Three Challenges Defining Social-Political Sustainability
Author: Jackson Kern
The subtle difference between pure social development and
social-political sustainability is very central to the
pursuit of sustainable development. Just as economic
development accomplishes little if the achievements
heralded are unsustainable, so too must social enrichment
go hand in hand with a concerted effort to ensure its
persistent viability.
Open, contested political arenas offer the only means to
this end—arenas that are contested by you. These
three phenomena endanger the sustainability of our
social-political processes; they beg our devoted attention.
1. The most insidious danger of all is that of prevalent
political apathy. If the population at large cannot be
convinced that its fate is sufficiently at stake to engage
itself actively, then all hope surely is lost. The causes
of apathy are many; clearly the simplest is inner-focused
individuals who are more concerned with personal than
societal enrichment, or who believe that the benefits
derived from social engagement will not be commensurate
with the time and resources invested. This phenomenon can
be likened to game theory and political science notions of
the "tragedy of the commons". A related cause of political
apathy is blind faith in social and political institutions.
But we must remember Sartre's espousal of the one who "is
loyal to a political and social ensemble, and who never
ceases to contest it". There is no contradiction in
believing that a nation's social and political processes
are the best ever conceived by mankind, and still rising
every morning to challenge them. Indeed, this is the very
essence of democracy.
2. The existence of social inertia is different from
apathy. We human beings are creatures of habit. Even when
informed and acknowledging of specific problems, we can be
resistant to the specter of addressing them aggressively
via political mechanisms if so doing entails a rupture with
time-honored cultural tradition. In a 2006 poll,
eighty-five percent of Americans indicated their belief
that global warming is "probably happening", while half
asserted that the issue of global warming is "extremely
important" to them. Yet the ubiquity of single-occupant
vehicles on America's highways remains undiminished.
3. When the general populace is involved and engaged, this
can often pose problems of social-political inefficiency.
This issue can be particularly acute in nations which are
large in population and geography. An inability to reach
consensus can sometimes lead to paralysis. Under an
autocratic establishment, the government can execute
changes to social-political institutions with an alacrity
that is sometimes enviable. But this, of course, is not
consultative; sustainability of the social-political
dimension is only ensured in the long run if it is
reflective of the collective will. A different sort of
social-political inefficiency arises when there is no
obstruction to consensus but when channels for initiating
change (particularly in the judiciary) are constrained,
convoluted or overloaded.
Political apathy and social inertia can only be combated in
ongoing daily efforts to inform, arouse and provoke.
Happily, social-political inefficiency can be addressed
more methodically. Governments, businesses,
non-governmental and not-for-profit organizations alter and
influence the state of our social and natural environment
every day. Actors which seek to bridge the gap between
these entities and the general populace and to facilitate
their interaction, aided by extraordinary new technologies
of participation, have a grand role to play in the future
of social-political sustainability.
An evocation of these challenges would not be complete
without a consideration of the dynamic interactions the
social-political domain engenders with other elements of
sustainable development. Economics is the science of
resource allocation, the study of the ways in which we
satisfy human wants and needs. No human need is more
fundamental than that of nourishment. In a revealing
illustration of the interdependence of sustainable
development's three constituent parts, rising world food
prices now pose a grave threat to social-political
sustainability around the globe. One need only turn to
recent social unrest and political instability in Haiti,
Egypt and the Philippines to be assured of that. These
rising prices stem from uncertainties regarding the
sustainability of our agricultural processes. To be
specific, some have very explicitly cited efforts in the
West to subsidize and encourage biofuels production as a
leading inflationary factor (though burgeoning middle
classes in India and China seem surely to be responsible
for other upward price pressures). And all this as the
viability of biofuels falls under a penetrating scrutiny.
These challenges of social-political sustainability will
remain inextricably bound to the future of sustainability
as an enterprise.
About the Author:
Jackson Kern is a contributing editor to the Alternative
Channel Blog. The Alternative Channel is a website
dedicated to giving non-profit organizations concerned with
sustainable development, environmentalism, and humanitarian
issues an online forum for their video content. You can
learn more at http://www.alternativechannel.
