Dear Reader,
This publication gives us a chance to share our deepest concerns with one another. My deepest concern is that the Earth remains habitable and that all nations recognize that the health of the Earth is their highest priority. If the nations of the world gave priority to thinking how to meet human needs in a sustainable way, I believe it could still be done.
The policies of all nations matter; but the policies of the two most powerful nations, the two largest economies, the two countries responsible for the most pollution, the two countries with the largest numbers of citizens focused on questions of sustainability, matter most. I came to the conclusion some years ago that the most promising step that humans could take now would be to get the United States and China to recognize their importance. If they treat each other as enemies, the surface of the Earth will continue to deteriorate. If they both accepted their individual responsibility for the health of the planet, many other nations would join them. Our planet could still have a rich future,especially for its human participants.
We created the Living Earth Movement especially to bring these two nations to support a joint effort. We thought a group of twelve to twenty informed and imaginative thinkers from these two countries, fully supported in independent thinking by the governments of these two countries as well as many international organizations could come up with genuinely promising proposals and a vision of a sustainable, habitable world. Perhaps Zhihe can recommend some American visionaries who are trusted and appreciated by leaders in China.
Sadly, the relations between these two countries deteriorated badly. The Living Earth Movement has plenty to do, but the overall condition of the surface of the Earth is rapidly worsening.
Maybe, just maybe, with a little encouragement from some of us, a group can come into existence to give voice to the most promising vision humans can produce of a healthy Earth to guide us, and maybe, just maybe, humans will decide that the habitability of the Earth is more important than just who profits most from what. Maybe, just maybe, competition will not be about who is boss but about who can best guide human behavior for the future.
We hope that Zhihe Wang can take the lead in selecting and inviting Chinese thinkers. He has given me some encouragement. In my judgment we need his help with respect to the American members also. The Chinese have suffered from American sponsored groups who take the occasion to blast China's government-centered society. If the Chinese government senses that we plan to use its tolerance to denigrate China's political and economic system, there is little likelihood that we can accomplish anything. In fact, however, the greatest changes will have to come in the United States.
There is a possibility that despite its noninvolvement officially, the Chinese government will be influenced. If they unofficially suggest participants to Zhihe, they may also follow what they do. I trust they will encourage the Chinese in the new group to genuinely put first the health of the planet.
There is little likelihood of the American government attending to our group's proposals, but in the general public, there is interest in what might prove helpful changes. If we persuade a good many people that joint proposals of a U.S. Chinese group are promising, they may become a topic of serious discussion that will claim the attention of Congress.They may play a significant role in American politics before very long.
I am not announcing that we expect to save the world. I am stating that I can imagine a sequence of events that would redirect much human energy to what really needs to be done. If we have any chance of success, we might be able to redirect society in a way that improves the chances of a good life for our descendants. Just a chance, but today a real chance of global salvation is a lot to claim.
John Cobb, Chairman
PS. A one minute video clip of John Cobb’s proposal for the U.S. China Committee for a Livable World and access to the recording of the April 4th meeting of the Living Earth Understanding China program are below. The National Charrette Institute is one of the referenced potential resources.
