As a political scientist, I have spent 4 years studying about perception and power. And two of the most hotly debated perceptions are that of Idealism vs Realism.

Realists profuse that they see the world as it is, in tangible realities, in circumstances that have quantitative results. Idealists, perceive the worlds potential, what it has yet to become, but has the capabilities to be should the right set of circumstances prevail.

When it comes the environment, we seem to have mixed up these definitions, and therefore come to a standstill on how to proceed. So I would like to spend some time listing some of the idealist and realist notions of the world we live in.

Realism

As mentioned about, the world we live in accord to tangible facts and observable results sees that anthropomorphic climate change is the leading cause of our problem. In other words, of all the bickering we seem to be doing about whether cows produce more green house gases (GHG) or the automobile industry, whether air travel or pet food is worse on the environment. The fine line that is un-debatable is that everything is a result of human activity on earth. With rising populations and rising affluence, the inherent demand for environmentally unfriendly consumptions rise. In the same world, with limited resources, we are seeing a hastening decline of materials output.

In our dogmatic faith in modern technology we are corrupting the one technology that has lasted the longest! Mother nature’s life cycle and bio-sphere. Single crop industrial farms may feed a few now, but in 10 years when the land is no longer arable, it will be no better than a desert. Synthetic pesticides, fertilizers, the thing that was hailed as a solution to world hunger in the 60′s is now killing people, entire species of fish and marine life and creating dead zones in our oceans where no life can grow.

We have mutated our vegetables and fruits to be fit for air travel, but unfit for a proper balanced diet. We have pumped hormones into animals which has resulted in a steady rise in obesity in humans.

Our urban centers which are hubs of the new world, the fashion zeitgeist model of globalization and the desire of all 3rd world peasants who can no longer compete economically with industrial farmers. People want to live in cities, but from a realist lens, people are saying that they want to live in conditions of dense living, breath toxic air from mostly burning coal, gas and petrol, live in conditions where social status is now defined by your online savvyness and ability to speak english. Yet we claim our idealist friends fancy the country house, with wide open spaces, animals, clear skies and a nice breeze.

Idealism

Idealists see the world as it should be, what it has the potential to become given the right set of conditions to achieve it, and it is our job to set those structures up. It is idealistic that our educational institutions train people to believe that growth is indefinitely achievable, and that the existences of business and free markets can only operate under these ideal situations. It is idealistic to believe that if only we start recycling our pop cans and paper, that we can some how fix the worlds problems and therefore carry on our consumptive live styles with a business as usual attitude.

Many believe it is impossible to just give up our petrol based life styles where cars and accessibility and leisure take priority, this is an idealistic perception, because in a matter of 20 years we built the infrastructure for the worlds largest cross communication platform called the internet. No, it does not take long to shift our behaviours given the same excitement, opportunity and unified direction as that of the internet boom. Corporate lobby groups would have you believe differently, but that is the idealism we are talking about.

Now the thing about idealism that realism lacks is vision. Vision of a future that is better and more prosperous than the one we are in currently. So if our vision of the world is this misguided direction based on false notions, then we can only meet our end as so many fear mongers are instilling in our hearts.

However, if we can accept the realist stance of the world we live in, and form a new vision of the world, one where 1000s are already waking up to on a daily basis, and who are saying “we need to do more than just recycle”. Then the ingenuity and human spirit that makes us an incredibly gifted species will overcome some of the hardest challenges we as a species have ever fought in the years to come.

When an airline decides to lower their prices, the first things to go out the window is usually food quality (or food period), and then service. In Westjet’s case, the first was scenario was true, and now any food on board must be purchased from a third party provider, beverages however remain complimentary. Westjet’s success in maintaining high quality service is really thanks to their core values as an organization. Humour replaces luxurious pampering, and that is seen through their genuine care and growth approach to staff and clients. It goes a long way to describe what individuals value, and it is not being treated like royalty, but treated like important individuals.

So what then could be next on the horizon for Westjet if they plan to stay the course as market leaders in the industry? Well in order to come full circle as an organization committed to triple bottom line results, Westjet must now complete the circle through their conscious impact on the community and environment in which they operate. Based on my observations, I have made three suggestions that could truly go a long way for an organization like Westjet.

1. Strive for zero-waste in flight and in the office.

Why should eating on a place be any different than eating in a restaurant or coffee shop? (other than the obvious lack of a take away option). The waste generated by plastic cups, tissues, wrapping/packaging, and disposable cutler to name a few, is an unnecessary burden to our landfills and recycling plants (that is if they do separate the recyclables). So would it be so difficult to design the services inflight like one would a coffee shop? An idea would be to give everyone a mug to use, and then return it at the end of the flight, echo on the cutlery for food or snacks served as well. I can only imagine long term benefits and savings for the company, the clients, and the environment!

2. Have alternative entertainment options.

I love inflight movies, especially when I have lots to choose from, however, in budget flights, the options are either an additional cost, or you don’t have any choice over the selection. In Westjet’s case, they have satellite TV, which does include movies at an additional cost, however the complimentary option leaves us spending half the journey flipping through uninteresting channels and spending half the time exposed to commercial products – something I do not like. It can be said that sometimes having options doesn’t always give you choice. So, thinking to myself that I must be an anomaly, I decided to walk up and down the aisle seeing what other people were watching. That is when it hit me, well over half the people were either trying to sleep or were reading either a book or a magazine. A fraction of the remaining were watching the inflight movie, and a few drones were flipping through the channels trying to find something suitable to entertain them. So my question is quite an obvious one to me, why not appeal to this demand? By providing a small book library of some classics, and top of the chart books, and variety of magazines, passengers can sign them out at the beginning of the flight, and return them upon landing. Why stop at just reading, why not have small board games that you can challenge your neighbour with, more often than not, people are starving for conversation or interactions yet our society assumes we all want our privacy, so why appeal to one and not the other? Have the option, it wouldn’t be that costly, but the value could be tremendous. I can tell you, one of the most stressful places to be is in a departure gate with 200+ strangers, not a single one saying a word.

