When reading Who Rules the Earth? (2015), I was given the opportunity to examine several very important topics in the field of environmental studies ranging all the way from pesticide regulation to cap and trade in China. Over the course of the semester, the class has covered a vast number of topics and discussed so many different pressing concerns that face our planet today, as well as different opinions about the severity of, and solutions to, those concerns. With the end of the class came the closure and understanding I so craved; Steinberg essentially helped me pull all of my concerns and personal take-aways together and allowed me to understand what the future may hold for environmental action.
As an International Affairs major, I am extremely interested in learning about how to actually implement change to address major crises on a global scale. Ever since I was young, I sat through talks in school telling me about the importance of turning off the water while I brush my teeth and making sure that the lights weren’t left on when I wasn’t in a room. I grew up under the clouded impression that doing these things was my personal contribution towards a more sustainable lifestyle- one in which shorter showers ends global warming- and that everybody I knew was doing this too. Wouldn’t that be nice? Unfortunately, it is not that simple of a fix. Acting individually is insufficient, and “to think locally and act globally is just plain wrong. It is far too simplistic in its portrayal of the sources of environmental problems and the solutions at our disposal” (Steinberg 2015, 163)
When I was in eighth grade, I took a quiz about my carbon footprint. Here, you answer basic questions about what you eat, how frequently you drive and with whom, your electricity usage, and more. I learned that if everybody on the Earth lived the exact same lifestyle as myself, we would need 4.7 Earths to provide enough resources. Ever since I learned this, I have been thinking about what actually needs to be done to address serious global resource dilemmas among other environmental concerns. Obviously being a strict vegetarian and taking public transportation is not enough! Steinberg sums up what I learned in that moment perfectly by saying, “isolated individual actions are fine and well, but are simply inadequate given the size of the challenge.” (Steinberg 2015, 219)
There is significance in taking action, but we must acknowledge that doing so institutionally is by far more successful at implementing change than individually. “If we are going to do a better job of managing the earth’s resources sustainably, we need institutions capable of governing over long horizons.” (Steinberg 2015, 130) We are in desperate need of overarching policies that can achieve more than you or I can singlehandedly. It is so important to acknowledge that if you really want to make a difference, you must look to change the social rules that govern the rules that we create.
Steinberg says, “It seems to me that the task before us is to reveal and repair- to bring to light the social rules that shape our world and to have a hand in making them.” (Steinberg 2015, 266) Social rules essentially restrict and influence our day to day lives, and it is our job to alter these rules at an institutional level so as to make a larger difference to match the scale of the problems we are facing. To even think about altering the social rules, the author mentions that we must maintain our humility and learn to be okay with constantly learning about the social rules that govern specific places, locally and globally. (Steinberg 2015, 267)
Works Cited
Paul F. Steinberg. 2015. Who Rules the Earth?: How Social Rules Shape Our Planet and Our Lives. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.