Power To The People JRS2004

Can the promise of human contentment,
gained through greater empowerment and

connection with processes and community,
be used to encourage lifestyle changes that
increase environmental and social
awareness and ultimately enable true
sustainability?
‘It is impossible not to notice that, in some of the

poorest parts of the world, most people, most of the
time, appear to be happier than we are’ ‘In homes
constructed from packing cases and palm leaves,
people engage more freely, smile more often, express
more affection than we do behind our double glazing,
surrounded by remote controls’ George Monbiot, The
Guardian, 27.08.02
M odern Western lifestyles are not good for us.

We are getting fatter, more stressed, more
neurotic, more vain and more depressed. Our
urban communities have degraded; theft,
violence, disillusionment and hopelessness are
rife. Industrialism has filled our air, our earth,
and our water full of toxins that are stifling life on
our planet.
We look on powerless, bewildered or oblivious;

stunned into impotency by the amazing sights
and sounds of the extraordinary circus we find
ourselves performing in, produced and directed
by a ringleader who was born to delight, detract
and divert: the Fabulous Mr Capitalism.
Those pushing for environmental and social

change are either too quiet to be heard above
the noise, too radical to be understood, or too
busy playing their role to be effectual. People
don’t want to give up their circus performance
just to sit in a field.
People strive to be useful, helpful, respected,

wanted; to live within thriving communities in
beautiful and diverse environments; to love and
be loved. These things make us content - people
strive to be content. People do not strive to be
kept in the dark and entertained in musty air.
The clowns may be colourful but the circus is
only costume deep, a shallow act that can never
truly give us what we need.
We must focus all of our efforts, resources, and

time onto the things that we truly need and care
about; putting mental health before materialistic
hedonism.
Our planet and our society will heal themselves

naturally - but only if we heal ourselves first.
Respect and gratitude to Mike Thompson for making it all
possible, his staff for making it make sense, and the staff
at CAT for making the food – an army marches on its
stomach after all.
I am particularly grateful to Blanche for her inspirational

seminars, and Sofie for her guidance and her time.
Big shout out to my siblings-in-arms who made the whole

thing so incredibly interesting and massively enjoyable –
you know who you are, keep on keeping on comrades,
you’re all very gorgeous.
Many thanks once again to all those who took the time
and made the effort to respond to one or both of the
questionnaires; a very necessary part of this thesis.
Love and apologies to friends and family who have

supported me through the last 2 years financially and
emotionally, and have put up with my ranting - I can’t
promise that that is going to change however.
Endless appreciation to Mum & David for providing a

stress-free, all-inclusive sanctuary for the last 2 months.
Dedicated to Claire, for the good times; I will love forever

her name in my heart.
Power To The People?
© James R Smith April 2004
Contents
0.0 Introduction – Paradigm Page 7
1.0 Chapter 1 – Aim : Sustainability Page 10
1.1 Definition Page 11

1.2 Interpretation Page 12
1.3 Appraisal Page 13
1.4 Summary Page 15
2.0 Chapter 2 - Diagnosis : Poor Health Page 16

2.2 Global (Environmental) Health Page 18
2.3 Local (Community) Health Page 20
2.4 Personal Health Page 21
2.5 Summary Page 23
3.0 Chapter 3 - Affliction : Disconnection Page 24

3.2 Global Scale - Consumption/Consumerism Page 25
3.3 Local Scale – Distancing Page 27
3.4 Personal Scale - Media, Advertising Page 29
3.5 Summary Page 31
4.0 Chapter 4 - Symptoms : Attempts to Exert Control in a Disconnected Society Page 33

4.2 The Motor Car (Global) Page 34
4.3 Recycling Schemes (Local) Page 37
4.4 Sick Building Syndrome & Psychological Reactance Theory (Personal) Page 38
4.5 Summary Page 40
5.0 Chapter 5 – Diagnosis : Questionaires Page 41

5.2 Purpose Page 42
5.3 Questionnaires Page 42
5.4 Methodology Page 43
5.5 Limitations Page 44
5.61 Results – Recycling Page 44
5.62 Results - Food Growing Page 45
5.63 Results - Power Production Page 46
5.64 Results – Lifestyle Page 47
5.65 Results – Car Use Page 47
5.66 Results – Public Transport (PT) Use Page 49
5.67 Results – Walking Page 49
5.7 Summary Page 50
Msc Architecture: Advanced Environmental and Energy Studies, © James R Smith, April 2004 : Power To The People? Pg4
6.0 Chapter 6 - Treatment : Connection Page 52

6.2 Global Connection Page 53
6.3 Local (Community) Connection Page 56
6.4 Personal Connection Page 58
6.5 Summary Page 60
7.0 Chapter 7 - Prognosis : Conclusion Page 62
7.1 Prognosis : Conclusion Page 63
8.0 Appendix 1 - Questionnaire 1 Data Page 64
8.1 Questionnaire 1 Page 65

8.2 Questionnaire 1 – Non-Greens Data Page 66
8.3 Questionnaire 1 – Greens Data Page 69
8.4 Questionnaire 1 – Recycling Graphs Page 71
8.5 Questionnaire 1 – Food Graphs Page 73
8.6 Questionnaire 1 – Power Graphs Page 75
8.7 Questionnaire 1 – Life Change Graphs Page 77
9.0 Appendix 2 - Appendix 2 : Questionnaire 2 Data Page 78
9.1 Questionnaire 2 Page 79

9.2 Questionnaire 2 – Non-Greens Data Page 80
9.3 Questionnaire 2 – Greens Data Page 82
9.4 Questionnaire 2 – Car Use Graphs Page 84
9.5 Questionnaire 2 – Public Transport Use Graphs Page 87
9.6 Questionnaire 2 – Walking Graphs Page 90
10.0 References Page 93
10.1 Chapter 0 : Introduction Page 94

10.2 Chapter 1 : Sustainability Page 94
10.3 Chapter 2 : Health Page 95
10.4 Chapter 3 : Disconnection Page 96
10.5 Chapter 4 : Symptoms Page 98
10.6 Chapter 5 : Questionnaires Page 99
10.7 Chapter 6 : Reconnection Page 99
10.8 Chapter 7 : Conclusion Page 101
11.0 Bibliography Page 102
11.1 Books Page 103

11.2 Publications & Articles Page 104
11.3 Websites Page 105
11.4 Miscellaneous Inspiration Page 106
All images are from royalty-free online galleries and are for illustrative purposes only.
Msc Architecture: Advanced Environmental and Energy Studies, © James R Smith, April 2004 : Power To The People? Pg5
Chapter 0
Introduction
“Never give children a chance of imagining that

anything exists in isolation. Make it plain from the
very first that all living is relationship.”
Aldus Huxley, Island
Msc Architecture: Advanced Environmental and Energy Studies, April 2004, James R Smith : Power To The People? Pg6
Chapter 0 – Introduction : Paradigm
0.0 Introduction – Paradigm
T he original idea for this thesis grew out of a seed planted ten
years ago on the island of Lombok, Indonesia. Although many
people there still lived in small grass huts, had no sanitary
appliances to speak of, and cooked using small fires on the
floor, they still beamed with the broadest smiles from faces that
had not learnt to hide their basic love and admiration for a fellow
human being.
The seed was germinated recently by the discovery of theories

of psychological adaptive behaviour and psychological
reactance, which state that if we’re unable to adapt to our
environment or lose control over an aspect of our lives we
become stressed. 1,2 It dawned that perhaps these people were
happy because they had nothing and no sophisticated society
telling them how to live, perhaps the route to happiness was through investing into the simple things
and forgetting everything else.
The villagers of Lombok live for the most part simple, sustainable and happy lives, or at least they did
before the advent of global tourism and the invasion of The West onto their island, bringing its brands
of greed, consumption and discontent.
This notion led to the idea that if sustainability & ecology are inherently linked, and sustainability &
contentment are inherently linked (by the definition of health), then surely, as suggested by the
example above, contentment & ecology must be linked? This thesis is essentially based on the
premise that they are, and in order to obtain sustainability and health and ecology we must focus all
of our energy and resources onto gaining contentment.
It is assumed that humans strive for contentment, which in the western world the majority does not
feel (the quantity of self-help books sold is testament to this). It is also assumed that people are less
content the less control they have over their lives - the worst form of punishment in this country is to
incarcerate people and take all control away from them.
Can the allure of happiness and contentment be promoted to encourage people to take greater
responsibility for their lives and demand more direct control? Will people be more content by doing
so? Will they begin to question other aspects of their lifestyles? Perhaps resources can be saved and
expended instead on the environment and society? Perhaps this process will reawaken them to the
natural world around them, and by reconnecting with it experience greater contentment by living
within its provision?
By nature the answers to these questions require a broad study of our current lifestyles, flicking
through any ‘green’ publication will suggest a myriad of environmental and social problems that
involve not only the scarcity of resources or the abundance of greenhouse gases but also ethical
issues of trade and sustainability of society. 2
Although the pursuits of tackling each issue individually is noble and important, it would seem that
unless the problems are considered holistically and root causes identified, a long lasting solution will
never be found. This is reinforced by the ideology of Gaia – the earth as one large ‘superorganism’,
for we are part of that organism and our practices and systems are all inextricably enmeshed with
each other and the earth as a whole. 3
Many people are not conscious of the environmental situation, they are unsighted by the mirrors of
politics and dazzled by the bright lights of the media which both ultimately seek to promote lifestyles
that maintain consumption. 4 Many of today’s mental, physical and emotional ills are directly caused
by these lifestyles and by the disconnection with nature and community that they incite - ‘Marketing
Chapter 0 – Introduction : Paradigm
stands accused of encouraging irresponsibility’ 5 of ‘elevating the importance of commodities to an unreal level’ 6
to levels of a completely altered reality that prescribes meaningless aspirations, false vanity and
comfortable prejudices. 7
The media is also responsible for marginalising environmentalism and fostering a negative green
image. Any discussion regarding environmental matters will invariably always include the views of a
sceptic, whereas conversations on the economy, industrialism, or consumerism rarely feature the
voice of dissent. 8
This negative image is not entirely the fault of the media

however. The environmental movement’s strategy has been a
‘habitual reliance on gloom, apocalyptic panic and the psychology of
blame’, 9 seeking to combat consumerism with repression,
frugality, and self-denial; techniques which may be having the
opposite effect – the worst thing to do with addicts is to shame
them. 10
The green movement has not only failed to control consumerism

but has been engorged by it, consumers being ‘encouraged to
purchase a vast array of ‘green’ or ‘ecofriendly’ products on the premise
that the more such products are purchased and consumed, the
healthier the planet’s ecological processes will become.’ 11
Environmentalism has become a consumer-product growth industry.
‘Environmentalism, like corporate capitalism, is increasingly forced to pitch its messages in consumerist terms to
win any widespread support’ 12 Environmentalists have been ignoring this issue for far too long,
demanding instead ‘an accommodation between the irreconcilable objectives of ever-increasing wealth and
environmental protection, an accommodation we call "sustainable development"’. 13 Environmentalism needs
to change tack.
T he developed world is slowly realising the full scale of the environmental problem that it has
created. No matter how many wind farms it builds or how efficient it makes its transport the problems
are likely to persist, and there may be more fundamental changes required.
Capitalism can never be fully sustainable: it relies wholly on consumption (using up) and creates
wealth for the few at the cost of planetary, societal, and human wellbeing.
Consumption must be confronted. Forces that seek to individualise the responsibility for
environmental degradation must be confronted. Current mainstream green attempts are flawed –
they are based within a capitalist realm that cannot possibly be sustainable, and must be confronted.
There is a need to carefully examine our western lifestyle about which so many the World over are
obsessed. Imagining that there will be a sudden widespread abandoning of western philosophy is
naïve: we must seek more subtle ways of persuading people to take on the responsibility of
environmental and social decay.
T his thesis seeks to identify that full physical, emotional and mental health, for planet, society and
populace, is at the heart of sustainability and that these factors are not being recognised in
contemporary western culture, leading to the environmental and social degradation we see around
us.
General practices of current western culture are examined, although books and articles referenced
are predominately written by UK and US authors.
Chapter 1
Aim : Sustainability
“If the qualities associated with commodities are

privileged in an economy, and if economic rather
than social or democratic forces dominate a
society, then over time, more and more of that
society’s attention, resources, creativity,
enthusiasm, and so on will be directed toward the
production and reproduction of those qualities. At
the same time, qualities associated with lower
commodity potential will become increasingly
underdeveloped in comparison.”
Jack Manno, Commoditisation: Consumption

