Why Sustainable living? The Golden Rule - by Robb

“We don’t inherit the land from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children”- native american proverb

Limits to growth, climate change, peak oil, population explosion, water shortage, war, carbon footprint. These are all topics that would need to be covered in detail to adequately explain why we must all examine our lives and find ways to make our lifestyles sustainable. Rather than spend a great deal of time dealing with these issues I am going to assume that if you are reading this then you are at least passingly familiar with the concepts. There are many books, websites, blogs, films, podcasts and videos that go into great detail about any one of these you happen to be interested in. I will touch on these issues as the subject matter of this blog requires as I go along. In the meantime I urge you to study deeply into these issues. They are after all the defining issues of our time and will become the issues which force us all, sooner or later, to practice sustainable living. For now I’d like to discuss why sustainable living is important on a personal level.

A feral cat released on an island will hunt down the very last of a prey species to eat, or simply just to hunt. The cat is not to blame. It is it’s nature, it doesn’t have the wherewithal to manage the resource. We are the first species on the planet with the power to choose how we impact our environment. We can choose short term luxury, comfort, convenience, or even survival over long term sustainability. We can choose to deny future generations the gift of a clean diverse environment, to deny them the right to make the same choice. Or we can manage our own affairs in such a way that we still have comfort, some luxury, and survival without threatening the web of life upon which we and future generations depend. We have that choice, one is moral, one is not.

believe it is important to live a moral life. An amoral life is out of balance, every spiritual tradition I have ever heard of stress doing unto others as you would have them do unto you. This isn’t just about getting to heaven or attaining a good rebirth, it is about living in harmony with all life around us. How often this is ignored. We must consider the people, plants, and animals yet to be.

This truly golden rule must extend to all.