World Solutions 2

The essential first steps for the environment

Solving environmental problems

As we have looked at the first essential steps to solving individual problems, we need to tackle the external environment of society, nations, and the natural world (if any).

Generally, if we were living more than 8,000 years ago, there would be little to do in the natural environment other than to sow and harvest the food from the land. With a small human population, there would be no need to clear a greater area of land to grow a particular crop. This is what happened in Mesopotamia in the Middle East thanks to favourable environmental conditions and how it promoted the growth of large productive gardens for a small but growing population. There was enough water and warmth to permit the growing of fig trees and various other plants, as well as rounding up and domesticating certain animals. However, in the 21st century, things are different. We have high populations and a desire for high profits. Much of this has seen the most productive lands cleared on a significant commercial scale for housing and growing monoculture crops. Add the effect of burning fossil fuel and reduced fresh water to the few remaining trees to mop up the extra carbon dioxide and retain moisture on the ground, and we have the recipe for a world disaster waiting in the wings. The kind of disaster we can expect to see soon are massive extinction of plants and animal life. This will be followed by vast numbers of people looking to migrate and fight one another for the remaining natural resources, as we already see between some nations, including Russia and soon China. Don't kid ourselves into thinking we will not be affected. Of course we will be. Among the life to be affected will have to be humans. The question is how will humans solve the problem?

It is clear, there has to be a solution to the environmental problem. No individual can be completely at ease unless some form of change is done to protect the environment. We have no choice. The environment does indeed influence the individual just as much as the individual influences the environment. It is important for a balance in both directions to take place if the solutions are to become truly effective and permanent.

No doubt you will hear some people say it is the individual who should change. "It is really your attitude and how you adapt to the environment that matters," as they say. Even in the face of global warming and continents being turned slowly into deserts, they say we should adapt. It is what we have to do. Just as the Saudis have adapted to their new environment in Saudi Arabia over 5,000 years ago, we should d the same today. Don't change the environment, change yourself. The environment is doing its own thing, and it is natural. It is you who must change.

Is that entirely true?

Fair enough that people should adapt to city environments. People need jobs to survive. They need the tools to help them achieve the goal of making enough money to survive and be happy and so enjoy a comfortable retirement. It is necessary to get to grips with the nature of extra cars, high-rise buildings, many people on the ground getting to work and home again and so on. However, when it comes to the natural environment, we cannot afford to simply "accept the way things are now and what's coming in the future" as the land dries up and plants and animals suffer and become extinct. It is no longer viable to sit back and accept the inevitable situation with our planet and adapt to the environment like the blue-eyed native people on the planet Arrakis in the Dune trilogy. Keep getting any drier and even the natives will become extinct. There is a limit on how far we should adapt to a certain environment, especially one of our own making. We are going to have to be a little more direct in our action to re-build the natural environment, restore fresh water supplies, and protect the environment by people who will be dedicated and supported in looking after the environment and making it productive for all life, not just for humans.

We need a new social paradigm. A new social system or world order to overhaul the current economic system in a radical and all-encompassing way. One that focuses on the environment first, and financial profits last (or maybe no profits). Either the current economic system must transform into something different, or a breakaway society must emerge to focus on the environment and making things low cost (and free for those who work in the environment and growing foods). Call it what you will — a conservation economy, or a non-economic system where money is not the fundamental currency. Whatever we want to call it, there has to be a large group of people to work in this alternative new system. It is the only way to rebuild the natural environment properly, and perhaps the economic system might continue. But not in its present form.

The way things are going at the moment will require at some point in the very near future (if it is not starting as we speak) a period of economic degrowth in which the things we don't need to survive and those that affect the environment adversely through lack of recycling or not enough repairs done to the environment after taking out certain resources are reduced (i.e., a reduction in consumption). There will be a recession in the current economic system the likes of which we have not seen since the economic depression of the early 1930s. Once society is re-focused on what is important, then a true green growth revolution may begin to ensure everyone on the planet has what they need. Then the growth will change, not of one to do with selling any kind of commodity (food or otherwise), but more on the experiences people can receive and the knowledge they can acquire. And even then, those experience and knowledge will likely be provided freely or very low-cost. But any kind of green growth while maintaining the current economic system through greater efficiencies in reducing emissions will not work. Increasing populations will eventually seen more emissions of carbon dioxide when providing all of the products and services. There is no such thing as a green growth economy while population growth continues and people remain greedy to make profits through any kind of product or service they can sell. In some ways, the real source of the problem is in the concept of a monetary system. By having such a system, we are promoting continuous growth, unlimited numbers of consumers, and greed is okay without seeing the impact all this is having on our natural life support systems.

Something has to give. Either we change the system, or wars and mass starvation will do it for us.

For positive change to take place, we have to change the thinking of those who think we should accept the current environment, or "the new normal" as they say and need us to adapt to. Given that many of these sorts of people have a vested interest in maintaining the economic system at all costs because of profits, changing these people would require the natural environment to be virtually collapsed and the human population so large that wars will begin or famine will be common. We cannot afford to wait for these people to do the right thing. It is time we implement the solutions now.

  1. The environment of other people

    Okay. If we are going to change the thinking of some people, it is better to deal with the biggest world problem, and potentially the simplest: yourself. Have you finally seen your self-worth to society and understood how much you can contribute to making things better for yourself? Great. If not, we recommend you review this section now before moving onto the next stage. Have you changed yourself? No worries. Now what about for others? Here lies a potentially difficult problem. Much of it will involve understanding the agenda people have in sticking to what they believe and think is right. Then again, there is probably a reason why the issue of death exists for all living things too. When people are stuck in a rut in the way they think, the universe has a way of forcing change given enough time. If not throw old age, then death. And then the way of life for those people end. Any control or power over the people is lessened significantly and the potential for change increases for all and often for the better. When unchangeable people die, there is a higher probability of younger people seeing a more balanced position and are willing to make changes more easily than older people or those who enjoy the benefits of an older system even if they refuse to see the problems the system has created. Well, fortunately, we have a thing called death to ensure such people cannot live forever.