Efficiency and an Economy of Care and Connection.
Chapter 1 – Aim : Sustainability
1.1 Definition
sustain /s ’steIn/ v.tr. 1 support, bear the weight of, esp for a long period. 2 give strength to: encourage,
support. 3 (of food) give nourishment to. 4 endure, stand; bear up against. 5 undergo or suffer (defeat or injury
etc.). 6 (of a court etc.) uphold or decide in favour of (an objection etc.). 7 substantiate or corroborate (a
statement or charge). 8 maintain or keep (a sound, effort etc) going continuously. 9 continue to represent (a
part, character etc.) adequately. sustainable adj. sustainedly adv. sustainer n. sustainment n. [Oxford
English Dictionary]
The current buzzword when talking about environmental issues is seemingly ‘sustainability’. It is a
word that, through a number of careful definitions, has enabled environmentalists, economists, and
socialists to start talking seriously together about the key issues that are having a detrimental effect
to the planet on which we all subsist, and the communities in which we live.
This can only be seen as a good thing, a major breakthrough even: anything that has implemented
ecologists to secure ongoing widespread and serious debate of environmental and social issues on
the political agenda is as an important step toward the full realisation of the inherent ideals within
sustainability as any other, and certainly any that have come before.
However it is argued that in order to involve all major ideologies in the initial concept, its definition
was ambiguous to the point of futility, 1 and since inception the interested parties have taken the
kernel of sustainability and evolved it separately to meet their own interests with varying regard for
the whole picture.
Perhaps a re-evaluation of the term ‘sustainability’ is required, and an idea as to what a sustainable
world would truly be like, globally, locally and individually, from environmental, social, and economic
perspectives.
T he General Assembly of the United Nations established the World Commission on Environment
and Development in 1983 in order to look at critical environmental and development issues and to
propose global solutions. Madam Gro Harlem Brundtland, prime minister of Norway, was appointed
to head the commission and ‘The Brundtland Commission’ published its final report, Our Common
Future, in 1987.
The report has become incredibly influential, and at the base of much of today’s environmental
discourse. The definition of sustainable development described within the report has therefore
become the most widely touted and universally accepted:
‘Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their own needs’. 2
The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), also known as the
Earth Summit, held in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992, provided further definition:
‘Human beings are at the centre of concern for sustainable development. They are entitled to a healthy and
productive life in harmony with nature’ ‘...the primary health needs of the world’s population are integral to the
achievement of the goals of sustainable development.’ 3
Central to the earliest definitions of sustainable development were the ideas of health, production,
and of harmony with the natural world.
1.2 Interpretation
Since the launch of the sustainability concept (and the Agenda 21 initiative), governments, councils,
commissions, policy-makers, organisations and individuals the world over have been keen to show
their understanding of the core principles involved, and have produced reams of official literature to
prove their commitment and to offer credible frameworks for solutions. 4
According to M. Jacobs (1993) there are three core elements of sustainable development, which
generally follow the 3-legged stool principle: 5
• Environmental considerations must be entrenched in economic policy-making
• Social equity must be incorporated as an inescapable commitment
• ‘Development’ does not simply mean ‘growth’ as measured by gross national product. It
implies qualitative as well as quantitative improvement.
It is implied that each element is equally important and should therefore be treated equally.
Interpretation of the original Brundtland report however has been as varied as those bodies keen to
champion the crusade of sustainability, and each has weighted the three crucial elements above
differently.
Some stay on economically safe ground – ‘Sustainable development is a program to change the process of
economic development so that it ensures a basic quality of life for all people, and protects the ecosystems and
community systems that make life possible and worthwhile.’ 6, whilst some are aware of deeper ideologies-
‘Sustainable development must be more than merely protecting the environment: it requires economic and social
change to improve human wellbeing while reducing the need for environmental protection.’ 7 and others
egalitarian principles- ‘Sustainable development is a dynamic process which enables all people to realise their
potential, and to improve their quality of life, in ways which simultaneously protect and enhance the Earth's life
support systems.’ 8
T he UK government suggests that at the heart of sustainability

‘..is the simple idea of ensuring a better quality of life for everyone, now
and for generations to come.‘ 9
It admits that ‘although the idea is simple, the task is substantial’ and
suggests four objectives that need to be met at the same time,
in the world as a whole: 10
• Protection of the environment: ‘We must act to limit global

environmental threats, such as climate change; to protect
human health and safety from hazards such as poor air quality
and toxic chemicals; and to protect things which people need or
value, such as wildlife, landscapes and historic buildings.’ 11
• Social progress & equity: ‘Everyone should share in the benefits of increased prosperity and a clean
and safe environment.’ It admits that there must be improvements in access to services, social
exclusion, and poor health caused by poverty, poor housing, unemployment and pollution. It
also admits that ‘our needs must not be met by treating others, including future generations and people
elsewhere in the world, unfairly.’ 12
• Prudent use of natural resources: It does not advocate abandoning the use of non-renewable
resources like oil and gas, but does emphasise the need to use them efficiently and for
replacement technology to be developed ‘in due course’. It also suggests that renewable
resources must be used in environmentally safe ways. 13
• Maintenance of ‘high and stable levels’ of economic growth and employment, so that ‘everyone
can share in high living standards and greater job opportunities’: In the most detailed section the UK
government is anxious to point out that ‘the UK is a trading nation in a rapidly changing world’
which in order to prosper must ensure that high quality goods and services are produced ‘that
consumers throughout the world want, at prices they are prepared to pay.’ To achieve this it suggests
that the UK workforce is educated with skills, businesses are ready to invest, and a
supporting infrastructure is in place ‘for the 21st century.’ 14
T he World Health Organisation (WHO) clearly sees its role as

emphasising ‘the importance of the health aspect of sustainable
development’ when advising governments, city councils and other
organisations. It sees sustainable development as ‘the process of
improving the quality of human life’, and that ‘human health and
sustainable development are inextricably linked.’ 15
It takes to its heart the first principle of the Rio Declaration for
Environment and Development that human beings are at the
centre of concerns for sustainable development: ‘Health is
important not only for how it lengthens life and improves its quality – it is
also an important contributor to economic and social development.’ 16
The WHO Healthy Cities network aims to eradicate poverty, as it sees it as the biggest threat to
health, and ill health as a big threat to social and economic development. The WHO Healthy Cities
network is a core partner of the European Sustainable Cities and Towns Campaign, which promotes
the development of Local Agenda 21 plans throughout Europe. 17
T he United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has a sustainable
development agenda that purports egalitarian issues, seeing sustainability ‘linked as much with notions
of fairness’ as with economics or environmental awareness:
‘Sustainable development involves the natural sciences and economics, but it is primarily a matter of culture. It is
connected with values people cherish and with the ways in which they perceive their relationship with others.’ ‘It
reflects and promotes a quest for unity, a respect for multiculturality, acceptance of diversity and integrative
responses to the complex problems we are obliged to face.’ 18
UNESCO is aware of the urgent need to develop better relations

between peoples and between people and places ‘the foundation
and nourishing source of human existence’ and realise that we must
acknowledge ‘the relationship between human needs and the natural
environment’ to the extent that the environment ‘cannot be
protected in a way that leaves half of humanity in poverty.’ 19
It also forwards a new element to the debate, that of ethical

development, in order to ‘place a system of values and ethics at the
centre of society's concerns’ which upholds the ‘importance of local
communities and their ties with the entire Earth’ and to ‘instil in the
minds of all people a conviction of the values for peace in such a way as
to promote the creation of new lifestyles and living patterns’. 20
1.3 Appraisal
Since its inception as a global ideal, the definition and meaning of sustainability has been moulded
and shaped into whatever form is best suited to the intentions of the respective organisation.
The WHO’s promotion of sustainable issues are generally health led, UNESCO’s by virtue of their
mandate are concerned with community, culture and egalitarian matters. The UK government is
principally concerned with the UK economy, and thus favours economic growth, job opportunities,
production, business, and trade – any government who subsidises and promotes the aviation
industry to the extent that it does cannot be too concerned with environmental sustainability. 21
Some organisations favour the global, environmental suggestions of the original definition, some give
most credence to social aspects, some are primarily concerned with economics and pay only
minimum deference to the other two facets, whilst a cornucopia of others give weight to all three in
varying amounts.
The planet, its peoples and their practices, is an incredibly complex system of complex systems. The
likelihood of one unbiased body being universally given a remit to look at the whole picture and
advise of the best method to go forward is completely unlikely, and so it makes logical sense for
different bodies to take on different aspects of the sustainable development plan.
Unfortunately however we do not live in a world of equals, if we did perhaps there would be no need
for ‘sustainable development’, and it is foolish to think that the three elements within the sustainability
realm will be treated, or invested in, equally.
Our western world is ruled by commerce and commerce will always favour ideas that favour it. 22
Those who advocate ideas that may be detrimental to commerce have little chance to be heard
above the din of those with the most powerful voices: the multi-national companies, the governments
they steer, and the agencies that act on behalf of one or both.
Indeed in most current definitions, understandings and reports,

the concepts of sustainability encourage ‘modes of thinking that
neither question nor respond to the underlying forces driving the
escalation of needs and desires around the world’ 23 which is not
really surprising when one considers that ‘large corporations are
ironically the dominant or only voices speaking out on environmental
and political issues’ because they are the only ones in a position
to. 24
It has been suggested that the present emphasis on sustainable

development is a ‘corporate-friendly surrogate’ for a true analysis of
the causes of, and solutions to, environmental and social
problems, and that sustainability is ‘powerfully promoted by
corporate interests precisely because it does not impinge upon profit-
orientation’. 25
It is worth mentioning that the Brundtland report continues after

its well-used definition to accept the need for a 5- to 10-fold
increase in world industrial output as essential for sustainable
development – from its very inception therefore ‘industrial
output’ has remained a central and untouchable tenet at the
heart of discussions on ‘sustainability’.
Industrial output, consumption, over-production, call it what you will, is fundamentally and inherently
unsustainable, 26 an economy-centric sustainable development plan is a paradox; it can only fail. Our
current political and social systems are so completely biased toward capitalist economics that
economy-centric plans will be favoured and will fail.
‘Compromise, in corporate terms, is failure. Success is defined only in terms of profitability.’ 27
1.4 Summary Communal
Sustainable development has, since its inception as

Economy
a global concept designed to heal the world’s
maladies, been successful in ensuring discourse
between numerous organisations and their publics.
Ec
Economics
ity
olo
an
gy
Urb
Organisations seeking to extol the virtues of
Culture
sustainability are as numerous as the definitions
Co
y
sm
log
olo
cio
ascribed to the term ‘sustainable development’, and
En
gy
So
viro
ty
to the whole concept of sustainability.
cie
nm
So
ent
Theology
Glo
ua
ivid
bal
Sustainability requires sustainable development on
Ind
global, local & personal levels. For it to truly exist
there must be balanced investment into economic,
environmental and social realms through the sieve
of our cultural and ecological expectations- ‘The Figure 1 - The Healthy Rose
interdependence of humans and the environment

Communal
necessitates a refusal of the obsessive pursuit of any
single development or environmental objective to the
detriment of others.’ 28 Economy
The definitions of sustainable development that are
Ec
given most weight however are those touted by the
olo
ity
Econ
gy
Urban
omics
most powerful. The most powerful in our society are
economists and industrialists, 29 and so it is their
ty
Socie
Co
Culture
definitions, with considerable leaning toward y
log
sm
En
cio
olo
v
profitability, that become most developed and
ir
So
gy
onm
ent
incorporated – this fundamentally implies unequal Theology
investment into the three key areas, to the detriment
l
ua
Glo
of society and the environment, and since all three
ivid
bal
rely on each other, as in the three-legged stool
Ind
allegory, this is clearly unsustainable.

Figure 2 - The Unhealthy Rose
Figures 1 and 2 attempt to describe this concept graphically. Figure 1 ‘The Healthy Rose’ is healthy
and sustainable because time, energy and resources have been equally invested, into each petal,
filtering out from the cultural centre.
Figure 2 ‘The Disfigured Rose’ has become ugly and gnarled and ultimately cannot be sustained.
Investment has not been equal. The Disfigured Rose is a representation of our western civilisation
that invests disproportionately into the economic realm, and the sciences that have a bearing on that
realm, to the detriment of sciences such as cosmology and theology, which inform our understanding
of environment and society, which as a result wither and eventually die.
Each rose is rooted in, draws its energy from, and blossoms into the combined individual, communal
and global realm.
It is the task of the environmentalist, and the ecologist, and the aim of this thesis, to investigate the
nature and cause of the imbalance of investment in our society, and how it may be addressed from
inside the reality of our culture and current economic system.
Chapter 2
Diagnosis : Poor Health
“The twin voices of this demon could hardly

present a greater contrast in scale and type, yet
they speak the same language and cannot be
resisted for very long. The first is the desolated
cry of wounded life inside our unconscious minds
and bodies; the second is the devastation outside
in the environment. For the wound inside us is the
same wound we behold before us in the world.”
David Edwards, Free To Be Human

