The EXPEDITION Project: Coffee Anyone?

Just a thought #8: Make Money & Save the Earth...possible?

Is it possible to do both?...
…of course it is. Make the most of the trouble we are in by coming up with solutions for governments to buy into. The climate crisis will cost nations between 20% and 50% of their national GDP, so they will have to pay attention eventually, even if it is too late.
An answer for now -

Just a thought #7: Meaning of Life & Planet Earth

Having recently gone through a tough couple of years of my life as we all do, it raises the ever present question yet again – ‘What is the meaning of life?’
I am a romantic at heart and hence believe in happy endings, just like the Hollywood movies. Some people have the amazing ability to always look on the bright side of life, as coined by the Monty Python gang of the 1970’s. Some people however will always find the negative a situation. It’s the glass half empty vs. the glass half full scenario.
But back to my woes, are they really as bad when put in context of the world or other people’s strife? It is human nature to naturally be selfish so I guess your own problems are always more important than any others and hence more pertinent to your life.
John Lennon once said that "life is what happens while you are making other plans". So true that statement is for it seems that we get so caught up in what has happened and what may happen that we miss out on what is happening. Might be easier said than done, for our past will forever be part of our make up as human beings, and naturally we are always looking ahead for a better life, seldom satisfied with what we have today.
In the context of planet Earth, over the course of billions of years our world has learnt, developed, evolved and adapted to what works best, efficiently and effectively for all that occupy it. Each organism works as part of the whole to contribute to our eco system in what has been described as a living, breathing earth. Simplify that down into human perspective- we are also living, breathing organisms and the slightest change in our lives or lifestyle has an effect on our attitude, manor, and daily lives. If we don’t get enough sleep or food, we are irritable, if we are stressed we suffer from anxiety, if we lose a partner or family member we are saddened.  The same is true for the Earth as one big living breathing organism. If it is put under stress or strain it too reacts, if it is not fed it struggles. All in all if either a human being or Earth as a whole is thrown out of balance, its normal routine is hence disrupted. And disruption means a shift in things that were once maybe normal.
What’s the answer, what is the meaning of life?
Just a thought…

Just a thought #6: Make things HAPPEN!

Nedbank has a fantastic advertising campaign at the moment – ‘Make it happen’. This campaign bases itself on the fact that we can’t sit around waiting for what we want, we must go out and get it, make it! The reverse is becoming true of our South African population. This is what we want, this is what we deserve, we have a right to this and that. The government owes us this and that!

Look at the UK’s ‘Dole’ system as an example. The state provides an income to young mothers, unemployed, disabled etc etc. This is great, but it leads to another problem. Abusing the system! The youth would rather live off this income than get a job. Many girls will fall pregnant so that they don’t have to get a job.

South African is suffering a less supported however similar mentality of this problem.

South Africa needs jobs! We need them so badly that the population don’t care what they are we just want them. We need to feed our families after all!

Apartheid ended in 1994 and ‘Affirmative Action’ was implemented. This meant that the previously disadvantaged population would get first preference on jobs. Once again this is great in theory. After all communism is great in theory too and we all know how that turned out.

Ok so back to our South African problem. The population wants jobs and the government has promised to provide them. The population starts to get the jobs they want; unfortunately, they then want higher salaries and better benefits. The population get the increase in pay and more benefits, but then the workforce gets lazy and unproductive because the population isn’t interested in the jobs they have, after all it is just a job isn’t it!?

Will better jobs be the answer or is it just a matter of never being satisfied?

The other point is in the rush to create jobs to chill the masses, the jobs being created aren’t necessarily sustainable.

You see where I am going?

Just a thought…

Just a thought #5: Frogs in a Well

Frogs in a well is a famous Korean proverb pertaining to the fact that if a frog is born and lives its entire life in a well as is sometimes the case, it will have no concept of the so called outside world. The same can be said for most restricted or caged animals, however in the frog’s case it can not even see what else might be out there.

Now although humans don’t live in a well, sometimes our minds do, it can be said.

Just a thought…

Just a thought #4: This is Africa!..oh wait or is it Britain?

The British streets are being rocked by riots, but what is the motive and what will the outcome be? How long has this been brewing for and what are the solutions?

Well, in a similar fashion the South African government is also under pressure to create jobs and the promise to voters in our most recent elections has been to do just that. Maybe both nations can learn from each other’s mistakes, successes and failures.

The formal British colony of South Africa is young in terms of colonialisation, even younger in terms of independence and yet younger still in terms of democracy. Can countries ever really learn from each other or do they need to make their own mistakes, much like children, before they learn the way forward?

In fact all nations strive for a stable economy and low unemployment, that’s a given. Unfortunately South Africa is a young country and even younger with its new government. Now this has its pros and its cons. One way of looking at it would be a young, fresh nation could learn from other nation’s successes and failures, and yet another view is that because we are young we have not learnt the lessons other nations already have.

All this being said, big strides have been made into environmental issues and the South African economy is more stable than most. The problem lies in the fact that the population is expanding rapidly as with any predominantly 3^rd world country and there unemployment is high leading to high crime in all areas especially the cities.

Solution?

Well, South Africa has promised to create millions of jobs by 2015, improve standards of living and service delivery of municipal areas and give the power back to the nation who voted for it.

Does this open up a huge opportunity or simply a dead end short term resolve?

