Feel-Good Activism

With the window to keep global warming below 1.5° C, governments across the globe, including here in Canada, are issuing “Net-Zero Challenges.” These loosely-worded programs offer incentives for private companies to opt into emissions reduction planning with the aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero by 2050 or sooner.

Sounds great… but in reality? It feels to me like a ploy that will allow companies to do all the right work on paper without having to face the elephant in the room: our planet cannot indefinitely support our current way of life. Period. No amount of tepid committee planning, carbon off-setting, or feel-good activism will change that. Moreover, by focusing solely on emissions, these programs completely ignore the loss of biodiversity and collapsing ecosystems caused by human activity.

While I do applaud the efforts of these programs, my thoughts can’t help but wander. These challenges are designed to allow the broadest cross-section of companies to participate, from fossil fuel giants to boutique consulting firms. By creating a framework that’s so vague and requires little-to-no external oversight, it feels to me like a free pass for organizations to make the minimum possible effort and still feel good about themselves–not to mention add valuable greenwashing jargon to their promotional materials.

I guess this is all to say, if you’re out there feeling like the world is still upside-down and the only change is a bunch of head office folks and business insiders trying to force people back to the office so we can all pretend like we’re synergizing away the world’s problems when we’re absolutely NOT… Deep breath. You’re not alone.

I still, and will likely always believe that a true path to environmental sustainability requires a holistic approach based on a fundamental shift in the way we interact with the natural world, and with each other. A “reciprocity,” to borrow from the brilliant Robin Wall Kimmerer. Maybe there’s another series of posts dedicated solely to Braiding Sweetgrass still to come from me... but I digress. While it’s true that change of this nature isn’t always comfortable, I remain so very hopeful that there are many of us out there who are ready to do the work.