERT TO RENEWABLES: Solar, wind, tidal, geothermal, ocean
thermal, wave, current, sustainable bio-fuels and their green siblings
are proven, profitable and have time on their side. Each has its
imperfections, and no single source will dominate. But union-made
renewables sing in economic and ecological harmony, and are the
ultimate job-creators.
5. GO ORGANIC: Factory farming, genetically modified crops and
chemical pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers are unsustainable.
Diverse, community-scaled, reliably organic agriculture is the key to a
future fed by food that's fit to eat.
6. TRANSFORM THE CORPORATION: Our most powerful---and
destructive---institution claims human rights without human
responsibilities. Corporate charters must require social service,
ecological accountability and establish a barrier between capitalism
and cannibalism. "Green" corporations whose legal mandate still remains
limited to accumulating profits will make a mess of the planet as
surely as all those that have come before.
7. ASSURE SOCIAL DEMOCRACY: Universal hand-counted (recycled) paper
ballots and curbs on the power of money to sway elections are the
essence of global democracy, as is the demand for social justice. Until
all humans are assured the basics of life---food, shelter, clothing,
health care, education---democracy and freedom are shallow illusions.
8. EMPOWER WOMEN / CONTROL POPULATION: Where enfranchised, educated,
fairly paid and in control of their own bodies, the natural union of
women with Mother Earth brings us the children She wishes to support.
On a healthy planet, birth rates find their natural level when all
children are loved and wanted, which is where Solartopia starts.
This list follows the form of Buddhism's Four Noble Truths and
Eight-Fold Path to Enlightenment. But all religions at their core call
for universal harmony between people and the planet.
Solartopia is diverse, sustainable, and socially just, the necessary,
possible vision of a civilization in which we can all survive and
thrive.
See you there!
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Harvey Wasserman
Harvey Wasserman is an activist and author. His first book "Harvey Wasserman's History of the United States" was published in 1972. Harvey edits www.nukefree.org.
The noble vision of a Solartopian green-powered Earth is at last upon us.
Our eco-future is defined by the four Great Green Truths: we have a
global crisis, it has a solution, the solution is winnable, and winning
requires a "middle path" of action that is both non-violent and
non-stop.
There are technological solutions to the crisis, but they demand
political action. Together they comprise the Eight Green Steps to a
sustainable world:
1.BAN WASTE AND WAR: Nothing may be produced that cannot be fully
recycled or that will not completely bio-degrade. This includes weapons
whose sole purpose is death and destruction, and whose manufacture and
use must be ended by a global community that knows war to be the
ultimate act of ecological suicide.
2.MAXIMIZE EFFICIENCY & CONSERVATION: From energy to building
materials, food to fiber, water to paper, our resources must be
preserved. Our unsustainable consumption and wasteful industries must
be made appropriate and efficient, starting with a reborn mass transit
system and complete preservation of all remaining virgin land and
waters.
3.TRANSCEND FOSSIL/NUKE: King CONG (Coal, Oil, Nukes & Gas) must
take its place in the compost heap of history. Our addiction to filthy,
finite fossil/nuclear fuels has led us to the brink of economic and
ecological collapse. In the new green millennium, we either kick the
habit, or it kills us.
4. CONVERT TO RENEWABLES: Solar, wind, tidal, geothermal, ocean
thermal, wave, current, sustainable bio-fuels and their green siblings
are proven, profitable and have time on their side. Each has its
imperfections, and no single source will dominate. But union-made
renewables sing in economic and ecological harmony, and are the
ultimate job-creators.
5. GO ORGANIC: Factory farming, genetically modified crops and
chemical pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers are unsustainable.
Diverse, community-scaled, reliably organic agriculture is the key to a
future fed by food that's fit to eat.
6. TRANSFORM THE CORPORATION: Our most powerful---and
destructive---institution claims human rights without human
responsibilities. Corporate charters must require social service,
ecological accountability and establish a barrier between capitalism
and cannibalism. "Green" corporations whose legal mandate still remains
limited to accumulating profits will make a mess of the planet as
surely as all those that have come before.