3. Provide premium carbon offsetting service.

Like many avid travellers, I get quite disappointed whenever I take a carbon footprint calculation test. Living my life as sustainable minded as possible, I always do great until I get to the question about how many flights/distance do I take in a year – needless to say, my planets needed to support my lifestyle doubles. It is no myth that air travel is the worst producer of green house gases (GHG) for any individual. So why not offer a premium service for the eco-conscious traveller? It would involve a premium price, that would be put toward offsetting your emissions and growing the renewable energy industry. Travellers can then fly in the comfort that somewhere, their money is helping to put up solar panels or wind turbines to replace dirty non-renewable energy supply. This alone will send a strong message to the R&D labs of the airline industry to hurry up with their solar flight research, and to really expand to lead other airlines that will be heading in this direction.

The uncertain future of oil will undoubtedly force a lot of change, and we will likely see the end of cheap air travel in our very near future. Here is an interesting analysis of the state of the airline industry, and their search for oil alternatives. I am sure there are various other opportunities to green the airline industry, and that is why it needs a leader, like Westjet has demonstrated so well for us in the past.

There is a legend I’d like to tell you about. In its message may lie hope of a future for your organisation. Here is the story of the Hundredth Monkey.

The Japanese monkey Macaca Fuscata had been observed in the wild for a period of over thirty years. In 1952, on the island of Koshima, scientists were providing monkeys with sweet potatoes dropped in the sand. The monkeys liked the taste of the raw sweet potatoes but they found the dirt unpleasant. An 18 month old female named Imo found she could solve the problem by washing the potatoes in a nearby stream. She taught this trick to her mother. Her playmates also learned this new way and they taught their mothers too. This cultural innovation was gradually picked up by various monkeys before the eyes of the scientists.

Between 1952 and 1958, all the young monkeys learned to wash the sandy sweet potatoes to make them more palatable. Only the adults who imitated their children learned this social improvement … other adults kept eating the dirty sweet potatoes. Then something startling took place. In the autumn of 1958 a certain number of Koshima monkeys were washing sweet potatoes – the exact number is not known. Let us suppose that when the sun rose one morning there were 99 monkeys on Koshima Island who had learned to wash their sweet potatoes. Let’s further suppose that later that evening the hundredth monkey learned to wash potatoes … THEN IT HAPPENED. By that evening almost everyone in the tribe was washing sweet potatoes before eating them. The added energy of this hundredth monkey somehow created an ideological breakthrough!

But notice. A most surprising thing observed by these scientists was that the habit of washing sweet potatoes then jumped over the sea – colonies of monkeys on other islands and the mainland troop of monkeys at Takasakiyama began washing their sweet potatoes. Thus, when a certain number achieves an awareness, this new awareness may be communicated from mind to mind. Although the exact number may vary, The Hundredth Monkey phenomenon means that when only a limited number of people know of a new way, it may remain the conscious property of just those people. But there is a point at which if only one more person tunes in to a new awareness, a field is strengthened so that this awareness is picked up by almost everyone!

Your awareness is needed. You may be the “hundredth monkey”.

Please note that this story, taken from the book, “The Hundredth Monkey” by Ken Keyes Jr., is not copyrighted.

Please note, original source was posted here: http://atfindia.org/content/you-may-be-hundredth-monkey

Plastic bags have become such an item of dependence that shop keepers simply don’t know what else to use for their goods and liquids. Rightly so, it will be an uphill battle, but the government is more sure than ever that this is the right step, and it will take time to adapt, however after the initial two month period, shopkeepers caught providing the bags could be fined upwards of 1 lakh rupees (roughly $2,000 USD) or upto 5 years of jail term.

With such a move we will begin to see a demand for cloth and glass making a comeback in India, as these two are the most viable alternatives to plastic bags. No doubt this would also spin off some R&D on bio-degradable plastics and weaning off of petroleum based plastic for the more carbon neutral alternative of bio plastics (soy, vegetable oil, corn stalk).

I wonder what the world would be like today if Ford was able to organize the plastics industry to build exclusively from soy and bioproducts rather than petroleum oil. Needless to say, world war 1 kick started the oil dependency in plastics movement.

A famous quote comes to mind that is so fitting, attributed to an ancient chinese proverb.

“When the winds of change are blowing, some people are building shelters, and others are building windmills.”

GM insects

If the thought of GM pollen spreading on the breeze worries you, then watch out – the latest GM products have wings! In 2009, Oxford based Oxitec intends to become the first company to sell genetically modified insects for large scale release. Oxitec has developed a GM pink bollworm (moth larvae) that it claims will mate with natural bollworms (a cotton pest) and render them sterile. However, Oxitec’s plans don’t stop there. This also looks to be the year when it will proceed with a large scale trial release of genetically modified mosquitos also intended to spread sterility in wild populations.