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Block 1: Definitions & Issues

100_0015Well, before we start we are going to spend a week or so defining the terminologies that we are using in your ESS course.  I like doing this for four reasons:

  1. we all need to know we are thinking the same things when we use a given term or to know wht we are not seeing things the same way!
  2. I think that, if we put our heads together, we can probably come up with better definitions than the so-called ‘experts’. … we should always critique (rather than just cite) the sources that are presented to us and which we use.
  3. It is always a good practice to follow when approaching a new subject – to consider its ‘landscape‘ and limits.
  4. You will need to define the terms of your title for your ‘rapport de stage / mémoire’

[Picture: why the Eiffel Tower?  Because it is so iconic it ‘defines’ France in a way]

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Defining our Terms.

The What. Before we go deeper into the world of ‘sustainability’ we need to look at the range of terms people use for it or aspects of it.   If we can’t agree on what something actually means, how can we then talk about it productively, let alone enter into any agreements?  There are also other related questions: who… why… where … when …. how …………..

IN 2023.  We are 36 in number.  I have highlighted in RED below, the 12 subjects/issues/questions you are going to address.  36/12 = 3, so teams of THREE then to be allocated to each of the 12 tasks – with no duplication. DO NOT ask for teams of four or five or to work exclusively in pairs, please: the answer is NO.  Teams of three it is!

  1. ‘Alternative’ v ‘Responsible’ v ‘Green’ v ‘Organic’ v ‘Environmentally sensitive/respectful’. These are often used, almost interchangably, within a particular industrial context : alternative tourism … responsible tourism,  green tourism for example. Once again, do these mean the same thing or are there subtle differences?… Or can’t we tell?  Do they all mean 100% ‘sustainble‘ … or just a bit better than the mass alternative?   Do we have a general problem with terminology when sustainability is concerned.  How do we resolve it?
  2. Max Havelaar https://www.maxhavelaarfrance.org/ v Fair Trade (commerce équitable) https://www.fairtrade.org.uk/. We are used to seeing these words and their associated logos on everyday products, but do we really know what they mean ?  Are they the same ? What are: Fair Trade Towns?  Has France taken up such ideas to the same degree as the UK … if not, why not, d’you think?  If these represent legitimate advancements and solutions, are we making the best of them?  Why can’t everything be ‘fair’ and ‘equitable’? … or can it….?   How?  What will it take?
  3.  ‘Bio’ v ‘Eco’ (as used here in France & possibly elsewhere…?).  For example, there are ‘eco’ and ‘bio’ wines on the supermarket shelves and on restaurant wine lists sitting side-by-side.  What are they ? Are they to all intents and purposes the same or are there subtle distinctions between the two – and if so what exactly? Do people recognise the subtle differences between the terms: if not, why not?  What proportion of the French wine market has moved over to these kind of approaches?  Is it a growing trend?
  4. Corporate Social Responsibility v “The business of Business is business!” approach (Milton Friedman 1970).  What do these terms involve?  Are the two perspectives compatible or can they be made to be?  If so, then what will it take to make them compatible (how)?  ….And if we can’t…. then what?
  5. ‘Whitewashing’ v ‘Greenwashing’. What are these?  Why do organisations engage in these activities? How can we recognise them? What do they say about those individuals, organisations and brands who engage in them?  What could / should be done (by whom and how) to ‘outlaw‘ such practices’?
  6.  Low Impact Life & Low impact.org  v Zero Waste Home movements.  What are these and how do they differ?  Are these just for dreamers, BaBa Cools and environment fanatics, or do they represent to some degree a rational, feasible and viable way forward for all of us towards principles and practices which we could and should all adopt?  If you consider that they represent effective tools that could reduce our environmental impact, then why aren’t we using them ‘to the max‘ and how do we increase / ‘ramp-up‘ their uptake?  Maybe the solutions we need are already here, we just need to take them up!
  7. The 1987 World Commission on Environment and Development Report (Our Common Future/Notre Avenir à Tous a.k.a. The Brundtland Report) v Chief Seattle’s Reply 1854. These are nearly 150 years apart: but in what respects and to what extent might Chief Seattle’s Reply have ‘foreshadowed’ to a significant degree the principles of the modern conception of ‘Sustainability’ …. and why weren’t we (aren’t we?) listening to Chief Seattle?
  8. UK Green Tourism rating scheme v EU Tourism eco-label system.  What are they?  How (and why) do they differ?  Is it confusing to have so many such schemes in operation (these two are by no means the only ones: see: http://www.ecolabelindex.com)? Is there perhaps a cultural effect operating here?  How many EU ecolabeled hotels are there in France as a whole,  in Alsace and in the Haut-Rhin? (See http://ec.europa.eu/ecat/hotels-campsites/en/fr/france). Compare this number with the number of Green Tourism Scheme-graded accommodation establishments in England.  Why such a difference?
  9. The Climate Action Network (CAN) and the FridaysForFuture Movement… Contrast them. Very different approaches to attacking the same problem?  Which is likely to be more successful do you think, and why? Or do we simply need more of both?
  10. Climate Performance Index  and Climate Action Tracker  (CAT). What are these bodies and how do they seek to help move us forward through the AIDA process (Awareness –>Interest –> Desire –> Action)?  Where might we tend to get ‘stuck‘ and how can we ‘unfreeze‘ ourselves in order to perform better?  The point is that one needs measurement to be able to do this – which is where these sites come in.  Do look at your country’s performance (EU is treated as a block though by CAT – only Germany has its own country rating…. the UK also has its own rating – but it is no longer part of the EU of course).  You might be a little surprised by some of the best performers and the worst, so have a good scroll through the Climate Action Tracker countries performance list … only ONE country (though not all have been measured yet) appears to be compliant with the Paris COP targets – which is it? The measured results also suggest that cultural attitudes have more to do with a country’s performance than richness…. interesting…why might this be so, do you think?
  11. Regional to local level: the DREAL Grand Est, Mulhouse/M2A environmental commitments...   L’ALME Mulhouse.  Brunstatt-Didenheim Council and Développement Durable (look at all the projects under the DD tab).  What role do these play? Do they just ‘talk‘ or is positive action actually happening on the ground?  Is it ‘joined up‘ …  have people heard of them?  Are citizens behind and involved in such initiatives? What are they achieving in practice.
  12. A new pair of blue jeans every three months (start with: a lifecycle analysis of jeans vid)  v a beefburger/cheeseburger once a week (start with this): what are their respective impacts upon the planet (water used/polluted … CO2 produced etc) and how do you feel about it?  Are there any lower impact alternatives for both which may be worthy of our consideration?  How do we bring our consumption of these things within the planet’s ecological means?
  13. Farmers Markets (like Coeur Paysan, Colmar)  v Bio Paniers (like panier fraicheur bio and  AMAP France).  How do these differ from each other (from the grower/producer and consumer perspectives) and in what ways do they differ from the traditional retailing of produce in our super and hyper markets with their bio brands and aisles?  Are they valid sustainability solutions?
  14. Super/hypermarkets belatedly moving into Bio/Eco v Bio-Eco Specialist retailers (like Grand Frais or Bio-Coop ).  What is happening in France?  You could even go and look around your local supermarkets!  While you are at it – are bio/eco/organic/green products necessarily higher priced than mainline brands?  Where is this all heading… do you get the sense that supermarkets are steadily moving in to colonise the  bio/eco market … with the possibility that they might ‘drive out‘ the original specialists?
  15. Al Gore’s ‘Inconvenient Truth’ (book and film – also see a 2017 revisit of Inconvenient Truth in the light of recent events), ‘Climate Reality’ project & ’24hours of reality’ initiative   v Climate Change Deniers and skeptical science (see an LSE article on the subject as a jumping off point, but do look elsewhere).  A bit like the X-Files, we say that ‘the truth is out there’ – but where does it lie exactly?  Is there still any real doubt about man’s impact upon the climate?  Who are the doubters (and who pays them)?  How can we counter the skeptics?
  16. What are the potential contributions to lessening our impact upon the environment of the ‘Incredible Edible‘ project (incredible 10 minute Incredible Edible TED Talk by Pam Warhurst.)  and the Repair Café movement  (and its local Repair Café Brunstatt-Didenheim).  What are these initiatives and, to what extent might they represent feasible and viable solutions to sustainability problems and how might their take-up be accelerated?  Are you prepared to get involved in such initiatives….?  If not, why not?

