In continuing our search for knowledge and the understanding of various complex environmental issues, the final book which concludes our ENVS160 journey gives more hope to the despair produce by the facts from earlier texts. In our collective quest to find solutions to the various social, economic, cultural and environmental issues that face us people have been told that individual effort is one of the keys to solving problems as if many individuals make the effort then a big difference will be seen and felt throughout the society. This idea is reminiscent of the inverse of the Tragedy of the the Commons (Hardin 1968). However, as alluded by the EcoTypes survey and its ‘Scale’ axis whereby one either subscribes to individual or institutional means in order to make a difference, the individual is not enough. This is something explored by Paul F. Steinberg in his book: Who Rules the Earth, How Social Rules Shape Our Planet and Our Lives. It can be said that the author attempts to, and to an extent illustrates how the rules as shaped by society and the law are the actual catalysts of change and it is key to change these ‘rules’ in order to change the physical and psychological landscape of society if we as people would like to see change manifest in relation to environmental, social, political and economic obstacles.
In beginning with the story about the Canadian doctor who lobbied for the banning of the use of pesticides in public spaces(Steinberg 2015. pp 5- 18) the author illustrates that individuals who form grassroots movements and aim for their cause to be taken up to the level of the law, it is possible to make a lasting effort on your society and surroundings which will positively impact yourself and those to come for many generations. This is something I have personally seen to be true in the League of Nations which although was disbanded, left the framework for what is now the World Health Organisation. The rules of the League influenced the society and established an institution whose benefit is seen decades later. And through showing us how a walk by the beach, though it may seem simple, is influenced by layers of laws and rules (Steinberg 2015. pp 19-33) the author further illustrates the depth to which the power of rules reaches. And it is those who control those rules mainly through invisible and tangible worlds (i.e- property ownership and land rights) that determine the extent to which people are able to make a difference.
Through illustrating the far reach of social rules and how they impact the environment, most notably in the example of the cerulean warbler bird (Steinberg 2015. pp 63-94) the author shows how rules operate at a global scale as a result of policies set by sovereign states without the consultation of one and other. This illustrates the implications of social rules on a global scale that weren’t planned.
In the midst of illustrating how rules influence every aspect of our lives, so not to leave us in despair the author discusses how as people in society we are able to shape and form the rules that would better our lives and those of others through collective action and lobbying to our lawmakers. Through our own perilous journey into the various complexities of the world we are able to see that change is possible and change is constant whatever the issues may be.
Works cited:
Hardin, Garrett. 1968. ‘The Tragedy of the Commons’. Science 162 (3859): 1243–48. doi:10.1126 /science.162.38 59.1243. Zotero Library.
Steinberg, Paul F. 2015. Who Rules the Earth, How Social Rules Shape Our Planet and Our Lives. Oxford: Oxford University Press.