Chapter 2 – Aim : Full Health
2.1 Definition
health /hel?/ n. 1 the state of being well in body or mind. 2 a person’s mental or physical condition (has poor
health). 3 soundness, esp. financial or moral (the health of the nation). 4 a toast drunk in someone’s honour.
health center… health certificate… health farm… health food… health service… health visitor…
healthful adj. conducive to good health; beneficial. healthfully adv. healthfulness n.
healthy adj. (healthier, healthiest) 1 having, showing, or promoting good health. 2 beneficial, helpful. (a
healthy respect for). healthily adv. healthiness n. [Oxford English Dictionary]
Chapter 1 proposed that health is central to the concept of sustainability – healthy people = healthy
communities = healthy planet. Again in the words of the Rio Declaration, 'human beings are at the centre
of concerns for sustainable development. They are entitled to a healthy and productive life in harmony with
nature.’ 1
Chapter 1 also suggested that investment into environment, economy and society is skewed
massively in favour of economy, and yet ‘health is an important stimulus to economic activity.’ 2 One would
think that economists would promote better health, however ‘the contemporary economic system is
stressing societies at the individual, family, community, and national levels’ 3 not to mention globally.
The definition of health, formulated in the Constitution of the World Health Organisation (1946) is:
‘Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or
infirmity. The enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is one of the fundamental rights of every
human being, without distinction of race, religion, political belief, economic or social condition. ’ 4
Health, as an essential part of sustainability, shares a similar holistic necessity – we are not healthy
until we are completely healthy - physically, mentally and emotionally. Capitalism excels at meeting
demands with high commodity value and profit margins to match 5 and in the industrialised world we
are able to turn to increasingly sophisticated medical procedures, interventions and drugs in order to
treat or prevent physical ailments, injury or disease. 6 Preventive techniques such as immunization
and screening are deemed to be of prime importance the world over in making and keeping
individuals physically healthy, and vast sums of time, money and energy are invested to that end 7 -
but what of our mental and emotional health?
Health is intrinsic to every petal of the Rose (chapter 1), and for conceptual purposes each petal
alludes to a mode of health, emotional health to the environment, physical health to economy, mental
health to society. At present we are investing resources with a huge bias toward economy to the
detriment of our emotional and mental health; by focusing on these areas we can address the
environmental and social woes that prevent us from being truly sustainable and truly healthy, ‘any
systematic attempt to improve health has to embrace action at all levels.’ 8
Figure 3 describes a social model of health that considers all of the factors that affect the health of
individuals and communities. The first layer is concerned with an individual’s way of life that may
conversely harm or benefit health. The next layer incorporates social and community influences,
which can either provide support or exclude and denounce. The third layer encompasses physical
factors such as housing or working conditions and the access to facilities and services. Overarching
all of these are the factors that affect whole societies, the economic, social and environmental
conditions. This model suggests that cultural factors are within this band, although it may be argued
that culture informs on each level.
It can be seen that ‘lifestyle and household decisions shape health, but these decisions are constrained by the
economic and social opportunities, income, education and quality of the environment experienced by the
household members’ 9, and that all of these things need to be taken into account if we are to achieve
full health.
It is the purpose of this chapter to argue that our world is not healthy on many levels, and to identify
the symptoms, causes and effects that this poor health is having on our planet, our communities and
ourselves.
The subject has been split into three and will examine health on a global, community, and personal
levels - although by nature the topics described within cross those boundaries. Detriments to our
physical health - air quality or sanitation for example – are considered symptoms of over-investment
into economy rather than under-investment in environment and society, and thus may be expected to
clear up or be significantly reduced, once investment is balanced and sustainability attained.
Figure 3 – The Main Determinants Of Health
[Whitehead, M. & Dahlgren, G. What can be done about inequalities in health? The lancet, 338: 1059–1063
(1991).]
2.2 Global (Environmental) Health
T here is no denying the physical effects that mankind is having on this planet. The evidence to
support the global warming argument is staggering. Resources are being degraded, and that
degradation is unequal and unethical: 20% of the population consumes 80% of resources. In addition
our air, water and soil are being polluted, ozone is being depleted, land is being desertified,
biodiversity is declining and species extinction is happening faster than anything the world has
experienced for the past 65 million years. Wars continue to destroy people, environments, and
livelihoods. Seas are warming, ice caps are melting, and freak weather is causing misery to millions
and trillions of pounds worth of damage (some even believe the insurance industry may be the
planet’s unlikely saviour!). Britain is on the brink of an ice age and Eskimo peoples (Inuit, Inupiaq and
Yupik) face eradication. 10 None of this is healthy.
The purpose of this section however is not to identify what so many other scholars have done so
successfully before, but to suggest that the very reason we abuse our environment in such a manner
is a symptom of our illness, and the very act of abusing our environment makes us worse still,
whereas connection with that natural environment can have positive affects on our wellbeing.
It may be argued that as we have developed as a race so we have increasingly distanced ourselves
from nature, and rather than consider ourselves an intrinsic part of it we see it as separate and often
try to control it instead. We are the only species that has gone beyond evolving for ‘competitive
advantage’ and developed such things as the arts and religion - ‘The modern city represents our most
daring attempt to live “beyond” nature as its detached observer and master.’ 11
During this ‘development’ we have lost awareness of instincts that we once had. 12 An Amazonian
tribesman is very much part of and respectful to the environment on which he completely depends
unlike post-industrial man. We also had a more symbiotic relationship with our environment once,
and developed deep neurological perceptions for managing those relationships, systems that remain
with us but that we have seriously neglected - ‘indigenous cultures have a lot to offer our understanding of
sanity and madness in this one significant respect-- that there has to be a balance between the psyche and the
natural world around us’ 13
This idea forms the basis of ecopsychology, which suggests that

our behaviour in disrespect of these functions is akin to a
neurosis - ‘A culture that can do so much to damage the planetary
fabric that sustains it, and yet continues along its course unimpeded, is
mad with the madness of a deadly compulsion that reaches beyond our
own kind to all the brute innocence about us.’ 14
As a race we have become ecologically unconscious, we are

connected at a very deep and basic level to our planet but we
increasingly disregard that connection. A left-handed man taught
by the 1940’s education system was forcibly made to write right-
handed. He bit his nails all his life until he realised the injustice
he had suffered, ‘Repression Hurts. We call that repression neurosis’.
15
One wonders what is the equivalent of our societies nails.
The ‘deep ecological’ movement suggests that this repression of natural feelings and responses may
cause many of the problems we see in our children and teenagers. Our society values scholastic and
occupational skills as we grow up but often neglects our natural skills and intelligence. By
reconnecting with nature we can gain greater self-worth and confidence, ‘our alarming negative social
and environmental indicators show that we suffer because we are nature deficient’ 16
There are mainstream testaments to this notion – horse riding and swimming with dolphins are well-
respected therapies for autistic children, and studies suggest that pets can reduce minor illness, cut
delinquent behaviour in adolescents and improve the morale and mental health of people in
residential care. 17 ‘There's even research to suggest that pets can dramatically increase the chances of long-
term recovery from a heart attack. Simply stroking an animal can reduce stress and lower blood pressure.’ 18
Green spaces also have many benefits beyond the effects on radiation, temperature regime, air
quality, sound absorption and soil erosion that replacing vegetation with roads may have. 19 Green
spaces have fantastic restorative effects on our health and sense of wellbeing 20 - ‘such moments are a
reconnecting-with-nature (RWN) factor whose absence from our personal lives produces our unsolvable personal
and global problems.’ 21
As we have retreated indoors so we have brought nature in with us, and research shows there are
many psychological and physical benefits of indoor plants. One such study compared two large
groups of people who occupied individual offices, one group had extensive plants in their offices and
the other had none. 22 ‘Complaints of neuro-psychological symptoms, such as fatigues, headache and
concentration problems were reduced by 23% ’ 23 there was a similar difference in physical complaints.
Our relationship with nature must be re-evaluated, it forms a far more important part of us than
perhaps we realise, and our neglect of it is stressing us. At present ‘When we act destructively with
regard to Western people and property, our society calls it war. When we act destructively with regard to nature
and nature-connected peoples, we often call it progress’ 24 which in-line with the ideas of sustainability and
full-health, must fundamentally change.
2.3 Local (Community) Health
T his section will investigate the state of our community health, not
in terms of physical aspects such as poor housing or urban air
quality, but in the more psychological and emotional conditions of
our urban culture.
We are by nature a social animal, social engagement is vital to our

health and wellbeing, when we mix socially we feel happier and
when we feel happier we express a greater desire to mix socially.
25
- ‘Almost 70% of Americans say that they would be more satisfied with
their lives if they were able to spend more time with family and friends.’ 26.
The places where we congregate are therefore important catalysts
to our social behaviour - ‘The condition of the urban environment and
how it is managed and used by its inhabitants is fundamental to human
health and wellbeing’. 27
The WHO healthy cities project, is attempting to develop healthy urban planning principles and
practices as priority. Its aim is to refocus urban planning on health and the quality of life – ‘If cities are to
become healthy and attractive places to live in the future, it is vital that urban planners in every country focus on
people and how they use buildings and developments, rather than on the buildings themselves.’ 28
Our cities are not healthy. Many of the problems in cities today relate to physical conditions such as
poor housing, poverty, and pollution, although a great many more relate to inequity, lack of access to
goods and services, and a lack of community - ’lack of social cohesion, unemployment and crime are all
steadily increasing in most of Europe’s cities‘ 29 which may be seen to stem from an under-investment in
society.
Social cohesion is breaking apart, community spaces are more desolate and households more private
than ever before. Home-based time is spent watching television, playing computer games or surfing the
web. 30 Walking, talking and playing in the street have been deterred by noise and danger to become
distant memories that 70’s kids share on nostalgic emails.
Perhaps it is this that is having a massive effect on us - ‘A 25-year-old today is between three and 10 times
more likely to be suffering from major depression than in 1950. A normal modern [western] child would be mentally
ill by 1950s standards - answering the same questions, the average child in the 1980s reported as much anxiety as
child psychiatric patients in the 1950s.’ 31
Indeed depression has become a major health hazard of modern urban culture. According to The
Mental Health Foundation - ‘Mental Illness affects 1 in 4 of the UK adult population at any point in time and kills
four times as many as road accidents. It is as prevalent as heart trouble and three times more common than
cancer.’ 32
Historically, problems like depression and violence, have been attributed to race, poverty, learnt
behaviour or most recently genetics, and yet the evidence that ‘there were just 6,000 crimes of violence
against the person in 1950; in 1998 there were 258,000’ 33 suggests responsibility lies far beyond these
causes combined. ‘In 1857, the last year that an act of parliament was required to get a divorce, there were five. It
was only after the Second World War that the rate rocketed, from 12% of marriages to today's 42%.’ 34
Scientific evidence suggests that ‘the earlier a child is neglected or abused, or had parents who divorced or
suffered financial misfortune, the greater the likelihood of later disturbance’ 35 and yet parents are generally
spending less time with their kids and more time on their careers. Their nannies pacify their wards with
the television, which is known to spread the concept and glorification of violence to impressionable
minds that further ensures later disturbance. 36
Perhaps it would be worth it if our careers and extra earnings were

satisfying us, but they are not - ‘happiness has not risen in western
nations in the last 50 years, despite massive increases in wealth’. 37
There is evidence to suggest that all this extra work is futile - ‘an
extra pound for the rich has almost no impact on their happiness, and
working that sixtieth or seventieth hour in a week to earn it makes them
unhappy’ 38
Money does matter: people earning under around £10,000 are

permanently happier when paid more; people are unhappier when
they suffer from an income drop that they have become used to;
poverty does not create happiness: 39 ‘but while poverty does not
cause happiness, there appears to be some evidence that wealth causes
misery…. it is surely fair to say that most of us suffer from subclinical
neuroses, anxiety or a profound discomfort with ourselves.’ 40
Some rich people are happier - not because they are wealthy, but because they are wealthier than
others, 41 ‘study after study shows that it is not absolute wealth that we care about once we reach a threshold of
income, but how we sit in relation to others.’ 42 As Karl Marx put it: 'A house may be large or small; as long as the
neighbouring houses are likewise small, it satisfies all the social requirements of a residence. But let there arise
next to the little house a palace and the little house shrinks to a hut.’ 43
Keeping up with the Joneses is stressing us and our communities out. Beyond a certain point, greater
affluence does not increase happiness or mental health - ‘not only are we no happier, we are actually far
more prone to mental illness… advanced capitalism, []…is making us ill’ 44 as well as making our society and
environment ill.
2.4 Personal Health
‘Stand in Liverpool Street station on a Friday evening, while some of

Britain's richest people are going home to enjoy the fruits of their labours.
Do they look happy? Stress oozes from them like sweat, anger shudders
beneath their skin. No retail therapy, no holiday in the Caribbean could
restore the damage done by this self-consumption. The drive to make
more money than you could possibly need, to buy more goods than you
could possibly enjoy, is a species of mental illness. Success in this system
brings not happiness, but, at best, an alleviation of the pain required to
sustain it.’ 45
T he quote above has been included because it eloquently sums