 

TASK Instructions.

You will do this in teams of THREE, each taking one of the above issues denoted in RED (no duplication, please).  Together you must cover ALL the points … or negotiate with me.

  1. (In S2 22/23 i.e. 27/2/23) Create your teams of  THREE , then select ONE topic from the list above [arrange with other teams so that there is NO DUPLICATION] and address the definitions and issues required and the questions I have posed.  (Begin work in class 27/2 – then spend time advancing the project during the period until our next class 27/3 where you will be expected to show me your progress and prepare your presentation.)
  2. where you are being asked to produce definitions, first (before you rush online) consider for yourselves the WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE, WHY and HOW of the terms concerned…. then pool your thoughts and go online to see what the terms really mean.  How close were you reality when you did your research? 
  3. In our class of 27/3 -morning.  Show me your progress.  Receive my formative feedback. Continue to prepare your team presentation of NO MORE THAN 10 MINUTES’ DURATION.. Your homework is to complete the presentation ready for our next class.
  4. In our class on the morning of 17/4: informally present your team definitions and findings to the class, accompanied by a synoptic report (with printed copy for me) of no more than one page A4 in your best English. Both presentation and written components will be marked!
  5. We should have a further class on the afternoon of 17/4 to accommodate any ‘over-run’, hold a plenary session and for me to give you feedback (including your S2 mark)  and wrap up the unit.

Subject to time availability, the plenary session will consider:

  • Why are we talking about these terms today ….? ( – 30 years ago we weren’t….).  So where and why have they emerged relatively recently: what provoked such interest and  spurred such activity and impassioned debate at every level from local to global?
  • Who is and who is not listening to the ‘messages’ embodied by these terms?
  • What proportion of ‘society at large’ (French, as we live here) would you say is:
    • aware of these terms – but neither subscribes to them nor is doing anything about them – or is simply completely unaware
    • aware & interested – aware and subscribing to them in theory at least (head knowledge) but not really trying enough to adjust accordingly in practice (heart understanding promoting action).
    • aware, interested and trying to act accordingly, but feeling inhibited in making much progress for one reason or another.
    • aware, interested, trying and partially succeeding.
    • aware, interested, trying and demonstrably acting and succeeding…..

[NB. The above Qs are based upon the AIDA model: Awareness –> Interest  –> Desire  –>  Action.  I wonder where we get ‘stuck’ and why… and more importantly how we can get ourselves un-stuck and shifting towards Action.  [I do accept that on certain counts we can’t unstick ourselves on our own (or simply don’t want to) and that others need to help us: particularly the state with ‘carrots and sticks’].   In furtherance of this question/issue, in our next task I am going to ask you to consider your own lifestyle and its relationship to the planet’s resources in order to make a global issue really personal/individual so you can see for yourself ‘where‘ you are, what is stopping you from doing better and what will need to change so that you can move forward].