Seventeen goals, 231 indicators. And yet: all are interconnected, every action should as a minimum be neutral across the board. Confusing? Yes. If we have to choose, what are the high-leverage points? I begin to believe that there are just three dimensions that will determine how thriveable our futures will be.
- The cross-cutting topic is food. The way that we produce, distribute, consume and dispose of food – the global ‘food regime’ – affects every single one of the SDGs. And changing our food regime is absolutely at the top of the ‘drawdown’ list of things we can do to reverse climate change. Read more here.
Does that mean that in order to be part of the solution, you need to make radical changes to your eating habits? No.Does it mean that if you’re an ardent vegan, you’re already doing all you can? No. The key is not what you eat, but how your food is produced: does it damage or regenerate the soil?
2. The cross-cutting process is education. Our education systems haven’t caught up with the needs of a sustainable society. We’re still largely educating people to slot into industrial society with a minimum of fuss. That has to change, at every level. And it is changing; but we still tolerate educational programs teaching both children and adults things about humans, history, science and our planet that are simply wrong. Insist that radically critical thinking is introduced into all schools and at all levels!
3. The overarching stumbling block is the global economic system. Because most of us are educated and brain-washed into believing that the current economic system is scientific, thus in some sense inevitable, we allow ourselves to be distracted. We aim for transformative change, yet find ourselves dragged back into the old-old, same-same wheel ruts.
Many of the myths current in our societies revolve around money. The system won’t crumble just because we become aware of the myths; but that awareness can help us find ways to circumvent the worst pitfalls and contribute to emerging solutions.
“You never change things by fighting against the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the old model obsolete.” – Buckminster Fuller