up our modern society. This section will not examine what is
making us depressed and unhappy any further, but what makes us
happy, since happiness is an important factor of wellbeing, and
wellbeing an important factor of health.
It is clear to see on our faces come home-time that we’re not generally a happy bunch, and indeed the
statistics supports this - ‘four out of 10 of us think life has become worse in the past five years.. twelve million of
us are on anti-depressants’. 46 What is it that the Ethiopians have that we are missing?
There is no worldwide accepted, standardised definition of happiness but studies have suggested that
there are three key components of happiness: positive emotion (joy), satisfaction, and the absence of
depression or anxiety. What makes us happy has even been summarised in the following equation:
Happiness = P + (5xE) + (3xH)
Where P stands for Personal Characteristics, (outlook on life, adaptability and resilience), E stands for
Existence (e.g. health, financial stability and friendships), and H represents Higher Order needs (such
as self-esteem, expectations, ambitions and sense of humour). 47
Until recently psychological books and papers on depression outnumbered those on happiness by 17:1,
however that is now changing and more people are interested in the study of positive emotion, called
“subjective wellbeing” or SWB. 48
This neglect of such an important subject may be in part due to the fact that unlike negative emotions,
such as anger and fear that may motivate specific behaviour, positive emotions require no further action
at all. Positive emotions are important because they lead to play and exploration, and result in the
development of further skills – ‘the biological benefit in each case is the building of resources, physical
intellectual or social ‘ 49
Positive emotions are also ‘the subjective side of rewards, given when biologically valuable activities are
performed’ 50 the most obvious examples being the enjoyment we get from having sex or eating.
‘Sociability is also biologically valuable because it leads to cooperation and mutual help’ 51 processes we find
enjoyable.
Generally things that are bad for us, our societies and our planet, make us unhappy or depressed,
whereas things that are good for us, and our biological survival, make us happy and satisfied.
Studies have revealed that the most common sources of joy are: eating; social activities and sex;
exercise and Sport; drugs; success and social approval; use of skills; music, arts and religion; weather
and environment; and rest and relaxation. 52
The most common sources of satisfaction, a cognitive appraisal of our lives, are: health; work and
employment; social relationships; leisure; housing; education; and money, although it must be stressed
that ‘a number of researchers on wellbeing have concluded that objective factors are of little importance’ 53 a view
supported by findings that there is a low correlation between income and satisfaction.
It can be seen that we have access to all of the sources of joy and satisfaction, and yet - ‘at best,
people's satisfaction with life is stable, but most of the data suggests it is actually going down,' 54
Prof Daniel Kahneman, the Nobel prize winner for economics but better known for his work on ‘hedonic
psychology’, has concluded that there are seven key factors to happiness: mental health; satisfying and
secure work; a secure and loving private life; a safe community; freedom; and moral values.
Perhaps it is in these more complex aspects in which we are experiencing some deficiency in the
western world, every single one of which can be seen to be non-material and generally not supplied by
our economy.
Interestingly, in these godless, hedonistic times, where we clamour for self-help books and the only real
guide to moral behaviour is the media, people who go to church are happier than those who don’t, 55
that ‘those with a coherent philosophy of life - whether believing in God or a systematic approach to exploring their
spirituality - are happier than those without any method of influencing their mood’. 56
Before we all go evangelical it must be borne in mind that ‘the psychological downer after coming off God is
worse than that of coming off most drugs’ 57
2.5 Summary
One would imagine that the virtual elimination in western society of most fatal diseases, our rising life-
expectancy and falling mortality would be cheering us up - 'objectively, our health is better on almost every
count but this doesn't translate into people feeling any healthier. People are more aware of their health, so they get
more anxious about it.' 58 Nic Marks, of the New Economics Foundation, suggests that the success of
medicine has meant a rise in standards and we are now shocked when a life is lost - ‘death was
unavoidable - now it is unacceptable.’ 59
Perhaps we don’t feel any healthier quite simply because we are becoming more ill.
Sustainability requires us, our communities, and our planet to be fully healthy. Full health means being
healthy on physical, mental and emotional levels. We may have improved our physical health no-end
but what of our mental and emotional health?
It has been shown in this chapter that our disconnection from the natural world has resulted in an
ignorance and arrogance that is allowing us to destroy our own environment, which is not only affecting
our physical health, but is also damaging our mental health – conversely positive experiences with the
environment have positive effects on our health.
‘As the science of ecology matures, psychologists may come to see that our sympathetic bond with the natural
world is a defining feature of human nature, the one aspect of the psyche that has been most cruelly repressed by
urban industrial culture.’ 60
It has also been shown that social interaction is vitally important to our health and yet our towns and
cities are becoming more isolationalist. The crime and violence often touted as causing this cannot be
solely attributed to poverty or genetics and may also be due to mental health problems caused by
repression and neglect, that may in some part be due to our obsession with the attainment of wealth,
even though - ‘the evidence is clear: our wellbeing depends on cooperation and the public good, not personal
enrichment’ 61 and that ‘as we become richer, we become less content with ourselves.’ 62
It is contentment for which we strive, the thing that we ironically believe wealth can give us. The big
challenge is how to achieve contentment without destroying the environment in the process, ‘the solution
lies in getting more with less, not more stuff but more satisfaction, not quantity but quality.’ 63 and realising that
much of that satisfaction and quality can come from interacting with our natural environment and
society.
Culturally we aspire to High-Fliers, ‘those executives earning gigantic salaries do not find happiness; instead,
they make many more of us unhappy because of the sheer unfairness of the emerging pattern of rewards.’ 64 The
things that make us happy cannot be bought or sold and yet those are the things that we neglect, to the
point where we know only how to find the cures for our illnesses from bottles, books or supermarket
shelves – the commoditisation of health.
To return briefly to the religious reference at the end of the last section - ‘today the atheists of industrial
consumer ‘progress’ torture the entire world – from the ozone layer down – in the name of their certainties, their
Gods: meaningless and self-gratification as the only answers to a desperate life.’ 65
It now remains to investigate the size, shape, and reason for our obsession with economy and
consumer progress, and our disconnection from society and environment.
Chapter 3
Affliction : Disconnection
“…modern consumerism, having eaten the heart

out of the environment, will become a
‘supernova’, collapsing under the weight of its
own frivolity.”
David Edwards, Free To Be Human

Chapter 3 – Affliction : Disconnection
3.1 Definition
disconnect \disk n’nekt\ vb. (tr.) to undo or break the connection of or between (something, as a plug and
socket). -, discon’nection n.
disconnected \disk n’nektid\ adj. 1. not rationally connected; confused or incoherent. 2. not connected or
joined. [Oxford English Dictionary]
It is suggested that a massive imbalance of investment into the economic sector is preventing us
from achieving the ideals of sustainability and health previously considered, to the detriment of our
environment and our society – ‘Economic growth is seen as good, yet it makes many in the rich world
miserable.’ 1 Why though, if we are unsustainable and so unhealthy, haven’t we done something about
it? ‘The earth is dying, yet those who spread this message are treated as dangerous and mad’. 2
Elihu Root, US Secretary of State form 1905 to 1909 gave an interesting insight into the mechanics
of capitalism: ‘The people of the United States have for the first time accumulated a surplus of capital beyond
the requirements of internal development… Our surplus energy is beginning to look beyond our own borders,
throughout the world, to find opportunity for the profitable use of our surplus capital…’ 3
Investment into economy is not all bad; there is a percentage that would exist if full sustainability
were achieved, investment into medicine or more efficient engines for example. There is however a
vast over-investment of energy, time and resources that would otherwise be spent on society and
environment.
T his chapter will examine some of the mechanics of how this surplus of investment is directed, and
how the tools of capitalism, the routes along which the massive over-investment into economy flows,
have disconnected us from the truth and from informing decisions made on our behalf.
‘Even if we were to forget the damage our growing economies inflict upon the environment, even if we were to
ignore the conflict between our greed and the fulfilment of other people's needs, we should be able to see that
economic growth in nations that are rich enough already is a disaster.’ 4
Once again the chapter is broken into three, and shall consider the dynamics of disconnection on
global, local, and personal scales, although as in the last chapter no concept is mutually exclusive to
any one scale but rather all exist on all scales.
3.2 Global Scale - Consumption/Consumerism
Our economic system relies on consumption. It is uncontrollably expansionist, focuses on

production-sided logic, and is dependant on ever-increasing throughput of energy and resources in
order to be considered successful. 5 Huge investments are made into technology to decrease the
costs of raw material and the value of output increased to maximise productivity. 6 Producers prefer
poor consumption efficiency, disposable products result in ever-increasing consumption and
therefore an ever-increasing dependency on greater production. 7
These ‘producers’ are the industrialists, the economists, those who direct the government.
Consumption like this becomes integral to economy - ‘Phase two of every industrial economy is the pay-off
when consumption becomes not simply a pleasure but a duty. The need to move the goods becomes so pressing
that ingenious methods must be invented to enhance the hunger for more.’ 8
In order that we answer our ‘duty of compulsive consumption’ 9 and keep the wheels of industry turning,
much of our lives (indeed our culture), become a collection of commodities to be consumed - ‘Our
lifestyle must be made increasingly complicated in order for our levels of consumption to be increased further’. 10
In the developed world it can be seen that ‘people are driven to purchase things they cannot afford, do not
need, do not understand or are ignorant of the source of’ 11 we are trapped on an eternal conveyor belt –‘It
seems we can never have enough; the product that yesterday would bring eternal happiness, is today mundane
and commonplace, and tomorrow will be obsolete and inadequate.’ 12
Even though constant shopping leads to debt and misery and damages the environment and our
communities, it is unlikely that government policy will be altered to curb consumer society, as has
been advised by the government‘s own sustainable development commission. 13 Consumerism is too
important for the economy, and the consumer is king.
T he notion of consumer sovereignty was conceived as an

essential part of neo-classical economics, and is central to our
industrial political economy. 14 Processes or products that
sustain consumption and production but are detrimental to
health, society or the environment are often justified by the
concept of consumer sovereignty, that the consumer’s demands
must be met – ‘it absolves nearly everyone of responsibility.’ 15
Indeed the second reason George Bush gave for not signing the
Kyoto agreement was that reducing emissions would raise
consumer prices (the first was that CO2 was not a pollutant),
and a raise of prices would offend the consumer, democracy
and therefore the American Dream. 16
The US, and most other countries in the developed world, defend industry by saying that it is simply
‘responding to consumer demand’ no matter what the effects of that response might be – the effects
become a problem of ethics, education or culture but never one of commerce. The $170million paid
annually for advertising in the US alone, not to mention the massive lobbying of government
suggests that consumption is more than simply a response, and most certainly a problem of
commerce. 17
The consumer and ‘the individualization of responsibility’ 18 continue to reign however, so much so
perhaps that - ‘the idea that we can make collective choices about the sort of society we want to live in has
become deeply unfashionable’ and coping with life itself ‘seem[s ] a question of personal choices, not
something which will be affected by broader political and social change.’ 19
We have become so disconnected with the processes and possibility of political and social change
that we imagine ‘an activity as simple, and seemingly as purely acquisitive as shopping may provide the
opportunity for making choices, asserting taste’. 20 This may be regarded as a pathetic attempt to exercise
our social power, particularly when one considers that our choices are not isolated acts of rational
decision making but instead heavily influenced attempts to find meaning, status and identity, or to
belong - ‘consumerism sells conformity to a way of life based on self-realisation through consumption.’ 21
Even counter-culture, attempts at non-conformism such as punk or grunge, have been commoditised
and sold back to us as alternative models for living. 22
Consumer sovereignty and the onus of responsibility on the individual have led to commoditisation.
Everything must be seen in terms of being able to be sold, and sold to the individual. Everything has
the potential of being ‘commoditised’; some goods and services have a high commodity potential
(HCP) whilst others have a low commodity potential (LCP). 23
Commodity potential depends on how easily an item may be alienable, standardizable, autonomous,
convenient and mobile. 24 Investment will always favour those items that display greater amounts of
these things, items that have the highest commodity potential; typically physical goods. The elements
of life that are harder to value, social relationships for example, are LCP goods and therefore largely
neglected by consumerism. 25
In an economy where HCP goods and services are seen as

privileged more and more time, energy and resources is
invested into HCP goods and services to the detriment of LCP
goods, our environment and society – ‘Commoditisation
depreciates social, psychological, and ecological values by reducing
them to one value, market price’. 26
Consumerism and commoditisation have led to a spectacular

array of goods and services being available to western
consumers - ‘Two decades ago the typical supermarket was stocked
with 5,000 different lines, but it now boasts 40,000 separate products,
including 400 brands of shampoo and nearly 100 different types of
toothbrush. While 20 years ago buying water may have seemed
absurd, Sainsbury's Leeds store now boasts a staggering 101 lines.’ 27
This unnecessary superabundance has in part been allowed to go unchecked due to the huge mental
and geophysical gulfs between consumer and the effects of consumption.
3.3 Local Scale – Distancing
T he government's sustainable development commission has suggested that people are contributing
to the neglect of public spaces by not using parks as much as they once did, because consumerism
has triumphed over a sense of civic pride. 28 It suggests that society has become so immersed in
consumerism that people do not know what to do with facilities that are not purchased – they have
become disconnected and distanced from their own community environment. 29
Americans are withdrawing from almost all significant forms of

civic engagement, and in the UK we are also too busy, too tired,
too cynical or too distracted to interact with our community and
form and foster enterprises and associations with the people
around us. 30 Our community spaces bristle with the threat of
crime and violence, perpetrated by ‘people almost twitching with
self-consciousness and lack of self-confidence, desperate to find some
status.’ 31
Perhaps the people in Southern Ethiopia (chapter 2) are happier

than we are because they have healthy social lives, ‘the more
wealth we possess, the more isolated we become. We must defend it,
and ourselves, against the intrusions of other people.’ 32
‘The rich lock themselves in and lock everyone else out’ and while our wealth has steadily increased so
have the numbers of those being imprisoned, ‘for both the secluded and the excluded, the fruits of
economic growth become a substitute for human interaction: we prefer watching TV than talking to our
neighbours.’ 33
T ypically, the Sustainable Development Commission’s report advocates parks categorising space
and then promoting to specific usage groups - commoditising public space, seeing it purely as a
consumption problem. 34
This is typical of much of today’s thinking as shown in the section above, ‘one must ask not just how the
commodities are produced but how they are consumed: how distribution, marketing, advertising, pricing, retailing,
and government policies and programs affect consumer demand.’ 35 and is also typical of much of today’s
social decline ‘We build shopping malls but let community playgrounds deteriorate’. 36
There are many direct links between consumer behaviour and social or environmental decline,
however they are often ‘shaded’ from the consumer who may react with incredulity when the links are
pointed out – ‘They found these concepts funny, I think, because they seemed so far away, so remote from the
sphere of their own considerations that anyone who could compare them in importance to the growth of their
industry had to be either joking or insane’ 37 such was the reaction of staff at the Society of Motor
Manufacturers and Traders when tackled about resource use and global warming.
Deep at the heart of consumerism ‘there are questions of ignorance’, people are simply unable to
‘conceptualise the circumstances which make an act of consumption possible’ 38 People are completely
unaware that there is so much affordable tea on their supermarket shelves because of the poor pay
and conditions of the Asian harvesters 39 - it is a problem of distance.
T he modern food industry perfectly displays the concepts of

