“What does it take to bring about social change to protect the environment?” (Steinberg 2015, 13).
Prior to this class, I would have been eager to raise my hand and regurgitate everything that I have been taught thus far – reduce, reuse, recycle on an individual scale in order to bring about lasting change for a sustainable environment. However, Paul Steinberg argues that individuals must abandon the “think globally and act locally” mindset because ultimately this will not amount to the level of change we wish to see. In order to tackle these gargantuan problems, Steinberg suggests that we take a look at who rules the earth and, “modify the very rules that society lives by,” (Steinberg 2015, 11).
In Who Rules The Earth?, Steinberg first explains that, “to change the rules, we must first become aware of them,” (Steinberg 2015, 12). The point that he is trying to make, is that humans are restricted by the social rules that we abide by every day. Often times we are unaware of these rules because they are “invisible”; partially because we are not actively looking for them – but according to Steinberg that is the problem. The reason why social rules need to be acknowledged is because they guide our thoughts, but more importantly our actions. Once we identify the current rules, only then will we be able to make a difference.
Taking it a step further, we must not only define what the problem is but the “who”; who has the power to create change? Steinberg makes it very clear that our world is governed by institutions. The example of the José Delfín Duarte and Claudia Olazábal is used to demonstrate the different ways that social change on an institutional level can occur in a variety of settings, “Yet within these bounds, each is quietly reshaping the fabric of society, cutting and reattaching the threads of the elaborate rulemaking structures that make it possible to do things like provide potable water to a rural community or protect endangered species across the European continent,” (Steinberg 2015, 162).
How does Who Rules The Earth? apply to your scholarly and personal life?
Steinberg has shown me that every decision that I make is an example of me conforming to the rules set by society. For example, I grew up in Hawaii, meaning that I had an ample amount of access to the beach. Never once did I think will I get brutally assaulted or worse for going to this beach because of the color of my skin? However, Steinberg uses the example of the “wade-ins” incident in Chicago on August 28, 1960 and how thousands of people of color protested public beach access because at that time it was deemed illegal for colored people to attend the same beach as whites. Since these brave Americans were able to successfully change the rules, now everyone can enjoy the beach. This issue made me think of Steinberg’s response, “So the question before us is not whether change is possible. . . . Change is not only possible, it is pervasive. The only question is whose interests are served by these changes and whether you and I take part in the process,” (Steinberg 2015, 59-210). Who Rules The Earth? is a game changer. Steinberg has given me a sense of hope because he has noted several examples where modifying the rules has resulted in real change, and because of this is has made solutions for monster issues such as climate change a little more tangible.
Steinberg, Paul F. 2015. Who Rules the Earth?: How Social Rules Shape Our Planet and Our Lives. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.