    The only slight problem for humanity is that as time runs out for the planet in terms of preserving the natural environment and making it food productive and sustainable for all times, not enough older people and those wanting to maintain the old economic system will die in time. Instead everyone will be affected and those who are innocent must die with those who failed to change the system and fix the problems. There has to be other ways to make the change without needing many people to die. One way is to allow the environment to collapse and see how long certain people continue to maintain the old ways of thinking. A big risk, but it could work. Or many people will die needlessly if we had implemented the solution early enough. Therefore, the other way is to do the work now. Not tomorrow, or wait until 2030, or wait until other countries decide to go carbon neutral by 2050. By then it could be too late. Do it now. If necessary, in a quiet way, and achieve what needs to be done irrespective of the negative views of others who prefer to stay where they are, either because of the fear of the unknown when changing or they enjoy too much of the benefits of the old system not to see where the problems lie and what needs to be done to balance things again. When it comes to the environment, we have no choice. Time is running out for all of us. Things must change now, or nature will do it for us, through death or some other hardship. The environment that other people live in is too important to ignore. You might get away with it in the city up to a certain extent, but not in the natural environment that is the life support system of the planet. Something must be done to protect the environment right this very moment and one that reflects a more balanced approach to life. Not so focus exclusive on profits. That is too extreme, almost as radical as fundamentalist Islam is to the Muslim. The economic system driven by profits is acting too much of a terrorist on the natural environment.

    Clearly has to be done. So how do you deal with other people? Great question. Firstly, you need to at least attempt to understand some of the things people do and why they do it. You will then see what drives people to do what they do. In many examples, you will see people are merely struggling to survive. For others, it may be more a case of wanting to make as much money so they can have the freedom to choose what they want as well as have their needs met. At the end of the day, people want to be happy. It is a form of love. When people feel comfortable and have what they need and want, they feel somewhat loved (so long as other people think this is love if they themselves are properly supported and happy too). When it comes to preserving the natural environment, you have to ask people what is more important? Having what you need, including a roof over your head, and being with other people who are happy, and having the freedom to be on your own solving problems and achieving great things, or having what you want and being alone and living what remains of your life on a planet that is dying and other people are unhappy (if not dead already)? Eventually the latter approach will affect you in due course from the way people will choose to fight, or else the life support system collapses to ensure you do not survive. Don't rely on technology for everything. Technology will wear out, and without enough people and technical know-how, the technology will collapse too. At some point, you will die. Is this what you want? Is this life? Or is there a better way to survive and be happy? If there is any common sense in people, they would choose the former. Anything to balance the environment to ensure survival of everyone on this planet, including all living things. Only then can we genuinely feel loved by everyone and the planet in supporting us. But if there are a few who refuse to see the right road we should take, it is time we do the right thing now. While people may be locked into a certain way of thinking and expect others to do the same, surprise them by doing something different. Don't follow the herd. Create your own path in life. See the world in a different way. Find solutions and implement them quietly and surreptitiously. Let the benefits of those solutions spill out for others to see with their own eyes and make their own decisions on whether this is a better solution on how to do things. You don't have to do the same things as everyone else. You can be different. You can look more broadly and see where everyone is generally going. And you can do different things to help tug the giant boat of people along a certain direction. Small at first, but when people see the benefits, more people will help you to tug the boat of humanity until enough of them can steer the ship into a proper, more balanced direction, and one filled with greater love. No need to wait for the Titanic of the economic system to hit the environmental iceberg and sink it fast. Start making the necessary corrections now. And you don't have to show everyone what you are doing. Just let others see the benefits of the change and let them decide what is better. People will resist change at first, or tell you what you are doing will not make a difference. Let them think whatever they like. Better to do it quietly and in the background. Sometimes people don't know what you are doing and what is better until they actually see it. By which time, you have already begun to achieve your goal. Then they can compare things and make a reasonable decision on what is better.

    Before you can start implementing your own solutions to help others, the first thing you must do is to immediately forgive people. People do not know what they are doing. They do it because it is easiest for them and helps to achieve a goal that they think is important, which in many cases is to survive or merely to make money. They do not know of a better way of living and doing things. No one has taught them of a better way. And many require to see with their eyes what works, and what doesn't. If they cannot see the change and the benefits to come from it, nothing will change. Only those people with the imagination can change sooner than anyone else. Fortunately, you should be one of those visionaries with the imagination to see where the solutions lie and hopefully have the balance of a strong rational mind to make it a reality and working for everyone.

    Remember, any actions you see from others that you know are wrong and the people can't see it for themselves is because they don't know of a different way of doing things. They are like children ignorant of so many different ways of doing things, but have not yet used their imagination and/or experienced something different. Most people rely on their eyes before they make a decision. They want to see before they act and do the right thing. As a result, we must forgive people for they do not know they have an imagination and an ability to do different things from what they are doing now. At the same time, people are merely surviving and doing the best they can with what they are given or available to them. They do not know of better ways unless you show it to them through the benefits that come from your actions. Until they have more education and examples of other people doing better things, people will be stuck in a rut of doing what they think is the only way of doing things.

    The next step is for you to become the agent of change in your society. Seems impossible to achieve? So did many people before the Wright brothers invented a machine heavier-than-air fly. Who would have thought? Well, there are ways you can do the same too. Just keep in mind the fact that when it comes to people, you should not expect to change others straightaway. They don't have enough imagination, and they are busy trying to survive or focus on other things, which in most cases is to make money and enjoy life. Or they may even know the truth of what can be done, but corruption and greed and wanting to maintain the status quo is driving them to maintain their way of thinking and doing things. Even if you forgive them, unless they have genuinely learned something (in which case they will change very quickly), you have to love them for who they are, warts and all. Even if you begin your life's work of creating change, don't expect people to suddenly change overnight. It will take some time. Why? It is because people need to decide when they are ready to change their thinking and actions. And often it needs a carrot to help people see the benefits. You could try the stick approach, and some people might change quickly. A personal favourite of dictators running socialist nations. However, most people will resent it, and it may get back to you in a bad way if you do. Better to be nice to people. Show them the benefits. It is a bit like having an international food day where you get to sample different foods from nations around the world. You do not know of a better way, or the benefits of diversity, until you try different foods from different people. Gather enough experiences of different foods and it is amazing how people change their minds about trying something different. They can see the benefit (e.g., tastes). And once people change from this approach, they will never forget. It will be permanent. More Chinese food, anyone? That is what you want in the end. For people to change for the better in a new different and more balanced direction, and stay like that for a long time until there is a need to re-calibrate our so-called balanced position if we should see a problem develop, we need to show the positives of the new changes. Get people to see what it is like or would be like. Help them to see what the problem is and how it can be solved in a positive and more balanced way. Problems are a sign that we must change and re-establish a new balanced position. Thus the more refugees, wars, family conflict, or other problems arise, the more it is telling us that we have to get to a new balanced position. We have to problem-solve and find the right solution that helps everyone. Kind of understand where we are coming from. What are our fears? Why have we done the things we have been doing? What's keeping us back? Look at the pros and cons of everything we do. Ask ourselves is there a better way to be doing things? What are the benefits? Are there any disadantages? How do we solve them? All these questions is what we need to be asking and working on to get to a solution for everyone. So long as everyone is willing to learn and are prepared to let go of things that are not necessary, we can ensure everyone is happy in the new approach once the solution is found. Then there is no reason why we cannot achieve this more balanced and happier life for everyone.

