We Need a Sustainable Community

Toward a Sustainable Community

Not until the spread of the Industrial Revolution in the late nineteenth century, has man possessed the ability to adversely alter, on a global scale, the geologic and climatic cycles that have existed for millennia. Planet earth, which man calls home, is approximately 5 billion years old. The science of paleontology tells us that man is a relative new comer to the planet. Modern man did not arrive on the scene until approximately 10,000 to 15,000 years ago. Developments in hunting, agriculture, literacy, and the sciences, have allowed man to thrive and inhabit nearly every corner of the planet. However, this success has not been good for the earth. The world's population has recently surpassed 6 billion and the developed countries community models and lifestyles are not sustainable.

Due to rapid, unrestrained growth, housing, shopping, and entertainment construction has spread across the surface of the planet like an oil slick. We are depleting resources and altering ecosystems at an alarming rate. Only now are we beginning to comprehend the long-term effects of more than a century of environmental ignorance, neglect, and apathy.

Historically, city and community planners lacked the vision and understanding that would lead to environmentally friendly and sustainable conditions, allowing us to live in harmony with nature. This, coupled with irresponsible consumerism and poor individual choices, has led us to a crossroad. It is now clear we cannot continue to build communities that are unsustainable and we must change our lifestyles. We have arrived at the threshold of the 21st century where nothing less than a global call to action is necessary. We can continue on our current path, wh...

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...e fabric of the earth's ecosystems. Through advances in technology, man is able to search the heavens, listening and looking out thousands of light years to investigate the universe and its origins. The knowledge gained has allowed us to understand just how unique and fragile our biosphere is to man's existence. To date, there is no other place in the universe that can support human life, as we know it here on earth. Even if we were able to find a solar system similar to our own, we do not currently possess the technology to travel to such a place. What does this mean for humankind? Earth is our home, everything in, on, and around it is a priceless, finite resource that life depends on and we should treat it as such. It should guide and encompass all aspects of our lives. We need to understand this tenet; our lifestyles and communities should embrace and reflect it.