commoditisation and distancing. We have so little idea of the
origins of our food, or the affects on the environment of our
choices, which are kept from us by the length of chain between
grower and eater, a chain that includes many other links en-
route. 40
Agriculture has become heavily commoditised. Both inputs and

outputs are generally HCPs - chemicals, seeds, machinery,
transport, branding, marketing, etc. This of course has led to
under investment in LCPs, such as local knowledge, soil
management, agronomy, or diverse crops with high mix of
nutrients. 41
This imbalance of investment has caused an imbalance of development which makes LCP methods
appear less capable than industrial agriculture – under investment has resulted in under production
which justifies further neglect. This vicious circle results in a reduction in agricultural and genetic
diversity. 42
Industrial agriculture uses 4 or 5 times as much input - energy, chemicals, transportation and
packaging – as organic farming and is incredibly inefficient in terms of investment against nutritional
value. Skilled labour is seen as expensive compared to other inputs and so is eliminated with the loss
of intimate, detailed, local ecological knowledge. 44
‘The most productive farming turns out to be small labour-intensive, gardenlike cultivation systems with mixed
crops, shifting cultivation, and a high degree of nutrient recycling’ 45, which produces up to 3 times as much
per unit area as industrial, energy and chemical-intensive, labour-light agriculture - ‘each calorie of food
we eat from high-input agriculture embodies several calories of fossil fuel energy’. 46
Poor farmers in the developing world are lured into growing cash crops, industrial agriculture ensues,
local economies, cultures and societies are ignored, and bio-diversity declines. Current agricultural
practices ‘contribute significantly to all the major environmental problems facing the world: global climate
change, loss of biological diversity, polluted and overdrawn water resources, spread of toxic chemicals, and air
pollution’ 46 not to mention issues of ethics and fair trade.
T his has been caused by commoditisation, but has been allowed to continue due to distancing -
‘Market expansion and factor mobility increase distance on many dimensions rendering ecologically informed and
ethically responsible decisions impossible.’ 47 We are simply unaware that any of this is taking place when
we buy our bananas from the Dominican Republic.
There are four different dimensions to the distancing problem:- geographical, cultural, bargain power,
and multiple agency. 48 The geographical dimension relates to physical distance, the cultural
dimension to community distance (farmers don’t get feedback from the end-users and vica versa),
bargaining power relates to issues of competition and monopoly, and multiple agency relates to the
number of people who get involved, importers for instance, between grower and eater. 49
As distance in any one or all of these dimensions increases so negative feedback loops break down,
those who are affected by decisions made by the few increase, environmental problems are
displaced and cost externalisation increases. 50
We remain blissfully unaware of any of these processes, reacting instead to meaningless logos on
the packaging of our bananas telling us to ‘Think about rubbish!’
3.4 Personal Scale - Media, Advertising
T he realm of economics relies heavily on consumerism, the consumer is King, and advertising is the
rather impartial King’s Counsel - ‘An advertising industry is created to stimulate consumption, lest the system
grind to a halt.’ 51
Advertising is an immense industry whose wanton expansion goes unchecked at the cost of our
environment - ‘its raison d’etre being to increase and diversify sales, it is directly in opposition to any attempt to
reduce throughput of resources’; 52 our society - 'In the playground, if you have the wrong type of training
shoes, then you are excluded’; 53 and the mental health of consumers, who are ‘trying to satisfy themselves
as fast as the advertisers can breed dissatisfaction.’ 54
As advertising further invades our space, so its messages are

harder to miss and yet the ethically dubious mechanics of its
methods seemingly go ignored - ‘this system has an interest in our
believing that we freely choose these goals. The mass of people firmly
believe they are pursuing their own happiness’. 55
‘Advertising does more than inspire us to purchase discrete products.. it

creates an entire environment of consumerism.’ 56 It tells us why we
must consume and how to go about it, and is a large consumer
itself, taking up ‘a large part of our public space and increasing
portions of our private space; it takes up media airwaves; it exhausts
our time, our passions, our energy, and even our mental health’ 57 as
well as displacing civic and social interaction.
Our whole society has become discontented, we are constantly being lured into buying in order to
emulate lifestyles that do not even exist, and when we fail to achieve that standard we buy more to
make us feel better – ‘skilful marketing people have manipulated us into a state of passive victimhood,
endlessly and aimlessly consuming ever-increasing amounts at the behest of an advertising industry which
creates false desires in us by making us believe that to purchase an object is to purchase paradise.’ 58
Advertising is ‘a process of creating desire, of progressively creating dissatisfaction’ 59 it must be, for when
we already have all the goods and services we need economic growth can only be stimulated by
creating new needs ‘Advertising creates gaps in our lives in order to fill them. We buy the products, but the
gaps remain.’ 60
With the advent of television and now the internet, advertising is

able to reach us anywhere, ‘the palace doesn't have to be next door
- it can be beamed into our living rooms. And the competition doesn't
stop with the three-bed semi; it applies to our car, our children's clothes,
even our bodies’. 61
Advertising breeds discontent, but it is when it dominates our

most powerful modes of communication it starts to seriously
affect us - ‘tried-and-true strategies of name branding and lifestyle
mass marketing mix with sophisticated technologies of communication
to create heretofore unimaginable powers of persuasion’ 62
Some call for greater public control over advertising but there is little chance of this ever happening in
a western world with liberal traditions that holds the values of free speech and free market so highly.
Indeed if Bhutan, high up in the Himalayas, can suffer as it has what chance have we?
Bhutan is a deeply traditional Buddhist kingdom, home to 700,000 people who have always lived
relatively isolated lives and whose governmental guiding principle is GNH, or gross national
happiness. Up until very recently Bhutan had never known western culture, advertising, or serious
crime, and then in June 1999 Bhutan became the last nation on earth to switch on the tele. 63
The full force of the world’s media suddenly bombarded Bhutan. Since then the small kingdom is
seeing for the first time broken families, school dropouts and other negative youth crimes. Drug
taking, shoplifting, burglary and violence have all escalated, and hitherto unheard of crimes such as
embezzlement and murder are on the rise. 64
Every week the letters page in the national newspaper, Kuensel is full of letters such as this - "Dear
Editor, TV is very bad for our country... it controls our minds... and makes [us] crazy. The enemy is right here with
us in our own living room. People behave like the actors, and are now anxious, greedy and discontent." 65
Bhutan’s king, who made the decision to turn on the tele - ‘underestimated the power of TV, perceiving it
as a benign and controllable force, allowing it free rein, believing that his kingdom's culture was strong enough to
resist its messages. But television is [] persuading a nation of novice Buddhist consumers to become
preoccupied with themselves, rather than searching for their self. 66
Although our society may be more media savvy than Bhutan, it can still be seen that television is
incredibly powerful, and has become utterly ingrained in western society - 'No TV smacks of radical anti-
consumerism,' according to Sonia Livingstone, professor of social psychology at the LSE, 'People
assume you have a wider agenda and don't like it. TV is the agenda-setting device. By not watching it, you are
saying, "We have to talk about something else". This is challenging.' 67
It seems that TV has become a social leveller, a pacifier of the

masses, ‘TV takes up more time in our lives than anything except work
and sleep - three hours a night on average, more than the other big-gun
pastimes - sex, eating, socialising, waiting in traffic - put together’ 68 and
therefore takes time and resources away from building
meaningful relationships and community and invests it on the
futility of media-driven aspirations.
Studies in the West are beginning to realise the devastating

power of TV, the American Association of Paediatrics says that
children shouldn't be exposed to TV in their first two years and
theories suggest that watching ‘too much’ TV stunts language
and social capability, and encourages attention deficit disorder. 69
And yet there is so little democratic access to broadcast on this massively powerful medium, so
powerful that advertisers realised its value long ago and priced the individual out of the market. Even
the owners of television stations, particularly in the states, make sure that no messages are
broadcast that may adversely affect them or their all-important corporate sponsors. 70
The industrialists that control our ideas of sustainable development control our media and therefore
control our minds.
3.5 Summary
T his chapter has investigated where the huge over-investment

into economy goes, and why if it is having such a great effect on
our health, society and planet aren’t we diverting that over-
investment elsewhere.
It has been shown that the modern industrial system in the

western world relies almost entirely on consumption, that we
must keep buying in order to keep producing. Production is what
is important; production efficiency counts for nothing. ‘From the
perspective of long-term ecological and social sustainability, the
[economic] model’s assumptions are not even close.’ 71
We cease to become public citizens but are referred to instead as consumers whenever economics
or business is discussed - ‘In large-scale economies, individuals experience a sense of alienation; large and
anonymous economic forces seem to control their destiny in hard-to-understand ways.’ 72 This pervades our
sense of ourselves and we become trapped on an eternal quest for more without ever really knowing
what or why - ‘Contemporary consumption patterns undermine community, environmental sustainability,
situatedness, and a sense of orientation – indeed meaning in one’s life.’ 73
We are told that the consumer is sovereign and take on the responsibility but find that we have no
real power, only the misnamed power of consumer choice, and so ‘in the rich nations, the beneficiaries of
development spend much of their money on escaping from it’. 74 We keep spending, subconsciously
believing that ‘self-gratification through consumption is [] a sort of existential life-jacket. It is commonly expected
that any deep thought will end in depression, suicide or madness, that the devil of desperate reality will pounce
on our sinful, non-consuming souls.’ 75
Jonathon Porritt, the Sustainable Development Commission's chairman, said in his report to the
government: ‘The economy is based on getting people to consume more, but that simply cannot go on. The
social and environmental impact of over-consumption will overwhelm the benefit. We feel it is cowardly of
policymakers not to confront this central question’ and yet ‘Unless we are brave enough to confront the notion
that growth is good, the world will shop until it drops.’ 76
We shop until we drop and everything becomes commoditised, those things that are not easily
commoditised like Prof Daniel Kahneman’s seven key factors to happiness are neglected in favour of
a thousand different types of mobile phone – ‘Commoditisation is preventing us from achieving sustainable
development, and in the process grossly limiting development of our full human potential.’ 77
As more and more of our world becomes commoditised so the greater the distances between us and
the decisions become. We become more and more distanced from processes, from our communities
and from nature - ‘consumerism is a complex system for disconnecting us from biological mechanisms,
disconnecting our control over our own consumption, and disconnecting us from each other’. 78
This vast gap between our understanding and the truth is easily filled by sponsored messages -
‘political and economic forces are able to control (our) understanding of all other aspects of life; and it is this
ability, not guns and barbed-wire, that is the most effective form of control’ 79 to the extent that the medium
for transmitting those messages becomes as important as the message itself - ‘Corporations spent
more on working out how to make children buy food and toys than the British state spent on finding out how to
teach them to read and write.’ 80
If that is not a scary fact consider this comment made by Peter Mead, the chairman of Abbott Mead
Vickers Advertising agency – 'The great thing about children is that their memory banks are relatively empty
so any message that goes in gets retained.’ Any society that even tolerates such a notion must indeed be
ill, it can only be a symptom of the ‘Nature-separated thinking of our industrial society’ 81
‘Western consumerism appears determined to pursue a way of life that offers neither psychological nor social
satisfaction. To make matters worse, it also has profound environmental impact’ ‘That environmental damage is a
side effect from a failed attempt to improve human wellbeing is potentially tragic.’ 82 Jonathon Porritt went on
to say that the economic and welfare debate needed to be more sophisticated, that simply getting
consumers to spend more was full of potential dangers and risked reducing quality of life and ruining
people's health. 83
It would seem that we have become little more than automated

economic devices that fuel production. Industrialists need us to
continue buying, and a powerful mass media tells us what we
need to buy in order to become the person that advertisers tell
us we want to be. All the while we are kept blissfully unaware
due to the notions of disconnection and distancing, while our
health, our planet and our societies suffer.
This is not some huge conspiracy, its simply an effect of an

economy-based culture - ‘Thus we can see that corporate capitalism
is fundamentally at odds with life’, 84 a result of not investing into a
balanced, fully sustainable, fully healthy society; a badly
malformed Rose. (fig 2, Chapter 1)
To consume is to use up, to expend, to destroy, or to waste. Consumerism will never be sustainable.
Consumerism will never be healthy.
The next chapter will examine some of the ways in which we are attempting to fight against
disconnection.
Chapter 4
Symptoms : Attempts to Exert Control in a

Disconnected Society
“The Observer’s report on the disintegration of the

Arctic ecosystem this Sunday was sandwiched
between adverts for three-litre cars”
George Monbiot, Apocalypse Now