    To get to this balanced position, it might take a while if people do not love themselves enough and see the good in you and what you are doing. For others, it might be very quick and changes can begin. Whatever the case, you have to change the perception that people have of everyone else including yourself by first forgiving them, loving them in their own unique way, and doing something they have not expected of you to do but turns out to be a positive. For example, if you have been nasty to a sibling in your family, suddenly be nice and kind. He/she may not expect it and will question your motive for doing so. But if you properly love one another and forgive them, you will do it without strings attached. You will do it because you want to. And anyway, we cannot afford not to while we are living on this planet. It is too small and resources are finite. We do not have much time. What is the point of hurting others when you will only hurt yourself given enough time should others come back to hurt you?

    If you want to see the good in people, focus on their positive qualities. Acknowledge that some people are still trying to solve their own personal problems and achieve their own goals, which in most cases is to survive. In which case, help them out. Make life easier. Create the changes that provide greater opportunities for others to try them out and see the benefits. Share in some of the things you have to make life easier for everyone. Sure, they may not immediately see the positive qualities you can contribute to helping them solve their own problems or what you can achieve on your own of potential benefit to them. Some people are still living in fear and are not sure how your actions can help them or whether they can trust you. If this is the case, sometimes it might be better not to interfere for a little while and you go ahead behind the scenes in creating the new world for these people to see. Non-interference is still a form of love for others because you are telling them they have the right to follow their own unique paths in life and to learn from their experiences. It can be a hard lesson for some, but people appreciate you more when they are allowed to make their own decisions and learn for themselves. Let them go. If they truly understand love, they will return ti support you and work together in achieving the goals you have set out for yourself. Or be patient as you prod along and consistently show examples where you are genuinely helping them without any agenda or expectations in return. You can always provide the assistance in quiet and hidden ways. Or if you need to solve problems in the environment caused by other people, do it quietly. Achieve the results in your own way. But don't tell anyone. Later people observe the results and will decide whether to help you change the environment of other people at the same time. In the worse case scenario, ignore everything the people are doing to affect you. You are the one who decides how best to achieve things for the better.

    In the meantime, it is time to create the environment you want to see if you believe it is closer to the balanced path and one that truly follows the principle of love.

    Don't worry about what other people think. Unless they are genuinely harmed by your actions, in which case always listen and learn, find out what the problem is, solve the problem, and move on to a new balanced position. In most cases, if they are not harmed by your actions but are simply afraid and the only comfort they have is their own belief system (which you may know is not right), defy them and do what you believe is right. But always comfort them in knowing that everything will be alright. If what you are doing is done with love, people will soon see the love when it becomes reality.

    Sometimes people will be afraid because they are not sure if they can survive if something different is done to solve problems. Talk to everyone and let them know your plans. Or implement the plans quietly and behind the scenes on test it on yourself if there is likely to be resistance. In that way, they will see for themselves whether something works and realise their own thinking and actions were done out of fear of not knowing they will survival. Just don't tell them what you are doing or have to do that is right. Eventually they will see the benefits. If they ask who is doing the great work, you decide if it is worth mentioning it. In most cases, why mention yourself? Why discriminate yourself? What are you hoping to receive in return? Be modest. Pretend like you don't know if no one else knows. A good Samaritan is working behind the scenes. Fair enough. So why interfere to find out? It is clearly a better way of doing things, so let it continue. What is more important is knowing people are changing and doing the right thing, rather than trying to discover who they are. That is reward enough for you and the other person doing it because your life will be easier, people will be happier, and you can live in peace and happiness as it should be for all times. Sometimes just doing the right thing without any expectation of receiving praise is the best approach to take. Of course, this may not always be possible. Sometimes people will find out and they will talk about it. In which case, be willing to listen to their concerns. If they have a worthwhile goal to reach, sit down and consider alternative ways of achieving the same goals for everyone. But if there is no alternative or people have their own agenda, it is time to paint the picture in the minds of other people of the benefits to be had when achieving your own goals. Just choose how you will implement the solution in your own way.

    Take great care when you explain your goals. Some people may have a hard time visualizing the goals until they see it with their eyes. Our education system is not strong in developing our imagination. Others with a reliance on the eyes will feel too afraid to change and may even try to stop you from achieving those goals. This is understandable. They have a certain way of life that makes sense in their own mind and they are too comfortable to change for the better. It will see more rational to them because it seems to work for them. Somehow you have to go ahead and achieve those goals irrespective of what other people think or do. Sure, it can be dangerous. People like Jesus Christ had to pay with their own lives to prove certain goals are worth reaching for. We can only hope enough people in the world today have learned from the past and can support one another to achieve those goals rather than killing people because they were different and/or thought differently. Otherwise, it is far better to keep quiet and work behind the scenes. Much harder to track down and cause harm. Why tell everyone? What are you hoping to prove in doing so? Forget it. Just quietly introduce and release new knowledge and results. Show the benefits. Once these things come out, there is virtually nothing that anyone else can do to stop it. See the benefits and there will be no one to stop its natural progression and implementation into the real world. People will just go ahead and do it.

  2. Work out exactly what your life's goals are
    Or, are you still working out what you need to do in your own life? Find quiet moments to contemplate what it is that you need to achieve and make this world a better place for you, your family, your community and all living things. Then go ahead and achieve it.

