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When asked about the subject of my thesis, I usually lie. Explaining that I am attempting a philosophical inquiry into environmental values at a period when, at best, we face unprecedented ecological challenges, and at a very conceivable worst, civilisational collapse, does not readily lend itself to a comfortable social occasion. Instead, I usually make some sort of apology, and explain that my interests are Greek in origin and concern themselves with the study of wisdom updated to include ecological wisdom. This is true, but misleading, for it suggests a coolly academic exercise, rather than an engaged, even impassioned, attempt at facing up to what we have to face up to, if we are to have a future of comfortable social occasions... Always better, it seems so often, to avoid the disagreeableness of speaking of the urgency of our rapidly depleting resources or the devastation of climate change. Better to remain quiet, so that conversation can lapse back into more mundane and unimportant levels, like the price of petrol, or the weather... The truth is that what I'm engaged in is right there in front of everybody, it affects all of us and no matter how politely we try not to speak about it, or remove it from our conscious minds, it is not about to disappear. It is there screaming at us on our television screens, blasting images of the latest flooding, bushfires, hurricanes or wars fought over increasingly scarce resources. The images are there but where the analysis? Where is the thorough investigation into uncovering the facts of these new patterns of ecological devastation? And where do we find an attempt to discuss solutions to the increasing chaos? |
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