7. ASSURE SOCIAL DEMOCRACY: Universal hand-counted (recycled) paper
ballots and curbs on the power of money to sway elections are the
essence of global democracy, as is the demand for social justice. Until
all humans are assured the basics of life---food, shelter, clothing,
health care, education---democracy and freedom are shallow illusions.
8. EMPOWER WOMEN / CONTROL POPULATION: Where enfranchised, educated,
fairly paid and in control of their own bodies, the natural union of
women with Mother Earth brings us the children She wishes to support.
On a healthy planet, birth rates find their natural level when all
children are loved and wanted, which is where Solartopia starts.
This list follows the form of Buddhism's Four Noble Truths and
Eight-Fold Path to Enlightenment. But all religions at their core call
for universal harmony between people and the planet.
Solartopia is diverse, sustainable, and socially just, the necessary,
possible vision of a civilization in which we can all survive and
thrive.
See you there!
Harvey Wasserman
Harvey Wasserman is an activist and author. His first book "Harvey Wasserman's History of the United States" was published in 1972. Harvey edits www.nukefree.org.
The noble vision of a Solartopian green-powered Earth is at last upon us.
Our eco-future is defined by the four Great Green Truths: we have a
global crisis, it has a solution, the solution is winnable, and winning
requires a "middle path" of action that is both non-violent and
non-stop.
There are technological solutions to the crisis, but they demand
political action. Together they comprise the Eight Green Steps to a
sustainable world:
1.BAN WASTE AND WAR: Nothing may be produced that cannot be fully
recycled or that will not completely bio-degrade. This includes weapons
whose sole purpose is death and destruction, and whose manufacture and
use must be ended by a global community that knows war to be the
ultimate act of ecological suicide.
2.MAXIMIZE EFFICIENCY & CONSERVATION: From energy to building
materials, food to fiber, water to paper, our resources must be
preserved. Our unsustainable consumption and wasteful industries must
be made appropriate and efficient, starting with a reborn mass transit
system and complete preservation of all remaining virgin land and
waters.
3.TRANSCEND FOSSIL/NUKE: King CONG (Coal, Oil, Nukes & Gas) must
take its place in the compost heap of history. Our addiction to filthy,
finite fossil/nuclear fuels has led us to the brink of economic and
ecological collapse. In the new green millennium, we either kick the
habit, or it kills us.
4. CONVERT TO RENEWABLES: Solar, wind, tidal, geothermal, ocean
thermal, wave, current, sustainable bio-fuels and their green siblings
are proven, profitable and have time on their side. Each has its
imperfections, and no single source will dominate. But union-made
renewables sing in economic and ecological harmony, and are the
ultimate job-creators.
5. GO ORGANIC: Factory farming, genetically modified crops and
chemical pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers are unsustainable.
Diverse, community-scaled, reliably organic agriculture is the key to a
future fed by food that's fit to eat.
6. TRANSFORM THE CORPORATION: Our most powerful---and
destructive---institution claims human rights without human
responsibilities. Corporate charters must require social service,
ecological accountability and establish a barrier between capitalism
and cannibalism. "Green" corporations whose legal mandate still remains
limited to accumulating profits will make a mess of the planet as
surely as all those that have come before.
7. ASSURE SOCIAL DEMOCRACY: Universal hand-counted (recycled) paper
ballots and curbs on the power of money to sway elections are the
essence of global democracy, as is the demand for social justice. Until
all humans are assured the basics of life---food, shelter, clothing,
health care, education---democracy and freedom are shallow illusions.
8. EMPOWER WOMEN / CONTROL POPULATION: Where enfranchised, educated,
fairly paid and in control of their own bodies, the natural union of
women with Mother Earth brings us the children She wishes to support.
On a healthy planet, birth rates find their natural level when all
children are loved and wanted, which is where Solartopia starts.
This list follows the form of Buddhism's Four Noble Truths and
Eight-Fold Path to Enlightenment. But all religions at their core call
for universal harmony between people and the planet.
Solartopia is diverse, sustainable, and socially just, the necessary,
possible vision of a civilization in which we can all survive and
thrive.
See you there!
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.