    When finding a solution, think about what can you do right now to reduce the obstacles stopping you from achieving greatness and in helping others to achieve their own positive worthwhile goals (and they may help you). Make sure you are not the obstacle. Listen to their concerns and goals they wish to achieve in their lives. Be patient as they will do the same for you. Likewise make it clear to others if there is anything in the actions of other people that may be harmful or difficult to you. Listen to them for the reasons and listen for any similar harmful actions you may have done to them that could be resulting in the harm you are receiving.

    Stop dwelling on the negative things you see in yourself and/or others, whether superficially or otherwise, or you and other people will definitely never learn, will not progress beyond the current dilemmas and how you treat yourself and they may be treating you, and you will probably be unable to move forward.

    And don't dwell on the negative things other people may say about you. It is their opinion and that's their problem. They don't have sufficient faith that you will improve and achieve your own greatness. Remember, you have the power to be whatever you want to be and achieve the things you want for the benefit of everyone. Turn this information around to understand why people do what they do and help them see a brighter future through your own eyes.

    When you have finally considered all factors, have done enough listening, make the decision. Decide on what it is you have to do and make it your life's work to implement it and make it work. This is your life. Show what you can achieve.

    Finally, be prepared to move on in your life. Don't stay where you are. You don't have to stay with the people you live with, especially in they do not wish to change, learn something new, or keep putting you down for whatever reason they have (perhaps they are not loved enough or are afraid of something). Move on, but tell others you still love them no matter what. Things will be better if you do move on. Then create your new environment. Eventually you will find what you are looking for and even have different and more supportive people around you.

  3. Remember, other people in the environment are doing things they think is right. The reality might be the opposite, which is why it is so important for everyone to experience what other people are going through in order to see more clearly the problems.
  4. The environment of the natural world
    There is much talk from so-called "rational" leaders about the economy of making money as the only solution to getting people out of poverty and making the world a better place to live. Of course, all this assumes that people have the skills and sufficient education to do things that other people in the economy want them to do, and can earn enough money to help afford the price of basic commodities such as food and water, a roof over their heads, a means of transport when going to work and back again, and anything else the economic system can provide and offer to achieve other goals. Furthermore, it also assumes people who run these businesses have the interest of the rest of the people in the economy at heart and know exactly what to produce and how to produce the right products and services to be truly beneficial for everyone. Whilst some people may challenge this notion and other economic assumptions in today's society, in reality, no economy can exist without a solid foundation in protecting the environment, growing food, and looking after the individual. Without a healthy and productive environment for growing food and maintain biological diversity, all economies will collapse, putting many people in that economic system into a position where they must fight to survive once again no matter how much money has been earned (well, no one can eat money). Also, an economy cannot function properly if it does not understand the principle of love of knowing exactly how to help people and all living things in the environment. Therefore, every society must learn to balance what it does between growing (or better still maintain an) economy and a healthy environment. And if necessary, the growth of an economy must be curtailed somewhat by getting more people to work for the environment in return for a different set of rewards and means of surviving, which should help many people to see the long-term advantages in this new non-economic system. People need to see how protecting the environment can help them survive and grow in a different way (without always needing to make money). For this to happen, the people who run businesses in the economic system must see the benefits of this non-economic system, while at the same time learning to keep profit at a reasonable level (which will be at odds for those companies having shareholders). And they must understand that the success of the businesses requires the success of the non-economic system at the same time in protecting the environment and being able to grow enough food and clean water at very low cost (which should be free for those who work in this new society as part of their reward) and with extra time to create and provide new and original ideas. Just think about it? No more unemployment. No more homeless people begging for food (or money) in the cities. No more feelings of not belonging to a society and not realising how valuable we are. We are all important. No need for crime and other means of fighting for what people need to survive. Imagine the money saved in law enforcement by supporting a non-economic system. Easier said than done, especially where shareholders in the economic system are part of the companies that sell products and services (perhaps fewer of these types of companies should exist in favour of a traditional business structure). But it is the only way forward for our civilisation if it is to be truly sustainable and healthy for all times, and for all of its people to be truly happy and have hope for the future.

    Furthermore, we must recycle everything we produce, especially where there is a likelihood of having the thing we produced thrown away. If there is a waste component to what we use, we must recycle it completely. Not 10 per cent, 50 per cent, or even 99.9995 per cent. We must achieve 100 per cent recycling in the waste component and the thing we are using (since all things eventually fall apart). We call this guaranteeing the protection of our natural free-for-all life-support system we call the natural environment so that we may give others and all living things their rightful opportunity to come into this world and live as we do in peace and harmony. Let them achieve their own goals (whether to survive or grander things). By fully recycling, you will give all living things the environmental foundations needed to survive forever, and ultimately be happy. Fortunately a number of things we produce can be recycled reasonably quickly by nature. But other things can take much longer. We need to think more closely about what we are producing (e.g., the materials we use) and for how long they should last before producing them again. And when it is time to recycle, to ensure the systems are in place to recycle every component of what we produce so that there is absolutely no waste to the environment.

  5. The current economic system
    The first thing you will encounter in modern society is the massive focus on making a profit, not to mention the emphasis on L-brain thinking to achieve this.

    Don't blame, or get angry with, people for choosing to make profit and L-brain thinking their life's work. Part of the problem of modern society is that our survival is tied so intimately with so-called rational thinking and making money that it becomes extremely hard to break free from this system and way of thinking. And once people have worked hard in making a profit to solve their survival needs, they may see the value of earning more and more money and continuing their thinking because they can get more and more of what they want (e.g. a bigger house, a fancier boat etc).

    However, as with any want, there is a cost. And often a high one at that. This could be due to limited resources to make the things we want (is this because our human population is getting too high? Or are some people being too greedy?). Sometimes it is the profit mentality of those other people who make the things we want that causes problems for everyone else.

    This must be dealt with right now.

