Our story for a flourishing future needs both heads and hearts
December 18, 2021 | PAULE ANSOLEAGA ABASCAL
Thoughts about values, inner transformation and outer collective consciousness
Abstract
Underlying our current climate, health and economic crises, there is a far more severe one: the loss of values and sense of belonging to and caring for something much larger than ourselves and our inner circles.
As we stand, we are winning the battle of ideas but we are loosing the war of meaningful actions. Implementation is the Achilles’ Heel in sustainable development. The new roadmap needs to be built with the power of science, industry and innovation — the head — alongside strong values that bring us into closer emotional connection with the world — the heart –, for our actions to be authentic. Our story for a flourishing future needs both heads and hearts.
I’ve already focused on the hero’s journey and the need to embed female traits and values into the new paradigm. This time, I’d like to touch on the need for a deep psychological and social evolution to accompany our scientific and technological breakthroughs, recovering the values that got lost and letting our hearts walk alongside our heads to plan humankind’s journey ahead.
“If virtue precedes us, every step will be safe”. Seneca
The story of Eliahu and Hakim
In an oasis hidden among the most distant landscapes of the desert, old Eliahu was on his knees, next to some date palms. His neighbour Hakim, the wealthy merchant, stopped at the oasis to water his camels and saw Eliahu sweating, while he seemed to be digging in the sand.
· Hakim: “How are you old man? Peace be with you“
· Eliahu: “And with you” he answered without leaving his work.
· Hakim: “What are you doing here, in this temperature, and that shovel in your hands?”
· Eliahu: “I am sowing”
· Hakim: “What are you sowing here, Eliahu?”
· Eliahu: “Dates” he replied as he pointed to the palm grove around him.
· Hakim: “Dates!” repeated the newcomer, closing his eyes like someone listening to the greatest stupidity. “The heat has damaged your brain, dear friend. Come, drop that task and let’s go to the store for a glass of liquor”
· Eliahu: “No, I must finish the planting. Then if you want, we’ll drink…”
· Hakim: “Tell me, friend: how old are you?”
· Eliahu: “I don’t know… sixty, seventy, eighty, I don’t know… I’ve forgotten… but what does it matter?”
· Hakim: “Look, friend, date trees take more than fifty years to grow and only after being adult palms are they in a condition to bear fruit. I am not wishing you evil and you know it, I hope you live to be one hundred years old, but you know that you can hardly get to reap something from what you sow today. Leave that and come with me”
· Eliahu: “Look, Hakim, I ate the dates that someone else planted, another who didn’t dream of tasting those dates either. I sow today, so that others can eat tomorrow the dates that I am planting now… and even if it was only in honour of that stranger, it is worth finishing my task”
· Hakim: “You have given me a great lesson, Eliahu. Let me pay you with a bag of coins for this teaching that you gave me today” and saying this, Hakim put a leather bag in the old man’s hand.
· Eliahu: “I appreciate your coins, friend. You see, sometimes this happens; you predicted that I would not reap what I sowed. It seemed true and yet, look, I still haven’t finished planting and I’ve already reaped a bag of coins and the gratitude of a friend.”
Market values suppressing human values
Nowadays, most of us are reasoning and behaving like Hakim, no matter whether we means individuals, corporations or countries.
We see each other as separate individuals, separate nations, separate generations, divided by ideas, space and time. Gender, skin colour, political affiliation, sexual orientation, religion or age are perfect excuses to build walls.
Decades of abandoning religious or spiritual beliefs have led to a rationalist and materialist worldview with a romantic, simplified idea of individualism. In this new world, market values have substituted human values, promoting fierce competition, eroding interpersonal relations, family ties and communities. This trend has inflated our egos and provoked an existential and metaphysical void which material well-being cannot fulfil.
Since personal values shape our motivations and priorities, we favour instrumental extrinsic goals — such as money, success and power — at the expense of intrinsic ones (personal fulfilment, human relationships, solidarity). The same applies to companies which, driven solely by market values, have pursued short-term profits at all costs, disregarding people and planet for too long.
Division, short-termism and ego-driven values are at the very root of our climate, health and economic crises.
The climate emergency is just a symptom of these values. Our fundamental relation to Mother Earth is rooted in our psychological separation — in space and time — from the wider eco-system. Despite overwhelming scientific evidence, we are not moved to behavioural change because we perceive the issue as occurring far away in space — sea ice melting at the poles — and time — mainly affecting future generations. Like Hakim, we ask why sow seeds that won’t bear any fruit anywhere or anytime near us?
“Values such as love, compassion, kindness and forgiveness are not religious, but human. Neglecting those values will prevent the world from getting to a place of peace and understanding”. Dalai Lama.
Gleams of hope
However, as the problem exists, so does opportunity. I see gleams of hope everywhere, every day, starting from my daily cycle to work when I see the Duomo of Milan, an outstanding example of five centuries of collaboration among architects, sculptors, artists and workers from Italy and beyond.
Besides this personal, anecdotal experience, I believe we’re on a journey of global awakening and movement building. We are progressively awakening from our environmental, racial and patriarchal complacencies, to name a few. Social initiatives like #FridaysForFuture, #BlackLivesMatter and #MeToo are opening our eyes and warming our hearts. Positive reaction from business, finance and policy-makers is following suit.
