An Antidote for Environmental Despair

When it comes to conservation, hope is much more useful than gloom. As the environmental problems facing our world compound, despair may feel like a rational response. In her new book, Hope Matters: Why Changing the Way We Think Is Critical to Solving the Environmental Crisis, environmental scholar Elin Kelsey makes an evidence-based argument for choosing hope over despair.

LINK (via: Hakai Magazine)

2 thoughts on “An Antidote for Environmental Despair

  1. Hope is vital, it’s something that I have had an indecently large (to some) supply of throughout my life, but it must be tempered by the steel of knowing how to deal with and counter the constant clamour those seemingly proud to be totally lacking in it – the “I’m seeing it before it’s all gone” happy gloomster-doomsters of my own Boomer Generation who, here in Britain, were happily and blithely declaring on BBC radio the other day that, when this “awful freedom-robbing Covid” is over, they’ll be on a plane / planes somewhere (“I’ve already booked a couple of 2021 summer and winter sun “feelgood” holidays…” [Why is that?, Boote wondered, Because you’re worth it…?]

    Anywhere but HERE, for some, it seems, for here is”simply awful” now. Unspoken subtext: Here is strictly for losers.

    But the awful here, for many, including the vitally important “We’re the ones who’ll be inheriting your shitshow” young, is everywhere nowadays.

    Time to get international in mindset (be aware of what’s happening “over there”, both good and bad, for it affects you), yet also very “clean up your backyard and country” local.

    Probably the only hope for those who continue to dare to hope and don’t just wish, like a good many still do unfortunately, to be able to tell their friends around some swish suburban dinner table in the now not too distant future that they caught the last salmon or steelhead, saw the VERY last wild tiger….

    ….AND got the Selfies and the highly collectible Official Merch’ T-shirt.

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