    Remember, not everyone can afford to have everything. And why should we? Is it necessary to have the biggest house on the street (or planet)? Should we have the most expensive car? Why build the biggest business? Is this more to show off your ego? Indeed why have so much when there are people who simply cannot survive because of a lack of food or something else? What is the point. We all going to die at some point, and who knows where we will go and what place we may come back. If there are too many poor people in the world, you can be sure the balance of the Universe will help you to discover what it is like to be poor. And will you like being poor? In most cases you won't know the difference and you just learn to adapt to your environment. But if you can even compare your current life with those less fortunate, any sensible and rational person will see that it would be better not to be poor. At the same time, what's the point of being super rich if all you are doing is destroying the planet and making more people become poor in the process? If you had a choice of living in peace, happiness, love from others, and have only the things you need to survive, and a little extra for achieving your life's goals, and knowing everyone will have the same thing as you, or face a world of extremes where very few can enjoy life's excesses and the rest must live in poverty, what would you choose? It would be a very braze soul to just the latter. For most sensible people, going for the former is clearly the better route. But, of course, all this assumes we come back in our next life. And this is the thing: how do we prove it? We can't. And don't the L-brain people know it too. They will say things like, "That's a load of bollocks, because science says so (or I can't see it with my own eyes)." But science is limited by what it can see. When we die, we don't have the luxury of taking our eyes and any other instrument with us to see what happens. And we don't have the power to return back to our previous life to tell everyone what really happens (and then we would be God). We just don't know for sure. But there are many examples in the Universe strongly pointing to this extension to our existence which we must be prepared to experience even if we cannot prove the hidden pattern in a scientific way. So it is better to cover your bets by being prepared for the likely possibility of it happening. You must have faith. If you understand this point, then you have to ask yourself what happens if you die now and come back in another life? Do you think you will remain rich in your next life? As the balance of life and the Universe is suggesting, in all likelihood you will probably experience what's common in the world. If there are lots of people who are poor, we are most likely to experience what it is like to be poor. If you don't want this to happen, then you must ask yourself, "Is it important to be rich?"

    Or is it better to ask, "Are you happy with the things you need to survive everyday?"

    If the answer is no because you want more, then ask: Are you genuinely happy by having everything you want? In other words, how comfortable are you that at the time of your death that you have done everything you can to help everyone else in this world?

    We have to remember, we are limited by the available resources. Indeed, on an environmental level it is not good, nor is it desirable for everyone to have what they want (especially if we are easily corrupted by greed when everything we want is available to us). Otherwise we will consume ourselves to oblivion and there will be nothing in our environment to keep us alive. Extinction will be just around the corner (and then that makes for an interesting question of where we will go when we die — do we start again on a new planet trying to fight for our survival and evolve to become once again another intelligent species, or what else can happen? And don't think for a moment our technology is powerful enough to keep us alive. There is just not enough resources on this planet to give everyone all their want at a price we can all afford (i.e., the aim is to make everything we need free in return for our own unique contribution to society). As Ghandi once said, "There's enough for everyone needs, but not enough for everyone's greed."

    Also, by staying in the current economic system with increasing human population and dwindling resources unless there is complete recycling and greed of others selling the resources can be controlled (because recycling takes time), the cost of the things we need will increase. Any unnecessary impact on our needs in terms of higher costs and other negative factors will result in us having to fight for our survival and this will have dire consequences for society.

    But there are too many people in the world?

    Well this is what happens when enough people have fought long enough to reach a time when they can reproduce. And people need to be loved. Not just for the short term through sex. But also the long term by having a large family to support one another. They are all natural consequences when people are forced to survive, as well as worry about death.

    If we are to avoid this situation continuing for the long term, we must change the structure of society forever. And our views on life must be different. We have to do things like view death in a totally different way to how we do it today. We must broaden our thinking. We must value more R-brain people in our society. We must be more forgiving, and be more willing to open up our hearts. We have to value our natural environment as the foundation for all economies and the future of humankind. Our environment must stand as the cornerstone of modern society, or the pillar by which all societies are built on.

    How can we do this?

    At some point in the 21st century (hopefully very soon), the individuals of society will have to introduce a new non-economic system. It will be a system (or a new world order) that will focus on the natural environment as the solution to at least half our world problems (people are the other half and they will change quickly once they see the benefits of the new system). Because the natural environment provides a wealth of solutions for people by way of shelter, food, medicine etc. But for this to happen, it will involve getting a significant number of people in society to work for the environment by recycling and making everything we need at very low cost or freely. The system is likely to be managed by retirees spending half their super funds to establish small homes made of natural recyclable materials and in getting governments to contribute half the old age pension to helping build the new non-economic society. The people living and working in the system can benefit from free food and water and a roof over their heads (after a period of time working on the land and being offered their own small home to live in for the rest of their lives if they so choose). There are many different types of rewards for spending time in the new system. It can include extra free time, visiting other communities, acquiring certain tools on a more permanent basis to help with achieviong your own goals.

    Before the benefits of the new system can be had, there is going to have to be major infrastructure changes to the environment to ensure we can grow adequate trees, shrubs and areas for growing food and protecting water supplies. Large scale reshaping of the land to enhance existing features or increase certain other long-term benefits will be the norm.

    Too many unemployed people in our modern economic system? No problems. Young people (especially the unemployed) can join to help volunteer in growing foods, looking after the environment and keeping old people's homes in order in return for free food and own roof over their heads. They can stay in the new system as long as they like. But always give them time to be on their own or with others to try different things. Give them alternative education. Let them understand the wider world that exists and the solutions people are searching for. Realise there are other things we can do. And let people come up with their own solutions and implement them if there is a chance it will work.

    And more important reward them for their time and effort. Make the reward seem greater than anything the economic system can provide.

    To ensure everyone contributes to this non-economic system without turning into slave labour for any young individual or group, young people should spend no more than half a day on a particular needy task as agreed by the community. The other half of the day should be given freely for people to spend doing their own thing of developing skills, learning something new, socialising, meditating or simply relaxing and thinking about things. Or why not cook the food, bottle it up, preserve it for times when food on the land is less, and/or sell the food to those living in the economic system. There should be no shortage of ideas and solutions to consider and implement in the new world order.

    Who knows? Those ideas may end up being useful to the environmentally-focussed community or the new economic system designed to sell environmentally-friendly products to the world market.

    To start things off, governments should also consider building in the middle of the land a small communal complex with almost complete surrounding views to the pristine environment for every 40 or 50 individuals working on the land in a certain area. It should contain educational materials including recycled computers (with the latest internet software and install older commercial or freeware software to allow creative minds to write stories, compile personal knowledge, think up new technologies, share in new ideas on the land, or access other educational sources from the rest of the world), or books in general to permit everyone to learn to read, and develop new ideas. After a period of time working on the land, be prepared to offer rewards of a new private home, small and modest for one or four people at the most for a small family focussed on maintaining a sustainable population level. Offer courses on how to build your own home, and work together on building the homes for those who have contributed significantly to the new system.