Covid19 has been another trigger. It has demonstrated our essential interconnection and interdependence, and our inherent ability to help each other in times of crisis. If we are able to sacrifice our selfish short-term needs for the common long-term good in difficult times, why shouldn’t we do so always?
Post-millennials — who see they will inherit an indebted, damaged world — are embracing a new set of values: care for the environment, diversity and inclusion, equality of opportunity. They question the current paradigm and the meaning and purpose of what they do, and not just its material reward.
COP26 has demonstrated that despite enormous difficulties, differing national interests and stages of development, we can still unite and keep 1.5C alive.
The emergence of coalitions around issues like coal power, deforestation and methane, and ambitious commitments from business, finance and governments are great news; they need to be turned into action now. For these actions to be true, we cannot rely solely on technology and innovation. We need to add values — the heart — into the equation. Otherwise, we will keep on tweaking language — phase down fossil fuels instead of phase out — or being sufficiently vague to allow for consensus, devoid of much substance.
Technology and innovation are steered by individuals and the latter need to be motivated by strong eco-system values, care and love for other human beings and the planet. These values will drive change in individual behaviour and generate a strong political will to set up the right incentives. They can reinvigorate corporations with a new sense of purpose and turn climate change into the greatest commercial opportunity of our times.
Knowledge, consciousness and mindfulness
Knowledge is the foundation of any civilisation. Much unsustainable behaviour today is due to the lack of it, which should be addressed through quality education. STEM subjects should be complemented with humanities, to help us turn knowledge into consciousness and foster the predisposition to the common good.
“Everyone talks about peace but no one educates for peace. In this world, they educate for competition, and competition is the beginning of any war. When educating to cooperate and owe each other solidarity, that day we will be educating for peace”. María Montessori.
Becoming aware of a problem — such as the severity of the climate emergency — is the first step towards transformation. Once we understand an issue deeply, and how it relates to the wider systemic picture, we will engineer and plant the dates of opportunity. That’s what those who have understood — today’s Eliahus — are doing right now.
Mindfulness promotes personal well-being, empathy, compassion and clarification of values. It is paradoxical that, by taking care of ourselves and digging into our souls, we generate a positive ripple effect on others. Inner happiness sparks outer contagious positive energy and inspiration — the way Hakim feels inspired by Eliahu –.
“When you shine your unique light, bit by bit, you light up the world of those around you. And, one by one, you inspire them to light you up too”. Rebecca Campbell
Moreover, mindful people experience greater satisfaction with life and a deeper connection to nature. They do not need to overconsume to find fulfilment, leading to a more sustainable behaviour. Although the main goal of the Ego to Eco journey is not individual happiness, it is an extremely welcome side effect!
The paragraph below, taken from Manifesto for happiness. Shifting society from money to well-being [1] , perfectly conveys my own personal — more empirical than intellectual — beliefs:
“Psychological studies show that the more people care about money, image and status, the lower their well-being and the higher their distress. Materialistic individuals are unhappier, more dissatisfied with their lives, and they experience positive emotions (such as joy and contentment) less frequently. They have higher chances of falling prey to mental disorders such as anxiety and depression and they are more frequently victims of unpleasant emotions (like anger, fear and sadness). They also watch more TV, use more drugs and alcohol, and are unhealthier. Indeed, more materialistic people are more frequently subject to psychosomatic disorders, such as headaches and digestive complaints, and are at higher risk of cardiovascular disease[1]”.
Our story for a flourishing future needs both heads and hearts
Creating a better world requires much more than government and central bank balance sheets, and net-zero emission promises from the corporate and financial sectors. We need a profound system transformation, new economic thinking, sustainable policy-making, massive public and private investments, multi-country, multi-stakeholder collaboration and a genuine humankind evolution, integrated within a clear roadmap directed towards Net-Zero and the Sustainable Development Goals.
Outer change occurs only when we change from within. A genuine humankind evolution will not take place without a deep personal and societal renewal, a shift in human consciousness towards one of unity, gratitude, collaboration and interdependence. This is what I call eco-system consciousness. A new set of human values entrenched in our souls; a shift from the me to the we, from short to long-termism, from price to value, from having to being, from fear to love and from division to celebration of difference. In other words, a shift from the ego-system to the eco-system. From Hakim to Eliahu.
If we manage to transcend the Ego, and feel a deeper connection to nature, to every human being — like Eliahu –, we will be far less likely to abuse it, and way happier. We will be willing to think long-term, to act to protect future generations. We will have a healthier planet and a happier society, where our children, grandchildren and great grandchildren can enjoy the dates we plant today.
#NetZero #SDGs #Agenda2030 #Cop26 #Values #Knowledge #Consciousness #Education #GenderEquality #SustainableFuture
Opinions expressed in this article are solely my own. I very much hope that this article will provide food-for-thought and encourage a discussion of the contribution that embracing human values can make to sustainable development. I kindly ask my friends to recommend worth-reading books in the comments section. Thank you very much in advance!
[1] The paragraph below, taken from Manifesto for happiness. Shifting society from money to well-being, perfectly conveys my own personal — more empirical than intellectual — beliefs:
