The Future of Sustainability: Have Your Say!

Week One - “Global Challenges to Sustainability in the Twenty-First Century”
Comment / Comentario / Commentaire

Tommy Garnett

Moderating team: Tommy feels that grassroots action is critical to attain any measure of sustainability in Africa. However, given the problems of illiteracy and poverty which most Africans face, he feels that education and communication programmes are essential in mobilizing the public to work towards any sustainability projects.

Tommy afirma que las acciones de base son críticas para lograr alguna medida de sostenibilidad en Africa. Sin embargo, debido a las condiciones particulares de Africa, los programas de educación y comunicación son esenciales para movilizar el trabajo en proyectos de sostenibilidad.

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I would like to follow up on Rick Murphy’s point about emphasizing more grassroots action for sustainability in Africa, as I think that the participation of grassroots communities (who are both key contributors to and victims of growing environmental problems in Africa) is critical to any measure of sustainability in Africa. That said, it must be borne in mind that the vast majority of Africans are grappling with illiteracy – one of the major causes and effects of poverty and hence further environmental problems. We all can imagine the potential role that an educated and well informed population can play in the fight to save our planet. Yet, practically all of the formal educational systems in place in Africa (most especially in West Africa ) are modeled on Western standards which are expensive to attain, inaccessible to most, often irrelevant and not enough to ensure a job, an income and a sense of achievement and security for self and family. Most people are in dire straits and will decimate the last reserve, if that is what it takes to put food in their bellies. Add that to a post conflict setting in countries rich in mineral resources and biodiversity. Add tothis a growing demand for cheap energy and mineral resources from Africa. If we must talk about sustainability then we must also talk about innovative ways to engage the masses through educational and informative programs that both enhance their abilities to fully grasp the national, regional and global dimensions of the problems as well as inspire positive actions at all levels. A great deal of emphasis should therefore be placed on informal means of communicating though local / traditional art and music (a language that is easily understood by all, especially the youth who form over 60% of the adult population in some countries and who provide the energy/labour in the forests, the mines, etc..). I am not only referring to localized project activities that involve one or two communities, although at the end of the day, the actions are carried out at the community level. I am talking about regional or state sponsored campaigns that highlight the urgency of the problems as well as each individual’s role in contributing to lasting solutions, but presented in such way that the ensuing actions are instigated by an appreciation of the gravity of the problems and the power of each individual, bearing in mind all the obstacles outlined earlier that related to governance, corruption and even globalization.