Chapter 4 – Symptoms : Attempts to Exert Control in a Disconnected Society
4.1 Definition
T his chapter will examine examples of modern life operating on global, local and personal scales,
with particular respect to some of the issues defined in the last three chapters, and how people are
affected by them or react to them.
Globally the cause and effects of the private automobile will be examined, our crude attempts to deal
with our mountainous waste by recycling it will be looked at on a local level, and on a personal level
sick building syndrome will be considered, with particular regard to adaptive behaviour and
psychological reactance, which may be the cause of much stress in our lives and could also point to
why attempts by environmentalists to change behaviour aren’t working.
4.2 The Motor Car (Global)
An abundance of cheap energy has allowed us to separate our

spacious homes and workplaces by large distances and travel
between using the private car. 1 Lavish land-use patterns in
North America may go some way in explaining emissions there,
‘urban sprawl is one legacy of abundant fossil fuel and our perceived
right to unrestricted use of the private car whatever the social costs and
externalities’ 2 but can’t really be blamed in densely populated
Europe.
Even in the States the issue is not purely about distances - if

people there didn’t drive sports utility vehicles (SUVs) for
example, which typically get about 12 miles to the gallon, there
would be no need for them to import any fuel from the Middle
East. The US administration would rather go to war to protect oil
imports than risk offending the car-consumer and their rights. 3
That may be an extreme example, but even here in the UK one would think that the mounting
disadvantages of car use would be changing our travel habits - ‘all we have to do is be caught on the
motorway in a traffic jam you know to recognize the madness of the way we've constructed the world around us’
4
, but they are not.
Every second a new car is driven onto the world’s roads: that is 100,000 brand new, fossil-fuelled
cars every single day. In the last 50 years the world’s population has nearly doubled while cars have
increased ten-fold, and their rate of production is rising. 5
Why, when the environmental and social effects are known and understood (and briefly described
below), does our obsession with, and dependency on the car continue unabated? Why, when one
considers the time spent in, on, and paying for our car means we actually travel at 5miles per hour 6
(about the same speed as walking) do we not give it up for cheaper, healthier alternatives?
During the Rio summit people were asked about their driving habits and particularly about car
pooling - why if they knew it was a good thing didn’t they do it? Many replied that it was the only
chance they had to have time to themselves. 7 This is a common theme, research has showed that
the main reasons why we like our cars is the independence, freedom, and control they give us, we
are able to go wherever whenever, without having to wait for or rely on anybody else or anything. 8
The same research also found that people perceived their cars to be more comfortable, safer, less
stressful and faster than any other form of transport – the fact that for most people on most journeys
the opposite is true is a typical modern irony. 9
The car does undoubtedly offer fantastic benefits of mobility and flexibility and obvious shelter in the
rain or cold, but in urban areas many of the perceived advantages above are displaced by the
disadvantages, seen on global, local and personal levels.
The car may offer protection from the weather but ironically its
over-use is seriously affecting the climate. The biggest
environmental problem now affecting the world’s urban centres
is transport pollution. Car engines are major sources of nitrogen
oxide, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, particulates, and lead;
indeed half of all transport carbon dioxide and 90% of carbon
monoxide emissions is due to urban traffic. 10
The effects on health of such pollutants are well documented.

Traffic pollution is known to have a serious effect on the brain-
development of children, is responsible for the increasing
numbers and acuteness of asthma cases, and has also been
recently linked to juvenile delinquency. 11 Traffic volume is also
of a major concern with regard to noise levels in urban areas,
another detriment to wellbeing. 12
Deaths and serious injuries caused by motor vehicles stand at about 110 per day in the UK, 13 a
country with a good record of road safety compared to many EU countries. Even such obvious
destructiveness however is not enough for us to change our habits - ‘we don't even have the political will
to remove bull bars from cars, though we can show that they kill scores of children while serving no useful
purpose’. 14
The car has a destructive effect on our communities - ‘Rising car

ownership has reduced the friction of distance, and hence the
significance of the locality in people’s lives has faded. Local shops and
services decay. Big supermarkets take over’ 15 both in urban and
rural settings - ‘Once we planned our cities to accommodate the
growth in car use, without realising the terrible impact this would have.
Soon we found that sprawling car-based development was killing our
city centres, isolating communities and consuming the countryside.’ 16
Planning for the car was at one time given prime importance -
‘Many of the effects of urban planning decisions on the health of the
population are ignored in contemporary planning practice, although
there is great concern for road safety’ 17, although this is now
changing as the faults of the past are recognised - ‘Supplying roads that can handle high traffic levels
facilitates traffic growth with associated noise, fumes, danger, community severance and social exclusion.’ 18
On the individual scale there are many advantages to owning and using a car, but there are also
many disadvantages, besides risk of injury, that we are more than prepared to take on. Driving can
be a very stressful business and many of us suffer from huge increases in blood pressure often
leading to rage when behind the wheel of a car, or are the victims of such rage. 19
The cost of owning a car is also very stressful, large portions of a motorists income go on their car, its
repairs, their insurance and fuel, whilst large amounts of their time is spent queuing, parking, or
waiting at lights. 20 Indeed many people even ‘dislike driving, but consume huge quantities of resources in
owning and using a car’. 21
Global and local pollution, traffic, crime, and stress (not to mention the securing and defending of
energy resource) have all contributed to the fact that ‘a car is now more dangerous than a gun’ 22 a fact
that one would think would outweigh the many advantages - and yet we increasingly use cars.
One reason for this is undoubtedly the car’s commodity potential. The car displays vast quantities of
those aspects that create HCPs as described in the previous chapter: it is perfectly alienable,
standardizable, autonomous, convenient and mobile.
This explains to an extent why so much private and public

investment has gone into the over-development of cars
producing the vast range of vehicles available, the result of the
interplay of numerous lifestyles with numerous practicalities for
numerous purposes, 23 when really the choice between big and
small would have sufficed.
This massive investment into the HCP (or economic) option has
been to the detriment of the LCP (or social) option, i.e. the public
transport system, which as a result looks and feels more crude
and less attractive - ‘The market place presents us with red cars and
blue ones and calls this choice, when what sustainability truly demands
is a choice between automobiles and mass transit systems’. 24
This is further compounded by the fact that the car is the perfect commodity in a wealthy but
unbalanced consumerist society, and becomes a status symbol – those with more wealth gain some
satisfaction from driving a car that displays that wealth, and those who are poor feel discontent and
aspire to that status.
These reasons go some way to explaining why ‘the Observer's report on the disintegration of the Arctic
ecosystem this Sunday was sandwiched between adverts for three-litre cars’. 25
Another reason is the distance between those realities, physically, mentally and emotionally. When
inside our steel bubbles we feel safe, secure and comfortable – these are tangible advantages that
we experience first-hand. 26 We are disconnected from the immediate world outside, we pay less
attention to pedestrians, cyclists or even other road users, the communities we drive through are just
places on the road. When we’re stuck in traffic ‘the individual driver can ignore his or her own contribution;
people are acutely aware of the consequences of over-consumption in their own backyard, but continue with a
lifestyle that creates identical problems in someone else’s back yard.’ 27
The car industry also displays the four distancing factors as discussed in the previous chapter -
‘People are unaware that oil is so cheap because America supports despotic rulers in the Middle East who
exploit their populations’. 28
A study into perceived advantages and disadvantages of car ownership showed that the advantages
were based on personal experience, whereas the disadvantages were almost always distant,
negotiable facts, constructed by others and learnt through the media. 29 This suggests why most car
users knew of the harmful environmental and social effects of cars and thought car use should be
limited, but didn’t limit their own use 30 ‘Gains made in improving efficiency of the U.S. motor fleet [] have
been more than offset by trends toward larger vehicles, more cars per household, and more miles per car’. 31
It can be seen that the massive effects that cars have had on the health and wellbeing of our
environment, society and person is a direct result of the unsustainable practice of over-investment
into the economic sector using the tools of consumerism, commoditisation, advertising (aspirations)
and distancing, to the detriment of other possibilities that exist within the society (e.g. public
transport) and environment (e.g. walking) sectors.
4.3 Recycling Schemes (Local)
One of the effects of our over-consumption is the quantity of

waste we produce, in the UK about 434million tonnes across all
sectors per annum. 32 Approximately two-thirds of this is created
equally by the agriculture, construction, and mining industries,
and about a third of the remainder is created by the municipal
and commercial sectors - approximately 50million tonnes per
annum, or almost one tonne per person per year. 33 Until
recently the favourite method of disposing of this waste was by
far landfill, about 70%, and the remainder was largely
incinerated. 34
However taxes on landfill and dumping are set to go up by 200%

due to a lack of available sites, and a tightening of pollution
controls coupled with a general environmental awareness and
NIMBYism increasingly means that there is nowhere to put all of this rubbish. 35
Recycling as much of that waste as possible would seem to be a perfectly reasonable, economic,
environmentally friendly, and visible solution, and as such is advocated widely, by many agencies
including DEFRA, the UK government and Friends of the Earth.
Recycling is undoubtedly beneficial for a variety of reasons. It cuts down on landfill and incineration
and the pollution associated with each, it creates a new usable resource and conserves existing
resources and the energy used in extracting and manufacturing them. 36
Recycling is not the perfect solution however, and although different materials have different
qualities, all have disadvantages when it comes to recycling. Waste needs to be sorted into its
constituent parts before it can be recycled which is a costly and laborious, and material may be
contaminated. Recycled material is often of a poorer quality than that made from new, and degrades
each time it is recycled. Recycling can be costly in terms of energy use, although for some materials
such as aluminium this is far less than energy used for extraction. 37
T here are increasing numbers of recycling schemes in

operation, the UK government has stated that it wishes to
recycle 25% of waste by 2005 and has passed the urgency on
to local councils who have picked up the baton with vengeance
and are busy producing pamphlets and starting doorstop
collection schemes. 38
If the government is so concerned about the environment,

where is the investment going into trying to curb consumption?
For instance of the 2395 articles on waste in DEFRA’s online
data base 39 1023 concern or mention waste recycling but only
92 mention waste reduction and, in the most recent at least,
only briefly in passing. Indeed DEFRA’s Waste Strategy 2000
for England and Wales, produced for the UK government’s
Sustainable Development Commission devotes a tenth of chapter 5 out of 8 chapters to waste
reduction, 40 the report could at least start at the beginning.
The widely accepted formula for waste management, the 4R’s (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Recover),
starts with the most environmentally beneficial method, which is also that with the lowest commodity
potential. Recycling has a high commodity potential, it enables the creation of further products, and
even within the recycling industry those things that are the most marketable are the most recycled. 41
In the US, bottle manufacturers spent millions of dollars to defeat ‘bottle bills’ in a number of states
and then vigorously supported recycling rather than re-use as a better alternative. 42
Recycling has been developed as a stand-alone service rather than included in a system of waste
reuse and reduction that considers the life-cycle of a product from material extraction through
production to consumption. 43 Recycling can be ‘sold’ as a product to consumers who are keen to do
something to ‘help the environment’, but it also has the added benefit of producing further products
and creating jobs.
Had producers been saddled with the responsibility of the life-cycle of a product, then goods and
packaging would have either been designed more frugally, which means less waste but less
production, or designed for reuse, which means we would not have to expend vast quantities of
energy getting products back into a usable, but saleable, state.
As it stands however ‘Recycling is a prime example of the individualisation of responsibility’, 44 slogans such
as ‘Save the Planet – Recycle’ suggest the onus revolves around individual consumer action, ‘green
consumption’ and militant recycling, whilst the cause, over-consumption, is kept inconspicuous by
distancing and disconnection.
As discussed we live in a capitalist society that values

production above everything else as production equates to
economic growth. Waste collection, sorting and recycling all
contribute to economic growth and are therefore seen as good
for the economy, 45 which goes some way to explain the extent
of the government’s interest.
Recycling is in part ‘greenwashing’ ‘the private sector is finding

ever-more cunning ways to disguise its bad ecological habits’. 46
Products that at one time may have been considered
ecologically unsound can now boast their recyclability without
the producer ever having invested more than the cost of
developing a logo featuring a couple of green arrows.
Recycling facilities suggest environmental awareness 47 and yet ‘most of the toxic industrial waste from
rich to poor countries these days is destined for ‘recycling’ operations’ 48 most of which take place in unsafe
and unhealthy conditions that have been every bit as harmful to the environment and peoples of
these countries as dumping would have been. It is also interesting to note that ‘diligent recyclers expend
far more fossil-fuel energy on the hot water spent to meticulously clean a tin can than is saved by its recycling’. 49
Recycling does have its place - third after reduce and reuse. Its current popularity is a perfect
example of waste distancing and commoditisation, and also of further investment into the economic
sector, that may have some environmental and social benefits but these are used primarily to mask
the reality. Equal investment into all sectors would see more promotion/legislation of waste reduction
measures to both consumers and producers.
There is no ‘green’ consumption, to consume is to use up, and yet recycling is touted as a ‘green’
measure, but its industry relies on the production of vast quantities of waste.
4.4 Sick Building Syndrome & Psychological Reactance Theory (Personal)
Sick Building Syndrome refers to situations in which ‘building occupants experience health and/or
discomfort affects that are linked to spending time in a building, while at the same time no specific illness or
cause can be identified.’ 50
Occupants generally complain of lethargy, headaches, lack on

concentration, runny nose, dry throat, eye and skin irritation, the
causes of which have not been clearly identified and all
symptoms disappear shortly after leaving the building. 51
Four major areas of cause have been suggested - ventilation,

contaminants, occupants, and miscellaneous factors including
stress, psychosocial aspects. 52
A 1984 WHOC report suggested 30% of new and refurbished

buildings worldwide may be the subject of excessive complaints
related to indoor air quality - ‘Energy-efficient but sick buildings often
cost society far more than it gains by energy savings’ 53 due to
absenteeism and decreasing productivity levels.
Our modern lifestyles have contributed to poor air quality both inside our building and out. Major
indoor pollutants include carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, ozone, particulates, and
volatile organic compounds, many of which are emitted by modern building and furniture materials or
machines. Typical outdoor sources of indoor pollutants include industrial emissions and traffic
pollution, which emits CO, CO2, Nitrogen oxide, carbon dust and lead. 54
Typically methods of controlling indoor air quality rely on building airtightedness and mechanical air
conditioning units and fresh air dampers, systems that are energy-hungry and therefore add to the
external air pollutants.
Another result of sealing buildings is that occupants cease to

