“sunset in ocean” by Zoltan Tasi on Unsplash

Over the course of our planets history it has undergone many changes. This is a history spanning billions of years; a length of time that to a human mind seems unfathomable. In just one lifetime we experience so much and our human evolution, although a mere day in the life of the earth, seems to us like all that has ever been. For our society right now, we are at a turning point we haven’t seen before and the future is uncertain.

Although we’ve only been here a short time, our impact on this planet has indeed been immense, and that is no illusion. There have been a few reports recently about the state of our planet and how, with the way we are going, it’s likely that the fate of our home isn’t going to be good.

Climate change and it’s effects have been known and spoken about for a long time. The problem is that, up until now, it has been a relatively taboo subject, rarely talked about and for good reason. No one wants to think too much about ‘doom and gloom’.

Although there are many practices we’ve put into place to put a stop to our current impact on the environment, it’s likely they’ve done little to help. The truth about the way we are living is starting to become less and less avoidable and harder to ignore. It turns out that no matter how many environmentally friendly practices we put into place, it could never really counteract the true problem. What the world needs, according to these reports, is a radical adjustment with the way we are living, and soon. Are we ready for such a change?

It’s clear that the vast majority of the population are not happy with or benefitting from our current model for society; in fact nearly 80 percent of humanity are living in impoverished conditions, making less than ten dollars a day. And of the 20 percent that are benefitting from our current system, most aren’t happy either. In America, surveys have concluded that upwards of 80–90 percent of people feel unfulfilled or frustrated with their work, and this no doubt extends across the globe as well. On the surface this suffering we are going through can seem like a terrible thing, but perhaps it is what we need to help us turn towards an alternative.

For me sometimes, looking at the world today, it’s hard to imagine living the same life I am now in twenty or even ten years time. Science has shown that our society needs a major overhaul, and it’s a shame we are still told the answer to life is through more money and individual accomplishment.

Individual striving is still heavily encouraged in our world. Whether it’s through the school system, parents and elders, self help gurus or big business builders telling us the keys to success.

At school and while I was growing up, I was told the only way I could live was through my own means, and encouraged to thrive. This still rings true with younger generations and it’s expected, since it is what most of our civilisation is built upon. So many of us keep striving to make more and more, because it’s all we know; it’s our way of living. But when is it time to adjust this narrative and steer it towards something more community based?

From our recent climate reports we’ve seen just how much damage this consumer way of living is inflicting, yet we are we still pushing people into it. it’s clear now that if everyone becomes successful through the same work we’ve come to know, our planet and our economy wouldn’t be able to handle such mass consumption. Think about the life of a millionaire; the travel, the food, the properties. Would it be possible to sustain something akin to that on a global scale? Perhaps it’s time to rethink what it means to live a good life in this world.

Instead of trying to solve our problems through the very same system that caused them, is it finally time to band together and create a new one? A fairer system that isn’t focused entirely on individual success, but works for the benefit of all? It’s pretty obvious that this is what we need, and a lot of us are aware of it; the problem is that this a seemingly impossible task.

When I look at the state of the world now it can seem chaotic, but it might be a period of birth for a new way of living, the chaos we need to bring about change. Just as a mother with a child or a piece of coal under immense pressure, from suffering new life is born. We’ve always ignored the warnings that come with things like climate change, but as the danger becomes more and more real over the coming decades, hopefully it will carry enough impact to change our direction.

There is a major flaw in our current system, and it is time to create a new one or suffer the consequences. The only question is, when will we be ready to give up our notions of individual success and of having it all to ourselves.