    As for older people in the community, they too must contribute to the new system by maintaining their own gardens in their assigned plot of land, grow their own vegetables, and plant where they can new trees and shrubs on the land they are entrusted to manage and look after. They may also be able to direct others to achieve other goals on the land or further out. Or else they should be able to relax, look after their own plot of land, and enjoy the fruits of their labour for the rest of their lives. This means old people who want to retire to this non-economic system must have a minimum level of physical health and fitness to perform the tasks required. This is not about sitting back and doing nothing in your retirement. Old people need to do things. You can't let young people do all the work. It is a shared effort and must be communicated clearly the tasks to be done to everyone including any additional rewards for doing so.

    Yes, this will have massive impact on the current economy. But look at the benefits. No unemployment is certainly tempting. Can't afford the cost of food because so many people are living in the economic system? Well, not any more. Food grown in the new non-economic system will be cheap, and free for those who work in the new system. There is lots of pollution in the cities? Not in the countryside where the new system is being applied. On the land, everything will be healthy and clean. Worried about your immune system failing in the cities for being excessively too clean and using too many anti-biotics to solve simple ailments. Not in the new system. There you will get dirty working, but your immune system will go up. You can fight diseases better, and you will feel fitter and healthier than ever before.So what is better? Supporting the current economy through unsustainable jobs and increasingly expensive products and see the system eventually crash again and the next time it might be the longest recession in living memory? People will starve, fight for their share, and life will be miserable for a long time unless we have something to balance the situation. We can soften the blow in those times of economic recession. Well, how about starting the non-economic system of growing food and protecting the natural environment right now? But if we don';t do it now, we won't be able to get there during a recession without a lot of suffering along the way. We don't need to do this on ourselves. Make it easier for everyone. Think long-term by building a sustainable economy where the environment and adequate recycling forms the foundation for supporting the overall system right now as well as giving people immediate solutions to all their survival needs. That is where the new non-economic system should come to the forefront of our modern age. Having a two-tier system working side-by-side, supporting one another for the goals each one is achieving and knowing one can support the other in times of trouble will ensure everyone survives the easier way possible. It will make a big difference.

    Remember, mno matter how severe a recession might get, an already established non-economic system would provide immediate protection to the people with alternative means of survival.

    Not in a recession? Fine. This is a better time to implement the new system. Just imagine how quickly crime rates will drop in a sustainable economic system coupled by a non-economic system to ensure things are truly sustainable and everything is recycled, where food is grown in abundance and shared at such low cost or freely to everyone. Who will need to fight to survive in this kind of new world order? People will have everything they need. They will be happy. Then they will not have a bad word to say about anyone. No discrimination of a negative kind. We will not tell people to go back to their own countries because we can't afford to support everyone. Indeed, quite the opposite. We need people in the non-economic system to help create a society that makes all this happen. Imagine how robust the society will be and how well it can buffer itself against the changes in the world economy? Imagine how much happier and relaxed people will be.

    To prepare you for the expected upcoming new system of the 21st century designed to balance society's current focus on the economy and making money, you need to consider the following question, "How much money do I need to survive and achieve things while I am alive?" For example, do you need to climb the career ladder to earn $100,000+ a year from your job so you can purchase a Ferrari when a small Honda hybrid car or Smart car can do the job just as well? Or why not walk, cycle or take public transport to get to your destination (so long as it is cheap and fast)? Could the extra money saved help you to achieve more goals more quickly and in a balanced way in other areas? Maybe to develop the first stages of the new non-economic system and so guaranteeing your survival with fresh food and water?

    If you can earn lots of money, don't be ostentatious. Try to be modest. For example, learn to live in a small average-looking house with a neat garden. People don't need to see how much you have got. What's more important are the things you can achieve for the good of society. People remember your contributions, not the person who you were when you were alive. Remember, given enough time, generations will come and go and people will not remember who you are. But if your contributions to society are great and long-term, people will remember your contributions.

    And those contributions are likely to be something you will experience again and again in your future life.

    Worried about what other people think if you don't show how rich you are? Again don't worry about what other people think. Money should not be a social status symbol. Let them think whatever they like. You are the one in control of your life.

    If you do earn lots of money, what will you do with it? How will you make this world a better place to live for everyone and every living thing on this planet? Remember, you may be rich now but in your next life you could be very poor. How would you avoid becoming poor in case the Universe brings you back in your next life? How would you restore balance?

    Or you may be one of those people who don't have enough money. That's fine too. As the law of balance in the Universe is likely to show, your next life could be the time for you to be rich in some way. But while you are alive today, you are in a better position to know what you need and how to balance the situation. At any rate, this could be one of the problems you may have to solve. Or perhaps you have found an alternative way of living that doesn't require making money (eg a New Age permaculturalist)? At least you are still contributing to a better society by helping to grow food for others as well as yourself? Have enough people helping and working together and you could control climate change through the plants you grow. Now that is where governments should be paying you for storing carbon on your land.

    Heck, you shouldn't be poor if people in the economic system take responsibility by paying you to solve their problems.

    In fact, your skills in solving the problem of making the things you need without money could be highly regarded in the new non-economic system of the future. For all intensive purposes, it could make you a world leader of the system in your own right.

  6. What you can do to help if you live in the economic system
    Okay. So you may have a bigger than normal house and a huge mortgage to pay back to a bank. Ask yourself, is this absolutely necessary? And how is this contributing to a better world in the long-term? Actually, this is bringing us back to the question of needs and wants. Do you really need to pay for a big house or apartment in the middle of a city? It depends on whether you believe the extra money earned from selling it is important for your retirement because you intend to keep on living in the city or wish to live a seemingly rich and lavish lifestyle elsewhere while staying in the economic system. But as we get older (and the numbers are increasing), this would only burden the economic system due to impacts on the health system and the amount of taxpayers' money needed by the government to support it. Furthermore, the cost of buying a house is fast becoming out of reach of many young couples unless it is sold more cheaply (and hence not likely to provide the high income return for retirement as you might expect). And with electricity costs going up, managing a big house will be seen as less favourable over a smaller house. Only the richest people will afford to own a big house.

