|
The idea of opting out of the conventional Western lifestyle and going “back to basics” has always had a certain appeal. Back in 1975, The Good Life became one of the most popular comedies ever to air in both the UK and Australia
, as audiences watched Barbara and John Good’s struggles to give up their conventional suburban life and become self sufficient. The theme has been developed in a number of shows over the years, most notably in the ABC’s hit of the 90s, SeaChange, a term which is now firmly entrenched in the Australian vernacular. What’s interesting about both these shows is that they portray ordinary middle-class people, who are wealthy and educated; people who have good jobs and financially comfortable lives. These are people who have everything we are told we should aspire to, and yet have chosen to trade in those values for a more meaningful existence. The very concept of a “lifestyle choice” means you do actually have a choice: whether it is to down-shift your work environment or hours, use a bike or public transport, or ditch the supermarket in favour of the farmer’s market. Not everyone decides to give up their well-paying job and move to the sticks, but more and more people are choosing to make small changes to make their lives more “sustainable”. So are these things the sign of a real paradigm shift, or are they simply the latest designer accessories of the [fair-trade-decaf-soy-] coffee set? Dr Steve Hatfield Dodds, research director of the Social and Economic Integration initiative, at CSIRO, is confident the recent shift in values around sustainability, the environment and economic values is genuine. “We seem to be willing to give up a lot which people used to take for granted,” he said. However, just to be sure, he has recently published research written in the economic language the federal government and business understand, which shows that, even though economic growth will slow slightly, we will still get richer as a country if we make the right decisions on behalf of the environment. “We will still get a lot richer, even if we make the best environmental choice. Labour productivity is so good that we can deal with it responsibly,” Steve said. One of the biggest challenges the sustainability movement might face is the image many people have from shows like The Good Life, where living sustainably automatically means depriving yourself of the comfort most westerners are used to and going against what is socially acceptable. However, in 2006 the release of US ex-Vice President Al Gore’s film An Inconvenient Truth, showed the world that it’s possible to be passionate about the environment and still wear a suit. Along with the recent Stern Report on the Economics of Climate Change, it’s the latest contribution to bringing sustainability out of the realm of hippies and into mainstream consciousness. Steve’s research follows the same trend in approaching the issue from an economic perspective, demonstrating that sustainable practices can go hand in hand with economic growth. On a personal level, Steve says he sees sustainability as being about living an uncluttered life, where you are actually getting better value out of the things you are doing. It’s not just about responsible buying or selling your car, although these things can be important choices for some people. For example, with cheap fast food on every corner eating healthily can seem to be the more expensive and time consuming option, but when you consider its benefits to health and family life, and weigh that against the longer-term costs of those cheap fast food options, eating wisely begins to look like the most economical, and sustainable, way to go. “It’s about getting away from the notion that a simple life is somehow sacrificial,” he says. “It might mean spending more on some things to ensure that they last, and making a difference to the environment that way.” “My big thing in the climate debate, is do we really care if our income only goes up 80 per cent rather than 90 per cent in the next ten years? When you go around and ask most people this, the answer is almost always no.” Steve points to a wealth of research into the causes of long-term happiness which suggest that, for most people, money really doesn’t buy it. “We need to work out how we can pick up on the correct intuition that many of us have that things are not going well and we need to work out what we can do about that. “That the vision we had 200 years ago of a market economy is not working. In Australia, income has doubled three times over the last 101 years, but we don’t seem to be any happier at all,” he says. The reality for most people is that as their income increases so do their spending patterns, so the political and business focus on economic growth has little meaning in real terms, because once our basic needs are met, most people measure their level of comfort and satisfaction on what is going on around them. This is certainly true for Cameron and Louise Tero, a Perth couple who, together with their three young girls, lead a full and happy life. This is despite managing on Cameron’s part-time income in small (by today’s standards) three-bedroom, single-bathroom house. A caravan out the back doubles as an office and guess room, as well as being available for family holidays. Another important part of their lifestyle is their backyard, complete with vegie patch, chooks and ducks. This allows them to educate the girls about where food comes from. Their pets are also great at getting rid of household scraps, and the vegie patch is a good way to use up waste water. “We don’t tend to have lots of appliances,” says Louise, explaining that their motivation is trying stick to the basics, like cooking with pots and pans rather than “labour saving” devices. “We do have a TV and a stereo. We don’t have an air conditioner, but we do have fans. “We’re into recycling. Giving things another use is something we like to do, which also means our shed is a bit junky.” They take short showers, encouraging the kids to do the same, try to make sure to they recycle the water from their top-loading washing machine. “It’s not just using water once, it’s using it two or three times where possible. It’s harder if you don’t live in a house with a garden, but I guess it’s being deliberate in thinking about how things can by used, and why we have things,” she says. Having children can make a sustainable lifestyle more of a challenge. For example, the Australian tradition of summer water play requires a bit of a re-think, using water from buckets and a paddling pool, rather than running the sprinkler on the lawn. Louise says their choice to live as simply as possible comes from their commitment as Christians, and trying to follow what they feel are important lessons from their faith. “Jesus was on about people as opposed to lots of things,” she says. “We have a fairly big social life. We like having people to our place, or going to do stuff with people. We choose to spend our money on having a holiday or going out with friends rather than buying clothes or other things.” Sometimes it’s the girls’ turn to remind her of their values. Recently, her eldest daughter Jane was invited to a friend’s party. She had made a card and a bracelet for the birthday girl, but Louise, feeling the pressure to fit in with the social conventions of other families, felt they should buy something as well, and it was Jane who convinced her it was okay not to go overboard. “It’s all trying,” says Louise. “We fail just like everyone else does.” "I've come to the conclusion that you can't change other people, you can only change yourself. By being clear about why you do stuff, hopefull that rubs off on other people."
Trackback(0)
 |
TrackBack URI for this entry
Subscribe to this comment's feed
Show/Hide comment form
