What if we are on the wrong track in our fight against climate change? Are we really attacking the heart of the problem? The scientific demonstrations are unequivocal: human activity is responsible for the worrying situation in which we find ourselves.
We also know of possible solutions to reduce our ecological footprint. However, could it be that all our efforts are, in the end, just a balm for a much deeper wound?
Far be it from me to say that we must not act; this is one of the greatest challenges facing humanity. Despite everything, I fear that we are still in denial about the extent of the problem and, above all, about its true nature.
Every year, tens of thousands of people mark Earth Day by reaffirming the importance of the planet for humans. The message is as crucial as it is inconceivable. We need this planet. There are these obvious facts, aren’t there? However, a huge gap remains between our words and our actions. Such inconsistency can hardly be explained by a lack of understanding. At the point where we are, it takes ill will to deny the environmental situation, and that does not seem to be the crux of the problem in climate-skeptic circles, by the way.
Admittedly, there are individuals who defend strategic, even dishonest political positions, but we must have faith in our collective judgement. Who is still being fooled by the electoral promises of our politicians?
Let’s look at reality from a different angle. We are all trying to reach a higher standard of living. The more or less significant sufferings that we encounter make us dream of a better future. Since everything is instantaneous these days, we seek the fast track to achieving this state of grace. Why continue to tolerate this discomfort? And now a first bias in interpretation settles in us!
In this modernity, we systematically avoid moments of silence, during which we find ourselves alone facing our demons. Guided by insatiable desires, we find it much easier to remedy our discomfort by turning to a new quest. Long before the deterioration of our habitat comes intellectual pollution. The one that weakens us from the inside.
Thus, our species has forged a disproportionate ego and it falters at the slightest gust of wind. We have so little hindsight that our identity now depends on what we do, the places we visit, what we buy or even what we eat. Combined with an enslavement to the predominant economic model, this propensity for opulence pushes us to sink ever further into this cul-de-sac.
In addition to reconsidering our definition of what development is — reality shows that it would be more appropriate to use the term “extinction” — it is necessary to tend towards a newfound humility in order to cultivate another relationship with happiness. Climate change is real, and action is urgently needed now.
Inevitably, any lasting intervention will require concessions. We will have to fight the fear of losing what we have accumulated, the identity that is dear to us. We must strive for a fairer distribution of available resources. Agree to have a little less so that others have a little more. We must contribute, individually and collectively, to the evolution of mentalities.