Download the PDF: Choosing Simplicity from the book, Choosing Earth.
The magnitude and speed of climate disruption now underway is astonishing and will require dramatic changes in how we live on Earth. For the past few hundred years, consumer-oriented societies have exploited the global resources for the benefit of a fraction of humanity. The goal of this approach has been to find happiness through consumption and to satisfy our material wants without conscious regard for the needs of a livable Earth. This self-serving approach brings ruin to the Earth and humanity’s future. Instead of asking what we humans want (what we desire, crave, or hunger for), we are being called to respond to a far more important question: what does the overall ecology of life need (what is essential, basic, necessary) to build a regenerative future for the Earth? To live sustainably on the Earth, we need to choose ways of living that match our consumption with the regenerative capacities of the Earth and the needs of the rest of life with whom we share the biosphere. Instead of a wealthy minority pulling humanity down, a generous majority can live with moderation and kindness and bring tremendous uplift to living on Earth.