The movie title Back to the Future has never been so true. When we look at the environmental challenges that await us, we must not look ahead, but rather behind us to find the solutions. Our ancestors had it, the deal!
In the middle of the last century, Montreal was criss-crossed by electric buses and trams. Without batteries and their complexity, simply with catenaries and pantographs. The delivery, made by horse-drawn cart, was for local products. Virtually all the shops were “local”.
Were we talking about recycling? No, but even better, our ancestors reused. The milk arrived in glass pints which were reused. The butcher or the fishmonger, both local, used products from here and wrapped your purchases in reused newspaper. Butter and flour were sold in bulk. These are just a few examples of where we need to go. It’s still ironic, isn’t it?
People back then had less choice, but their goods were of good quality and made locally. Appliances were made to last. In short, they lived in a “sustainable” mode, as we say today. Of course, these are just a few examples and not everything was rosy either, but it’s sometimes funny to see that progress hasn’t brought only good things and that our great recycling concepts are actually beautiful words to make us feel guilty for over-consuming. The secret is in sobriety.
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