    But for most people, can you expect to get your money back from selling a large house in the next 25 years? Indeed, the high cost of the mortgage will see you working for the rest of your life trying to pay it off. And what if everything gets so expensive that what you think today is enough money to retire on is simply not enough in 25 years from now? You certainly won't be able to retire unless you are very rich and running your own business. Well, perhaps it is better not to retire. Maintaining some form of regular exercise and an active mind will be essential in old age to reduce your burden on the health care system. But what happens if you lose your job and the cost of living is too much? Not unreasonable to consider as people are talking about more and more employers choosing to use robotics and artificial intelligence to do much of what you do. Unless there is a universal minimum income for all world citizens independent of the number of hours you actually work, you may end up having to work in several jobs and trying to run a business just to make ends meet.

    Or would it not be nicer if you can occasionally rest and do nothing. You can sit back at times and not worry about where your food is coming from and how much it costs. And you don't have to worry about your rent increasing because someone else has discovered the cost of living is too much as well? And if electricity is obtained from renewable sources from your roof, do you need to pay for electricity? Want to exercise and live a longer life? No problems there. Ifyou want to work, you can always work in the new non-economic system. There will never be a situation of not having a job. Fortunately this kind of world can exist. There is a way to escape the economic rat race and enter the tree change where life runs slower, more relaxed, beautiful to watch as you rest or doing something to contribute to the system, you can pick the food you want to eat when you want to, and you can work a little in the garden (it shouldn't be seen as work, but a hobby you enjoy) to spend that little extra time doing something and getting exercise.

    We do have the opportunity to start this new non-economic system right now if we so choose. There are some people even doing it on a small-scale right now. Here, you can be given a small house in a rural area built by other people or the government and your time in retirement is merely to plant more trees, collect and store more freshwater, and grow food on the land and preserve them for the benefit of everyone. You can direct others in the system to shape the land and assist with planting things and establishing the essential structures for growing a productive food base and lovely garden for all to enjoy. You can suggest things to be done and let others do them. And you can do things on your own too.

    Funny how at first you think you can't live without a large house in the city, and now you can live in a smaller house away from the city and never have to pay for the things you need to survive. Just about everything is at your doorstep or within short walking distances. The difference is simply your focus on what's important. Is it money? Or is it to focus on the environment and helping a community of people to grow healthy and environmentally-friendly foods? Certainly moving away and choosing to live in a smaller house will reduce your mortgage significantly. In fact, you may not even have to worry about a mortgage. Your efforts and with little cost, you could already be owning your own house on the land. The only caveat in this approach is making sure you contribute to the environment in making it the best it can be for all to enjoy.

    So what will you choose? Will it be to stay in the city? Okay, but be prepared to take responsibility of what happens in the future if you don't do the right thing, and with more people choosing to automate many things to save on costs. Or will a tree-change be better for you and your family in the long run, and for the environment as well?

    Or do you feel like a real challenge by going for a cactus change and see what you can do to change the desert-like environment to a more plant luxurious environment? Well, at some point the expanding non-economic system will have to affect desert regions as more freshwater slowly seeps into these areas. Need some inspiration? Check out other parts of the world and what people are doing to terra-transform deserts into a forest again. Bound to be some significant rewards from society in a shorter space of time if you can achieve this. You will have access to any equipment you need at virtually no cost to help achieve your goals. You will have an army of people willing to help you in return for having everything they need for free. You will have increasingly more free time to do whatever you like as the environment improves.

    Forget about the extreme sports young people like to get up to (should this be part of the reward for young people in the new non-economic society?). Try a different extreme sport in your retirement or when undergoing a "cactus-change" and see what you can achieve!

  7. Encouraging businesses to do the right thing
    As part of your responsibility to protect th environment, as a city-dweller there are things you can do to influence businesses in the economic system to do the right thing. Firstly, select the products and services you need to survive which you believe are friendly to the environment and causes the least amount of harm to animal and plant life. Choose natural products. Look towards more organic foods. And make sure they can be fully recycled. Choose products and services that are highly energy efficient and uses the least amount of resources to achieve something. Better still, make sure the energy generated and used can be fully recycled. Electricity is a classic example where electrons can be forever recycled. Gas, oil and coal can't be recycled, at least not within a human lifetime. Once those non-renewable materials disappear, it takes a long time to lock them up in the plants. And then it still takes many changes in the environment to lock away the plant material, bake them, put them under tremendous geological pressure and so on to return them to the state we call gas, oil and coal while remaining locked underground. It is better to look for ways to recycle the electrons to produce electricity and let it do the work we need to get done on the land and anywhere else.

    If recycling is difficult but the products are essential, look for durable products that will last an incredibly long time. Then hopefully given enough time, new ideas on how to recycle them will be discovered.

    Finally, encourage enough consumers to do the same and soon it will become a powerful way of pushing businesses towards a more balanced and sustainable approach to producing products and services for society.

    It may be true for Sir Walter Raleigh to say, "Whosoever commands the trade of the world commands the riches of the world and hence the world itself."

    But as Dame Anita Roddick said in her book Take It Personally:

    "Don't underestimate the power of the vigilante consumer..."

  8. Finding permanent employment
    Having trouble finding permanent employment when businesses are more interested in making a profit? Is your boss more interested in minimising your salary and demanding more of you through multiskilling (or wants machines to take over your job), and if you are still around to make your job a casual or temporary position (to give the boss the power to sack you at any time and maximise profits)? Maybe it is time to do something different in your life. Look for more balanced jobs with long-term potential and security for yourself and society. Which jobs are likely to be around in the next century or two or longer? Information technology could certainly be one area (such as coding and designing software). Education is another. Health and looking after aged people is important but the pay is usually atrocious unless you are a surgeon or experienced doctor (just look at how lowly paid carers are and the way some will treat the old people).

    Or soon there will be the chance to rebuild environment and grow food. It will not be long before more and more people will see this activity on the land as a more critical job of the future, especially in regards to the greater rewards to be had and how permanent and cost-effective you can benefit from those rewards (e.g., free food and water). You decide.

    So maybe you should make the change to rural life (the ultimate "tree change") and start rebuilding the environment? Governments and society in general in the future will have to pay you bigger rewards for doing the right thing early. Remember the need to lock away carbon into plants? That is going to have to be the norm in the future once the legislation is in place.

