Current environment related movements in the third world are not just
because the population are becoming more "aware" and "conscious"
regarding the environment. Most movements arise because populations are
directly affected by the forms of economic development that are in place,
especially against large scale projects set up by the state or the
transnational corporations. Movements arise not because local populations
have been "educated"regarding environmental issues, but because they have
a direct and immediate stake in the environment, their livelihoods are
dependent on sustainable environments.
D.Parthasarathy
Dept. of Humanities and Social Sciences
Indian Institute of Technology
Mumbai, India
On Wed, 7 Jan 1998, DR. PHUA KAI LIT wrote:
> Re: Emphasis on Economic Growth regardless
> of the impact on the environment
>
> I believe that some people have even argued that it
> all goes back to the strong Christian
> influence on Western civilization i.e. the view presented
> in Genesis that nature was created for the benefit of
> "Man" and that we should have mastery over nature.
>
> This contrasts with other philosophies which
> argue that human beings should live in harmony
> with nature.
>
> P.S. As for the fascination of people in the
> Third World with Western consumer goods and
> a consumerist lifestyle, one has to remember that
> the Third World is either still mired in poverty or just
> emerging from poverty. When one is poor or dirt poor, the
> image of affluent Western society presented by Hollywood,
> American TV programs etc. is truly fascinating indeed.
> (Remember the fascination of the New Guineans with the
> material goods brought in by Allied soldiers during
> World War Two and the subsequent appearance
> of the Cargo Cults??)
>
> If you speak to the average Malaysian, he or she would think
> that more and more shopping malls, more and more
> housing projects, more and more condos, more and more
> highways are desirable and even signs of "progress".
> Nevertheless, as we get better educated and more exposed
> to the latest debates over economic growth and
> the environment, a Green awareness is growing among certain
> segments of Malaysian society.
> (Having studied and lived in the U.S. for a long time, I
> enjoy going to nature parks in Malaysia. But to my parents,
> it is just undeveloped jungle! My little niece complains
> about the heat, how boring the park is, that she should
> have stayed home and watched TV etc!)
>
> Paraphrasing Keynes, the scribblings of intellectuals yesterday
> become the conventional wisdom of ordinary people today.
> "Modernisation Theory" was promoted in academia in the
> West in the 1950s and 1960s and these ideas have filtered
> down and become
> the conventional wisdom in the Third World today.
>
> Perhaps with the passage of time, ordinary people in the Third World
> will become more "Green" in their consciousness. And
> also come to view the malling of Third World cities and
> urban sprawl as being a blight on the land rather than as
> signs of "progress" (In Singapore - comparable to the West
> in its GNP per capita and with a well educated population -
> Green consciousness is quite strong
> among the younger generation).