Time to get serious about poverty and property politics
Pressures on people who try to live off the land are some of the most destabilizing influences in our world .The problem is that such strongly degraded land systems are still far too common and they need not be .
My plea here is to abandon the traditional defence of left and right on the issue of property politics and recognise there is a way forward for rural communities ( particularly those in Asia and Africa who are still overly vulnerable to unecessary pressure on land ) that can be advanced by observers in the West . That is, its specific technical and objective but its , to warn , you very resistant to the technological fix mentality that characterises recent generation failure.
After watching my generation meddle in weighty matters of environment and agriculture, its clearly time to offer a more objective view of how to help precarious agriculture communities become more sustainable and settled . Huge Agricultural and Environment political interests compete for public attention BUT do not work in each others best interests .The earth deserves better than the current cul de sac extremes of exploitation or enshrining. Current fashion is to offer societies self correction, but this is not objective and creates only more failure down the track .
I am aware as a long term practitioner in science of capability evaluation that there is great value in the practice of objective land science being used at a government level because some coercion and more objective vision is necessary for sustainable developments anywhere in planet earth - and for its sake
What's stopping the west from doing more about poverty problems in the east ? ( My point here is that we can't blame the Taliban for the problem because they are too close to it .The problem I have as a highly experienced and effective environmental risk management specialist is that so much aid and technology offered to the poor is STILL inappropriate and mistargeted.
The reason why my generation has done so little to reduce poverty in rural areas is simply because prejudice, patronising and poor objectivity have driven our efforts .
Once we understand and accept our need for place and space we can help others find something sustainable for themselves. Ask me if you want to know more . Lots of citations .
The government I worked for for 33 years has now lost sight of how to be positively engaged in this matter and only an independent research review , to my mind , could revive it . I had one of the best jobs in the world and it would be great if even a few people could continue work in this area.
My plea here is to abandon the traditional defence of left and right on the issue of property politics and recognise there is a way forward for rural communities ( particularly those in Asia and Africa who are still overly vulnerable to unecessary pressure on land ) that can be advanced by observers in the West . That is, its specific technical and objective but its , to warn , you very resistant to the technological fix mentality that characterises recent generation failure.
After watching my generation meddle in weighty matters of environment and agriculture, its clearly time to offer a more objective view of how to help precarious agriculture communities become more sustainable and settled . Huge Agricultural and Environment political interests compete for public attention BUT do not work in each others best interests .The earth deserves better than the current cul de sac extremes of exploitation or enshrining. Current fashion is to offer societies self correction, but this is not objective and creates only more failure down the track .
I am aware as a long term practitioner in science of capability evaluation that there is great value in the practice of objective land science being used at a government level because some coercion and more objective vision is necessary for sustainable developments anywhere in planet earth - and for its sake
What's stopping the west from doing more about poverty problems in the east ? ( My point here is that we can't blame the Taliban for the problem because they are too close to it .The problem I have as a highly experienced and effective environmental risk management specialist is that so much aid and technology offered to the poor is STILL inappropriate and mistargeted.
The reason why my generation has done so little to reduce poverty in rural areas is simply because prejudice, patronising and poor objectivity have driven our efforts .
Once we understand and accept our need for place and space we can help others find something sustainable for themselves. Ask me if you want to know more . Lots of citations .
The government I worked for for 33 years has now lost sight of how to be positively engaged in this matter and only an independent research review , to my mind , could revive it . I had one of the best jobs in the world and it would be great if even a few people could continue work in this area.
Saw a great film "The colour of paradise" recently which observes the dilemma in some detail ( Iranian filmmaker)
ReplyDeleteSince my original post the West's failure to plan for affordable housing, and discourage capital gains investment in unproductive houses has become clearer . No money saved for jobs --just money lost in painting and heating rooms that are completely overpriced. Spaces are not that valuable.
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