    And if you really want to make a lot of money or achieve what you want to do, being your own boss is the only way to go. There is no choice. Just so long as you ask yourself, what useful thing can I do with this extra money and my time that will help society over the long term and make this planet a better place to live? Rebuilding the environment is certainly something you can run on your own if you want. Or is there something else you can do which you can sell that won't damage the environment?

    Whatever you decide, remember to educate yourself well and acquire the skills you need to perform those jobs, or goals you wish to implement. When creating your own business, talk to people and get as much advice as you can. Find something you can make or gather and sell to others which people will need and find useful to have. Find something that is clearly aligned to your ideas and those of others of a better world. Choose something that creates the least amount of world problems as possible.

    Or if you have a piece of land or rooftop terrace you can access or already live on, make use of it to capture enough water, store more carbon into trees, grow your own foods, and build your own house. Only take another job if it helps you to purchase additional things to help achieve your long-term goals more quickly. Otherwise, learn to live a sustainable life recycling all the foods and deriving energy from renewable sources. Rely more on books for education rather than purchasing a TV. If you need a TV to achieve your goals, go for a laptop with a digital TV tuner or access the internet for new ideas and ways of getting yourself to think. Power to run the devices is much less than say a plasma TV screen. And a laptop is better for educating the mind than passively sitting there watching continuously something on TV. It again comes down to you taking control of how you want to think and solve problems and not relying on others to do the thinking and solving for you.

  9. What do you really want to achieve?
    After doing all of this, what is the true goal you want to achieve in the world before you die? Find the ultimate goal and work towards it. Don't make it impossible for you to solve. But don't make it too easy either. Challenge yourself. But make sure what you do will help to solve world problems, not add to it.

Dealing with those people wanting to maintain the status quo

There comes a time when you will discover during your efforts to solve world problems how certain things you do seem to get knocked back constantly, or people are just not willing to help you realise your dreams because they may think it will affect them in adverse ways. Even if people know another way is better, the real reason for not changing is because they fear losing the enjoyment of power and greed that comes with maintaining the current economic system. At the same time, these people may know of certain secrets that they don't want the world to know about but can use those secrets to their own benefit (e.g., to increase wealth and power).

On the other hand, there are others, mostly unimaginable "L-brain" types, who just follow what they are told (usually directed by those people in the know and who want to maintain the status quo) because they can receive some of the benefits the current economy can provide.

So how do we deal with these people?

In an overt manner, no easy way. People will see what you are doing and try to stop you at every opportunity. However, behind the scenes and secretly you can achieve a lot. Your aim is to work quietly (and do not reveal your identity — there is no need for people to know who you are, your contributions are what matters. You do what has to be done yourself and in the right way. Don't wait for others to change. In most cases where people want to maintain the status quo, they don't want to change themselves. Instead, you do the changing. So long as what you do brings greater love and balance into the world and will benefit everyone (even if the rich and powerful do not think so in the short term if they find out what you are doing), then the future will definitely be better by doing what is right. And when the time comes, you just quietly throw the final spanner into the works when everyone least expects it and those in a position of power and wealth will suddenly find themselves having to face the inevitable change that must take place in society for things to actually get better. They will have no choice in the end. They will change.

Sure, certain people may not like it. They will act like spoiled rich brats if they see what is happening. They may even work together to find ways to influence enough people in the public if they think it will stop the inevitable. For example, they could decide not to allow new health care reforms to go through and receive funding which could force government services to suddenly grind to a stop (as occurred in the U.S. as we speak). Given the buffer these people have in order to better survive an economic depression through their wealth, they think this is the only way to stop secrets from getting out into the public or stop others from achieving the future we all deserve. But it won't make any difference. The secrets will come out no matter what these people do or how many people are affected by their actions. You can't stop curiosity, imagination and the willingness of people to do good things for others.

We must realise that these stubborn people are in greater need of help than you do. The ones who are truly lacking in love. We describe them as the "R-wing" types (in more psychological terms, we would describe them as L-brain people). These are the least imaginative people (or deliberately choose to be less creative in the areas they don't want to see change take place because they want to maintain their comfortable and materialistically-rich way of life). R-wing people are the ones who run the "economic show" and dictate how things should be and what people should be doing because it makes sense to them and gives them what they want, it is familiar to their own beliefs and something they believe in, and/or simply to stop certain secrets from coming out (for those in the United States). It is the only way that helps them to stay rich and powerful in the current economic system and so make life easier for themselves.

Among these R-wing types are those in the US military with links to various organisations in the U.S. to help control how people should think and do. These people have a reason to maintain the status quo because of their big secret (which is currently being broken by researchers as we speak).

R-wing people are afraid to change especially if it means losing power (but not realise the wealth to be had in a different way under the new system). They are afraid they will lose so much after earning so much from their own businesses and insights into certain long-held secrets from the U.S. military. They are use to getting what they want in the current economic system.

In the new non-economic system, this will change. Unfortunately the rich and power will not be happy.

These people are in serious need of our love.

They deserve the love and to be given the knowledge of how much better a balanced way of life can be for everyone. They need to know everyone will survive in the new world order (it doesn't matter if you are rich or poor) where there are no secrets to be kept from others, and everyone can benefit from the knowledge and technology. And no one's survival should be at risk because of those secrets. The changes we do now and into the future, if not profit-motivated, will be to improve the lives of everyone and all living things. And in return, we will see things we can only dream of.

We only need to focus on our needs, recycle everything we produce, give people freedom to learn and solve problems, let them implement the solutions, give them the technology to make it possible, and avoid the wants we simply don't require (it only maintains the status quo for the rich and powerful). We have all the technologies to solve world problems, not to mention see incredible things in the universe. Once we realise this more balanced and inclusive way of life for everyone, we will realise there is far more to life than materialistic things. Sure we need the physical world to achieve certain things while we are here, but there are greater things to experience from this universe than mere materialistic things.

And when we do, we will no longer have to worry about the young people feeling despondent about the current economic system. They will understand, there is a future for everyone through the new non-economic system.

For us to see this grander and more balanced future for all of us, we must break all the secrets R-wing people may be holding from the world. And we must show these people through love how everyone can live in peace and happiness in the new world order and using those secrets for the benefit of everyone.