| Publication | Page(s) | Quote | Keywords |
|---|
| Radical Simplicity: Small Footprints on a Finite E |
8 |
Currently the world's wealthiest one billion people alone consume the equivalent of the Earth's entire sustainable yield. All six billion people are consuming at a level that is 20 percent over sustainable yield. |
sustainability ecology consumption |
| Radical Simplicity: Small Footprints on a Finite E |
22 |
The four phases of a vision quest: 1) To separate from one's daily routine and go into the wilderness. 2) To embark on an epic journey, either metaphorical or real. 3) To allow for a ceremonial death and rebirth -- a death of ideas, actions, or beliefs no longer appropriate for one's new world. 4) To integrate one's reborn self back into the community. |
self help transformation |
| Radical Simplicity: Small Footprints on a Finite E |
37 |
Imagine this scenario. What would happen if every worker were to offer their services at a price as close to the average global income as practical given their particularities, such as family size, geographic location, etc.? In essence, this means setting the price for one's products or services according to their needs, instead of attempting to maximize profits (what the market would bear or as high of a salary as you can negotiate). Costs would come down. Each household could work just enough to support their basic needs, including a reasonable level of long-term security. By having lower incomes, individuals would consume less. As product prices fall, others can work less and earn less. The entire economy would gently slow down, yet everyone would still have their needs met. It simply takes each person limiting how much income they take and how much they consume. I'm not really suggesting communism. But I am suggesting a voluntary taming of the appetite. |
sustainability permaculture economics |
| Radical Simplicity: Small Footprints on a Finite E |
52-53 |
Although there are infinite ways to share, the easiest is simply to take less. We take less (or share more) when we: earn less, taking less of the available work; consume less; make wiser choices; and purchase local products. You may be tempted to enthusiastically consume more than your share of available work and money and become a philanthropist, all for the joy of giving it away. But this path is loaded with pitfalls, in terms of power dynamics and inner motivation. |
sustainability permaculture economics consumption |
| Radical Simplicity: Small Footprints on a Finite E |
84 |
Figure 6-4, Ecological Footprints as they Correlate to Income.
$100,000 and up: 40 to 60 acres
$50,000 to $100,000: 30 to 50 acres
$30,000 to $50,000: 25 to 40 acres
$30,000 and up (Europe and Japan): 15 acres and up
$25,000 to $30,000: 20 to 30 acres
$20,000 to $25,000: 18 to 22 acres
$15,000 to $20,000: 14 to 20 acres
$10,000 to $15,000: 12 to 18 acres
$5,000 to $10,000: 5 to 15 acres
$2,500 to $5,000: 3 to 13 acres
$1,000 to $2,500: 2.5 to 6 acres
$500 to $1,000: 2 to 5 acres
$100 to $500: 1.5 to 4 acres |
sustainability economics consumption |
| Radical Simplicity: Small Footprints on a Finite E |
106-107 |
What would be the ecological footprint to travel across America once a year by plane, bus, train, car, bike or horse? Assume the journey is 6,000 miles round trip... Plane (economy class): 1.3 acres. Bus: 0.4 acres. Train: 1.8 acres. Car (20 mpg): 2.6 acres. Car (50 mpg): 1 acre. Bicycle: 0.22 acres. Horse: 1.8 acres. |
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| Radical Simplicity: Small Footprints on a Finite E |
155 |
On average, people spend almost one day a week (or about an hour and a half a day) working to pay for their vehicles. You could work four days a week, commute up to ten miles each way by bike, and still save time. |
economics cars automobiles |
| Radical Simplicity: Small Footprints on a Finite E |
186 |
Couples must remain free to choose their family size. For this [one-hundred-year] plan to succeed, it has to be: Fully voluntary; Aimed at alleviating poverty; Fully supported by government; Locally driven; Bioregionally focused; Accomplished through education; and Dynamic. |
population stabilization |
| Radical Simplicity: Small Footprints on a Finite E |
192 |
The 100-year plan offers a clear win-win scenario. If humanity chooses one-child families for the next 100 years, a footprint goal of six acres is achievable without sustainability heroics. The high-income individuals, who now have the most privilege, need to step up to the plate and reduce footprints as an initial gesture of goodwill. Then, after sustained, documentable reductions have been made, they will have the credibility to ask low-income countries to reduce population. |
ecology permaculture world relations |