have control of their immediate environment, a factor that
paradoxically creates sick building syndrome due to
psychological adaptive behaviour. 55 As previously mentioned
we have bonds to the natural world that we have neglected but
we are still ‘strongly related to our inherited responses to the outdoor
environment’ . 56
If we are devoid of ‘a real and perceived freedom to make

adjustments to the local environment (open windows, deploy shades) or
to ones own status (remove clothing, move to cooler part of the room)’
57
then we become stressed and unwell, ‘adaptive behaviour in
buildings has the same origin as our survival instinct in the natural world’
‘The denial of the need and freedom to respond to natural stimuli should
be regarded as seriously as any other cultural deprivation’. 58
Adaptive behaviour is in part related to a theory called psychological reactance, both of which are
central to the proposal of this thesis.
T he theory of psychological reactance was suggested by J.W. Brehm in 1966 and has become a
well-established tool in the study of persuasion. The theory holds that ‘a threat to or loss of a freedom
motivates the individual to restore that freedom.’ 56 If a ‘freedom’ (a behaviour or choice) is threatened or
eliminated, the ensuing reaction (psychological reactance) will manifest itself as stress, anxiety,
attempts to reassert the freedom, a greater desire for the threatened freedom, indirect assertion of
the freedom (i.e. assertion of another freedom) and ultimately aggression. 57
The theory suggests that the degree of reaction depends upon the importance of the freedom, the
strength and scope of threat to that freedom, and the implications for future threats. 58 Teenagers
frequently perceive unfair restrictions to their actions and experience psychological reactance, the
degree of which is emphasised due to the unknown implications for future threats. The very act of
removing the freedom that the teenager is so aggrieved about will increase the importance of that
freedom and will strengthen their resolve to get that freedom back, to the point that they are prepared
to massively over-react.
If people become ill because they are unable to control their immediate environment, what other
adverse effects is modern life having on us and what are the implications for the environmental
movement if requests for moderation and reduction will only ever be met by greater consumption?
Ecopsychology suggests that the degradation of our environment stresses us due to subconscious
feelings of guilt – it does not seem too unreasonable to suggest that this is basic psychological
reactance.
Our modern lifestyles have become increasingly labour-saving and state controlled, and yet an
activity as simple as building a fire offers a great deal of satisfaction. Perhaps modern central heating
systems take away a freedom causes a very slight reactance in us for instance, or not having the
facility, knowledge or time to grow our own food also stresses us. The questionnaires in the next
chapter were designed to investigate this notion.
4.5 Summary
Cars offer us a great deal of freedom that we are prepared to forsake much for. Our system
manipulates our desires to its best advantage because the car is so easily commoditised. We are
aware however of the environmental impacts of our ‘freedom’ and sensing this we demand change
without the perceived power to affect it. The typical economic response is to develop greener cars
powered by fuel cells, but because of unbalanced resource investment, social problems and unsafe
streets remain.
The huge choice of cars available and the size of the car industry is due to the massive over-
investment into the economy sector, which manifests itself through advertising etc. Perhaps people
are willing to invest so much of their time and money into cars because in line with the theory of
psychological reactance so much of the rest of their lives is controlled, and the car industry benefits
from an indirect assertion of the freedoms people have lost. That would certainly explain SUVs.
Recycling is a typically commoditised response to an environmental problem but will only be

successful ultimately because people have a great desire to do it; perhaps this is also an indirect
assertion of the freedoms people have lost, with particular regard to a deep environmental ‘freedom’.
Perhaps consumption, recycling, and the car industry are all products of an over-investment into
economy and we should pay no more attention to them than this thesis does to physical detriments of
our health: they are symptoms that will clear up once full-sustainability is achieved, and people are
not subconsciously feeling the effects of adaptive behaviour or psychological reactance as they are
now. Perhaps our efforts should be directed at balancing investment equally between environment,
society and economy, rather than mopping up after the effects of unbalanced investment.
The following chapter seeks to identify links between contentment and well-being with empowerment
and ecology, and examines the results of original research to see if people gain satisfaction and an
increased well being from having control over various elements of their lives or not.
Chapter 5
Diagnosis : Questionnaires
“I have always been conscious of the need to recycle. It is

probably the biggest environmental issue facing the UK ”
Questionnaire Respondent
Chapter 5 – Diagnosis : Questionnaires
5.1 Definition
In order to verify theoretical notions set out in this thesis it was deemed essential to send out a
questionnaire to discover if and why people took part in certain activities. Due to time implications the
questionnaires were sent out before the structure of the text was finalised and the initial
questionnaire failed to ask about peoples travelling habits, questions that were later deemed vital due
to the significance of car use particularly, and a second questionnaire was necessary.
Had the initial questionnaire been compiled after the body of the text had been written the questions
may have been different, although not vastly, and it is believed that the variety and quantity of the
information gained still serves the thesis well.
5.2 Purpose
T he purpose of the first questionnaire was to ascertain whether people gained satisfaction from a
number of environmentally friendly activities or ‘freedoms’; whether these activities meant they had
become more conscious of wider issues (showing a re-connection); and if they didn’t take part in the
activities why they didn’t, in order to suggest ways in which the activities might be promoted.
The first questionnaire also contained three general questions designed to see if people were
interested in the broad concept of gaining contentment through controlling aspects of their lives with
respect to the aforementioned activities. Contentment is a wildly subjective frame of mind but what is
important here is people’s perceived contentment, whether they think they can be more content.
The second questionnaire sought to identify how often people used various forms of transport, and
their preferences of each, in order to test theoretical ideas about freedom and connection, and also
discover ways underused forms may be promoted. The questionnaire did not give options in order
that the answers be driven by the respondent perceptions.
5.3 Questionnaires
T he following questions were asked:

Questionnaire I
1. Do you recycle? (If so is your recycling collected from your doorstep?) (y/n)
2. If not why not? (Please delete all not applicable) Not considered, Too time consuming, Too
expensive, No information/provision in my area
3. If so, on a scale of 1 (none) to 5 (loads) how much satisfaction do you feel you get from
recycling?
4. On a scale of 1 (none) to 5 (loads) to what extent do you feel that through recycling you have
become more conscious of environmental/social issues?
5. Do you grow any of your own food?
expensive, No information, No Garden
7. If so, on a scale of 1 (none) to 5 (loads) how much satisfaction do you feel you get from
growing your own food?
8. On a scale of 1 (none) to 5 (loads) to what extent do you feel that through growing your own
food you have become more conscious of environmental/social issues?
9. Do you produce your own hot water/power (i.e. Solar water / PV)?
expensive, No information, No space
11. If so on a scale of 1 (none) to 5 (loads) how much satisfaction do you feel you get from
producing your own power/hot water?
12. On a scale of 1 (none) to 5 (loads) to what extent do you feel that through home power
production you have become more conscious of environmental/social issues?
13. If you could, and irrespective of time or cost, would you consider installing renewable power
production modules into your home (e.g. solar water panels) and/or producing your own food
if it gave you greater control of your life and an increased feeling of contentment?
14. How would your opinion change, if it meant investing a lot of time and/or money?
15. Would time or money be the biggest obstacle?
Questionnaire II
1. Do you drive a car & if so how often? (Please delete) Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Less
2. What do you like about your car?
3. Do you use public transport & if so how often? (Please delete) Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Less
4. What do you like about public transport?
5. Do you ever walk to your destination & if so how often? (Please delete) Daily, Weekly,
Monthly, Less
6. What do you like about walking?
5.4 Methodology
T he first set of questions above were sent out by email to all of the addresses in my address book,
and were also posted on a number of environmental group message boards. The email contained a
request for the receiver to forward it on to whomever.
It was important to obtain as many replies as possible, and therefore keep the questionnaire
reasonably short and simple. It was decided that since the issues in question involve our whole
society, and it is our whole society that will ultimately have to embrace any recommendations,
determinants such as age and sex were unimportant, although this could be considered a limitation
by virtue of absence of data.
The location of responders was also deemed unimportant, any difference in rural or urban behaviour
due to provision was expected to show up in the results which are required to suggest general
reactions to modern culture with which, it is presumed, everyone with an email address is involved
with wherever they live.
The email was not expected to reach anyone outside the UK, however a few responses arrived from
Holland, France, and one from New Zealand, and their content was deemed relevant and was
included.
The second set of questions were sent to all those who had replied to the first set. Due to factors
concerning the dynamics of email, several did not reach their intended, or any, destination.
Because it was expected that those with a strong environmental conscience (Greens) would already
be aware of some or all of the issues raised, it was decided to split them from those who were known
not to have a particular interest in environmental issues (Non-Greens).
In the first set of questions people were given options for why they didn’t take part in a certain
activity. As people gave up to four reasons per question the graphs represent the percentage of total
answers given and not necessarily the percentage of people who gave that answer.
People’s answers to the questions about transport types were found to belong to one of eleven basic
groups as the charts show. People gave up to four reasons per answer and so the results represent
the percentage of total times that reason was given.
A total of 160 people returned the first questionnaire (110 non-greens, 50 greens), and 106 the
second (61 non-greens, 45 greens). All response data, charts and graphs are included within the
appendix; only select charts and graphs are shown below.
5.5 Limitations
Only those with access to email received and therefore returned the questionnaires. Although email
use is widespread this does limit the response and must be borne in mind.
160 responses may be regarded as a decent number for a paper of this nature, the method applied,
and timescale involved. It is not enough however to represent the total UK population, and the results
can only suggest the existence of trends rather than be certain of them.
It might have been beneficial to ask directly how content or happy people were, however this a
subjective quantity and the answer is dependant on many diverse cultural and personal factors that it
would have been impossible to gauge the results. Indeed so varied is the response to this type of
question that it is the focus of its own particular branch of psychology. 1
As mentioned above demographics have not been considered and whether a person lives in a rural
or urban setting could have a strong influence over some topics, particularly transport. However the
most important information regards their preferences, which it may be postulated are not affected by
location.
5.61 Results – Recycling

Fig 1 - Combined Recycling
No
Firstly it must be noted how many people recycle – a total of 8%
92% (90% of non-greens and 96% of greens), which can be
regarded as a very high figure and shows a basic awareness of
environmental issues. That coupled with the fact that 45% make
the effort to take their recycling to banks (Fig 1) suggests the Collect
strong desire to do something positive – ‘i hate accumulating 47%
rubbish in the first place’. 2 Take
45%
All Greens but only 36% of Non-Greens who don’t recycle gave
provision as their excuse, the rest blaming lack of time. The fact
that only these two excuses were given suggests awareness at
the very least.
The satisfaction that people gain from recycling is generally high (Fig 2) - people are keen to do their
bit, and the actual deed of doing something positive makes them feel good. This may suggest the
presence of guilt with respect to their wasteful lifestyles or could suggest that they find the ability to
exert an influence over something, however slight, rewarding.
Few people believe by recycling their awareness of environmental issues is raised (Fig 3). Fifteen
people commented that they recycled because they were aware rather than the other way around
(OWA), although one person noted ‘collecting recyclable materials really puts into context just how much
stuff we throw away - what resources Fig 2 - Satisfaction Of Those Who Recycle
we are wasting by sticking them in 60
landfills and how much we could be
50
reusing’. 3
No. People
40 Non Greens
This reinforces comments made in 30 Greens
chapter 4, that recycling is very Combined
much a stand-alone industry, 20
rather than integrated into a larger 10
waste management plan, and is
promoted as such. 0
1 2 3 4 5
One can imagine that if people Satisfaction Level
were made aware of the necessity

to primarily reduce waste followed Fig 3 - Raised Awareness Of Those Who Recycle
by reuse, and that recycling wasn’t
45
necessarily as ‘green’ as it is often
40
billed, that people’s satisfaction
35
levels would drop and awareness
No. People
30 Non Greens
levels increase.
25 Greens
20 Combined
Generally the results of the 15
recycling questions definitely prove 10
that people have underlying 5
feelings of environmental and 0
community responsibility, and are 1 2 3 4 5 OWA
willing to make the extra effort Raised Awareness Level
involved in order to meet their
perceived obligations. It could also
be suggested that this is from where their satisfaction stems.
Fig 4 - Combined Food

5.62 Results - Food Growing HerbsGrowing
8%
Approximately 50% of all responders grow their own food to
some extent (Fig 4), many were keen to stress that they grew
herbs and so this was included as a separate factor.
No
Greens were more likely to grow their own food (55% to 38% 49%
Non-Greens). The main reasons given by Greens and Non- Yes
Greens as to why they didn’t grow their own food are similarly 43%
balanced between Provision (61% and 71% respectively) and

Time (35% and 25% respectively), which suggests Greens
and Non-Greens share similar circumstances, and that
Greens are more inclined to take control of that aspect of
Fig 5 - Combined Food Why
their lives or are more aware of modern agricultural practice
Not? N/C
and what they are putting into their bodies and the soil. 5%
Although provision is by far the biggest reason given by Time

