EQUITABLE USE OF RESOURCES FOR SUSTAINABLE LIFESTYLES

Reduction of the unsustainable and unequal use
of resources, and control of our population
growth are essential for the survival of our nation
and indeed of human kind everywhere. Our
environment provides us with a variety of goods
and services necessary for our day-to-day lives,
but the soil, water, climate and solar energy
which form the ‘abiotic’ support that we derive
from nature, are in themselves not distributed
evenly throughout the world or within countries.
A new economic order at the global and at national
levels must be based on the ability to distribute
benefits of natural resources by sharing
them more equally among the countries as well
as among communities within countries such
as our own. It is at the local level where people
subsist by the sale of locally collected resources,
that the disparity is greatest. ‘Development’ has
not reached them and they are often unjustly
accused of ‘exploiting’ natural resources. They
must be adequately compensated for the removal
of the sources to distant regions and thus
develop a greater stake in protecting natural
resources.
There are several principles that each of us can
adopt to bring about sustainable lifestyles. This
primarily comes from caring for our Mother
Earth in all respects. A love and respect for Nature
is the greatest sentiment that helps bring
about a feeling for looking at how we use natural
resources in a new and sensitive way. Think
of the beauty of a wilderness, a natural forest
in all its magnificence, the expanse of a green
grassland, the clean water of a lake that supports
so much life, the crystal clear water of a
hill stream, or the magnificent power of the
oceans, and we cannot help but support the
conservation of nature’s wealth. If we respect
this we cannot commit acts that will deplete
our life supporting systems.