[ssf] UN shmoo en

[spodulike at freeuk.com]

What I find interesting is that many economists are now proposing 
including things like environmental concerns into market considerations.
So a rainforest will have a particular capitalist 'worth' and so on. 
Course it's nothing new and was proposed ages ago, but good the ideas 
are finally filtering into mainstream economic theories.

The theories were originally (AFAIK) proposed by a feminist economist 
who thought unseen aspects of economies such as the environment and 
unpaid carers/mothers and so on should be factored into economic 
considerations. It all makes a great deal of sense, sad that from 
government to council these ideas are still not really accepted or 
appreciated.

If in this country there was a massive investment in forging and 
promoting local communities, how much would be saved on state provided 
services such as policing and nursery care? I realise you can't always 
use economic arguments as justification, at some level society needs to 
become less individualistic as well, however I think a central part of 
becoming a less consumerist society is to see the resources around us 
not in terms of money but in terms of people, and increasing bonds 
between neighbours is a way of doing that, "maximising your local 
people based resource" etc. It reduces environmental waste as people 
can share and re-use. It reduces reliance on bought in services and 
encourages sharing of skills. The problem is that because of the mobile 
and culturally diverse society we live in there needs to be structures 
in place which encourage neighbourhood communication.

Well from my position of complete ignorance that's what I think anyways:
)

Jason

> Just been re-reading the UN's Global Environment Outlook from 2000.  
You 
> can see why the US might want to get rid of them - they're obviously 

> filthy commies!
> 
> http://www.unep.org/geo2000/
> 
> Saying bizarre things like:
> 
> "There are few tools to assess how developments in one region affect 

> other regions,and whether the dreams and aspirations of one region 
are 
> compatible with the sustainability of the global commons."
> 
> and
> 
> "Means must be found to tackle the root causes of environmental 
> problems, many of which are unaffected by strictly environmental 
> policies.  Resource consumption, for example, is a key driver of 
> environmental degradation.  Policy measures to attack this issue must 

> reduce population growth,  reorient consumption patterns,  increase 
> resource use efficiency and make structural changes to the economy. 
> 
> The important part:
> 
> "This will require a shift in values away from material consumption.  

> Without such a shift,  environmental policies can effect only 
marginal 
> improvements."
> 
> Obviously absolute commie terrorist gibberish!
> 
> Dan
> 
> 
> 
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