South Africa could create jobs by whatever means necessary, satisfy the public and grow our economy. Or the nation could innovate and create sustainable jobs that provide long term solutions to local and international problems like renewable energy etc.

They are going to do the latter right?

Hopefully, however we fear that unfortunately the nation will be increasing nuclear power, building more fossil fuel power plants, increasing links with china’s plastics and allowing international fishing to go unthreatened in out waters, and generally making as much money as we can in as short a time possible while offering as many short term unsustainable jobs as possible.

But then again this is Africa so it doesn’t really matter…does it?

Just a thought…

Just a thought #3: 21st Century Politics - Money, Power and... Climate Change

If politics and politicians are motivated by money and power then surely the cost of global warming and climate change is a big enough factor for politicians and governments to take the situation seriously. Climate change will effect between 20% and 50% of national GDP’s if something is not done. So with that in mind maybe money and power is the answer to changing political will.

No earth, no money, no humans, no political power.

Let’s see a new age of political awareness. Let’s not vote unless our children are protected and actions are taken for the solutions already proposed. Neo-classical economics is gone, our place as part of a functioning eco-system, a breathing planet, is now and the direction of our future and indeed our government’s legislation.

Just a thought…

Just a thought #2: The Next Ice Age

Will we, or our children, see the next ice age in our/their lifetime? Is this a false prediction or the biggest threat to our generation?

Considering only small changes in climate can cause, and for that matter have caused, ice ages, then climate forecasts for this century lead us to believe that on our current path, global warming will in fact cause the next ice age. So will this happen or will something human or natural intervene?

Should we have our next ice age as soon as predicted then this will be the shortest space between ice ages in history. This means that the earth’s climate changes in periods and this is signaled by an ice age which wipes out most mammals. The last ice age was only 1.8 Million years ago, meaning that should the world turn white within the next century or two then it will be premature and seen as forced by human modernization.

Just a thought…

Just a thought #1: What should we learn at school?

Have you ever considered how the syllabus taught in our schools originated? How, where and when it was formulated? And how often it is updated?

You may say of course it is updated, because our history books and science text books are updated all the time. But what I mean is the broader context of what we learnt and what our children are learning. I’m talking about the actual subjects not the contents of those subjects.

Let us take a look at the problems in our society for a moment. Unemployment, relationship problems leading to high divorce rate, materialism, wars, short term thinking. STOP.

Now let us look at what we spend 12 years and sometimes more learning about in school – cos and tan maths formulas, Shakespeare, periodic table of elements etc... Now don’t get me wrong, there is absolutely nothing wrong with any of these subjects or that of learning about them, but be honest, when was the last time you used a cos formula in everyday life?

 Now, I am not saying that we must not teach our children how to read or write, or count and develop team skills, respect and all the other fine things developed over 12 years at school. But what I am saying is that it can easily be updated. And we could be the innovative change in doing that. Making that difference!

Could the specific advanced contents of subjects like maths and science and English be focused on in university or for students that show direction in those particular fields?

Is it far fetched to think that children of today could learn about relevant issues and solutions or maybe even come up with the solutions for THEIR future?

I can’t help my nephews with their homework when they need to do long division or collective nouns because they were long forgotten after I left my high school front doors.

Here’s an idea – teach kids of today things like – conflict resolution, relationship management, renewable energy, biomimicry, political policies, business entrepreneurship – things that will actually benefit them after they reach 18 years old.

How can we create a successful country and indeed a successful earth if we are not taught how to do it? That is where the ‘University of Life’ comes in, but cant we get a head start.

We need serious solutions for this century NOW, not tomorrow or in 20 years time. And where better to start than with our youth – after all aren’t they the future, aren’t they the ones that will have to deal with our mistakes and failures?

The human race has made some outstanding achievements in the fields of science, literature, arts, society, policy etc, but our advancement has also been out downfall. Let us move with the times and not wait for a solution to our problems but be a part of the energetic reason and sense creating a future for our children!

Just a thought…

One Person Can (Only) Do So Much!...

Contrasts converge in South Africa to create a vivid culture that is legendary and matchless. Races, religions, languages and cultures are vibrant accents rather than divisive polarities. Ocean, desert, forest, mountain, grassland  - all form part of the flamboyant landscape tapestry. But the characteristic paradox that makes South Africa such a unique nation casts a shadow too. The gold underground does not wipe out extreme poverty. Patchwork shacks fringe luxury estates. Our state-of-the-art weapons cannot defend our threatened wildlife.

The San, a nomadic people that lived in harmony with the land, first inhabited this beautiful country. The nation was shaped by trailblazers searching for good grazing, pioneers seeking a new future and adventurers seeking changed fortunes. This spirit of exploration, resourcefulness and reverence for nature is the bedrock that this country was built on. It flows in the veins of every South African, regardless of our distant origins.

But we have forgotten our identity as pathfinders and indomitable changemakers. We are disconnected from the land that sustains us. The vast need that confronts us daily overwhelms us. Obstacles block our paths. As individuals, we know we cannot repair it all and so have settled into passive resignation and self-absorption.

But some refuse to admit defeat; they insist on being the change they long to see. They are using what they have; beginning where they are. They did not have any control over the reality they inherited from their ancestors. But they know that they are the masters of the legacy they bequeath to future generations.