27%
people who don’t grow food (Fig 5) this may be seen to be an
easy choice, especially when one considers that very few
answered ‘not considered’. This suggests that most people
like the concept of growing their own produce but lack the
Expense
inclination – one can imagine that if all those people did have
1%
the space required, many more would give time as their Prov.
excuse, not having the space allows them an easy excuse. 69%
Perhaps the people with the space

but not the verve ought to make
the effort – those who do grow their Fig 6 - Satisfaction Of Those Who Grow Food
own food gain a great deal of
satisfaction from it with only few 70
exceptions (Fig 6), which may be 60
based on inherent frustrations – 50
No. People
‘depends on slugs, rain size of veg’. 4 40
Non Greens
Greens
30 Combined
This may be the reward of good
hard honest toil, being in control of 20
an important aspect of their lives, 10
or due to a connection with natural 0
processes; whatever the reason 1 2 3 4 5
growing ones own food certainly Satisfaction Level
boosts wellbeing – ‘eating food
knowing where it comes from is very
grounding. Connection to the process.’ 5
According to the results growing ones own food also raises awareness of environmental issues, as
one learns about soil and bio-diversity etc. Promoting home-grown food could lead to a more content
population and also a more environmentally aware one; one that is more likely perhaps to realise the
absurdities of consumerism and less likely to abide by them – ‘growing food means that i get healthy in
the garden, have a garden full of wildlife that may not usually be there, have tasty food treats and reduce the air
miles i gain from supermarkets. The act of growing stuff reiterates these points, rather than instigates them.’ 6
Spending time in the garden learning about nature will at the very least keep people away from their
television sets.
Fig 7 - Non Greens Power Why

5.63 Results - Power Production Not?
Very few people (10 Greens and 2 Non-Greens) use some Prov
form of home-power production – although the 12 that do 35% N/C
gain a great deal of satisfaction from the activity, which can 45%
be ascribed to being more autonomous and relieving
psychological reactance, or appeasing environmental guilt.
Although producing one’s own power may be ultimately

rewarding, both Greens and Non-Greens returned strong Expense Time
reasons for not getting involved. 19% 1%
Almost 50% of Non-Greens (Fig 7) and 6% of Greens (Fig 8)

had not even considered the idea, which suggests a large Fig 8 - Greens Power Why Not?
gap in home-power promotion. N/C
Time
6%
3%
Of those who do, provision (not living in ones own home, or
living in a flat for example) is by far the largest excuse given
by both groups – a factor which is unlikely to change, indeed
it may be argued that if our society is to become sustainable
more people must rent accommodation in densely occupied Prov
Expense
cities. 7 53%
38%
Expense was the second most popular response that both

groups gave. Generally throughout the questionnaires
Greens replied ‘expense’ to questions far less than Non-Greens, and the 38% who returned that
excuse here suggest that the amount of money required for initial set-up of home power is very
prohibitive.
It must be borne in mind that home power seems so expensive because grid power is so cheap, a
factor that will change very shortly if the predictions of the electricity industry prove to be correct. In
this instance home power may be more able to compete with the grid, and more people are likely to
give it consideration.
It must be noted that several responders were keen to point out that they subscribed to a green tariff
for their energy, and several suggested that this was a more ecological solution than home-power.
Indeed one can imagine that consumerist laws of commoditisation would/will have a field day with
home power modules, and the ensuing massive over-investment and over-production would/will far
outstrip the ecological benefits, although perhaps not those of autonomy.
5.64 Results – Lifestyle

Fig 9 - Combined Lifestyle Factor?
96% of people said that they would be prepared to change Neither
their lifestyles if they could, irrespective of time or cost, if it 4%
gave them greater control of their lives and an increased Both
feeling of contentment. This suggests that the vast majority 24%
of people are not content now, indeed only 4% of both
groups positively said that they were.
It is also interesting to note that approximately 50% of all Money

55%
responders didn’t think increased control and contentment
was worth the added investment of time and/or money,
although far more Greens (71%) were willing to make the Time
17%
sacrifice than Non-Greens (45%).
The majority of these wouldn’t invest the money, although significant numbers stated time would be
the most prohibitive factor. One person suggested that ‘although concerned, the general public will not
make a greater environmental effort because there is no direct personal incentive to make more effort!’ 8, and
another that ‘You can slog your guts out doing a boring job and take home the money, then pay someone else
to 'Clean Up' your conscience. Or you can follow your heart, accept the financial hit that generally follows and do
it all yourself.’ 9
5.65 Results – Car Use
It must be noted that Non-Greens returned almost identical Fig 10 - Combined Total Car Use
anwers to Greens, with only a few exceptions, and most of
the comments below refer to the combined totals. Monthly
13%
The results are quite evenly split between daily, weekly, and Don't
monthly drivers, with a third of all responders not driving at all 32%
(Fig 10). These figures are undoubtedly dependant on a
persons situation, but once again it must be stressed that the
preferences is the important data, which shouldn’t
necessarily be affected by location. Weekly
28%
Generally the biggest reasons people gave for liking their

cars across all groups (Non-Greens, Greens, daily, weekly
and monthly car users) are, in approximate order of
Daily
popularity, convenience, personal space (I also like the tape 27%
player: having your own soundtrack as you travel is sometimes Fig 11 - Combined Daily Car Use
sublime’ 10), autonomy, and practicality. These are all qualities Likes
that any vehicle would have intrinsically. Nothing Relax
2% 4% Ecology
Only three people mentioned anything that alluded to Practical 4%
8%
aesthetics, pride, status or lifestyle (included within ‘exists’), Auton
qualities that are most likely to be emphasised by car 12%
manufacturers and advertisers. Also suprising was the fact
that only a handful of people mentioned safety as a factor
(included within personal space).
Conv/
40%
Daily car users were the only ones to mention that they liked P.Space
‘nothing’ about their cars, suggesting fraught commutes, and 26%
also offering a point by which to promote home-working,
Cost
public transport or living close to work, ‘I don't like the frustration 4%
11
and fury I involve myself in by driving.’
Daily car users were also paradoxically the only ones to Fig 12 - Combined Weekly Car
perceive driving a car as relaxing and running a car as a cost Use Likes
efficient, alternative. Exists
4% Auton
Practical
9% of Green daily car users described the energy efficiency 19%
15%
of their engines as one of their chief likes (ecology), which
may be seen as an attempt to allay some eco-guilt.
Weekly car users are those most concerned with the

convenience that their cars offer and yet least concerned with P.Space
17%
personal space (Fig 12).
This suggests weekly car users generally use public transport

to get to work and the car for short but necessary journeys Conv
45%
such as the weekly shop. These people may not be so
concerned about owning a car if their local communities
offered better amenities, or they altered their shopping Fig 13 - Combined Monthly Car
patterns – having fresh vegetables delivered for instance. Use Likes
Exists
One can see by the combined monthly figures (Fig 13) that 4%
car users equally revere personal space, practicality, Auton
24%
autonomy and convenience. It must be noted however that Practical
no Green monthly car users saw autonomy as an attractive 24%
quality, whereas Non-Green car users saw it as the most
attractive quality.
Perhaps Green car users have made a conscious decision to

cut down on their car use and as such are more prepared to
suffer the inconvenience of walking to stations and waiting
Conv P.Space
for buses, whereas Non-Greens drive less for practical 20% 28%
reasons and actually miss the freedom their cars give them.
Generally the results suggest that there is a big place for cars in our society, but people are not as
obsessed with them as material objects as the media portrays.
It may be considered that people would happily give up using their cars, on a daily basis at least, if
their situation allowed it or a viable alternative was available.
5.66 Results – Public Transport (PT) Use
Greens and Non-greens use public transport with similar Fig 14 - Non Grns Total P.T.
frequency, with more Non-Greens using public transport on a Likes
Exists Nothing
daily basis (49%) than Greens (27%), and more Greens not 7%
1%
using it at all (16%) compared to Non-Greens (10%), These
figures are perhaps swung by the proportion of Non-Greens
who live in urban areas to Greens who live in rural areas. Conv. Relax
22% 35%
This is potentially backed up by the fact Green monthly users
exceed Non-Green monthly users (29% to 18%) although
weekly use is similar.
View
It must be noted again that it is the things that users like Cost 3%
10%
about public transport that is of interest here, and not Ecology
Auto.
necessarily usage frequency trends. 12%
10%
The total usage charts (Figs 14 & 15) are fairly representative
of Non-Greens and Greens attractions across usage Fig 15 - Greens Total P.T. Likes
frequency, with a couple of notable exceptions. Exists
8%
Relax
Non-Green daily users were most attracted to the cost of 26%
using public transport (15%) whereas weekly users most Conv.
preferred the convenience (33%) and monthly users the 22%
ability to relax (52%). No monthly users suggested ‘nothing’.
Green daily users did not find public transport so relaxing

(9%) but were impressed by its eco credentials and the fact View
10%
that it exists at all, whereas weekly users were not so Cost
concerned with its ecology (8%) but like daily users did enjoy 7%
the ability to watch life going on around them or outside, ‘the Ecology
Auto.
window it offers on the world’ 12 (view, 15%). 6%
21%
Green monthly users were also most attracted to public

transport because they perceived that you were able to relax, Fig 16 - Combined Walking
but weren’t so impressed by its convenience. Frequency
Typically it can be seen that the ability to relax, convenience Don't

and ecology are the most popular reasons given by both Monthly 1%
groups, the Non-Greens being less inclined toward ecology 16%
and more toward relaxing compared to the greens.
It is interesting to note that as many Non-Greens said they

liked nothing about public transport as Greens who said they
liked the fact it existed – perhaps Greens are more aware of Weekly
the social implications of a public transport system and are 25% Daily
58%
thus more likely to grin and bear any shortcomings.
Overall it can be seen that compared to car users, public

transport users enjoy the ability to relax and watch the world,
at a reasonable cost to both themselves and the planet, to the detriment of practicality and personal
space.
5.67 Results – Walking
T he frequency that people walked to their destinations was identical for Non-Greens and Greens (Fig
16); indeed their attractions were also so similar across all frequencies that only the combined totals
need be shown here.
It is interesting that many more people commented in length on walking than any other question,
typically citing preferences such as ‘the simplicity, the exposure to the elements, connection to nature, the
ability to think without too many distractions, the views and perspective of travelling slowly.’ 13
Immediately one can see that 35% of people perceived walking to be a healthy activity and one of the
key reasons why they enjoyed it. Unsurprisingly health was not mentioned in connection with either
cars or public transport.
‘View’, being able to take in scenery and surroundings, is

also a big factor, and suggests people gain great satisfaction Fig17 - Combined Walk Total
from being in and interacting with their immediate Likes
environment – ‘It's good for my posture and lungs, feels natural, Conv.
allows me to meet others, see things at the pace they should be Cost 5%
seen, hear, smell and taste the countryside, it affords me access to 4%
places I would otherwise not be able to visit, I can creep up on Auto. Health
things (e.g. deer in the woods) and get a better look at them!’ 14 10% 35%
This fact may also explain why ‘relax’ figures so highly, as Ecology
6%
people interact with nature and connect with their
environment they gain from letting go of stresses caused by
their indoors life, as suggested in chapter 2.
View
21%
Relax
People are also aware of the eco-lightness of walking, and
19%
the fact that they are completely autonomous, able to go
wherever and whenever they want, ‘It represents the ultimate lo-
fi mode of transport, I can do it all day for free.’ 15
It is clear to see the benefits of walking, and how they may be easily promoted and used to affect a
reconnection between people and the geography of their community – ‘Walking is good exercise and I
can observe the life of the streets or country paths I walk through. When I have walked extensively in any place, I
feel I know or understand it better. I find I am less disconnected with the Big Smoke if I can walk from Paddington
Station to wherever I need to go rather than taking the tube’. 16
‘It ain’t where you’re going, it’s the journey that’s important.’ 17
5.7 Summary
T he questionnaires returned some invaluable data that largely backed-up the premise and contents
of this thesis: that people are not necessarily content with their lifestyles and are certainly keen to
hear any alternative suggestions.
It is evident that recycling is popular because people are keen to be involved in a community activity
that also benefits the environment. It can also be seen that due to the way recycling has been
promoted as a stand-alone activity the chance has been missed to raise people’s awareness of other
issues.
Growing one’s own food is a very popular concept and those that do it gain a great deal of
satisfaction from it. It also teaches environmental awareness and connects people to nature and
natural processes and time scales, which it may be surmised could lead to a rejection of more
consumerist activities and behaviours.
There are those who prefer to buy their food however – ‘I'm equally happy to support the local Farmers'
Market which is held in Bath every Saturday morning’, 18 ‘There is good quality food available from other
sources. I feel i can make a bigger impact on social / environmental issues in other ways rather than by growing
my own food’, 19 and those who are mindful of time/satisfaction efficiency – ‘For food production time
becomes a factor for such things as baking bread - the contentment doesn't outweigh the effort required every
day.’ 20
Producing one’s own power is currently prohibited by cost, practicalities of space and lack of
promotion, although those that do gain great satisfaction from it. Power production may be more
suited to local or municipal schemes, where people are able to get some satisfaction without the cost
or need for provision, and may also benefit from a closer involvement with their community.
Contrary to what the motor and advertising industries may have us believe, people most admire the
pragmatic qualities of their cars, such as convenience and practicality, and many were keen to stress
that they had a family or that they needed their car for work. People are not generally concerned with
aesthetics or status – although are seemingly swept up with those factors along with general factors
concerning wealth as discussed in chapter 2. It may be supposed that if other forms of transport were
invested in and lifestyle changes promoted, the car would become less relied upon.
This statement from one respondent sums up perfectly what many others noted: ‘Mostly I have a
miserable attitude to my car but accept grudgingly that, with a family of four and sometimes five, it is usually more
efficient in terms of time and often financially cheaper to use the car - it's also a great kagool on rainy days for
school runs.’ 21
Public transport is one such form that would benefit from increased investment and promotion. The
results above show that people enjoy the more social aspects of public transport – ‘I like talking to
people or listening to other people's conversations, watching their reactions and questioning my own I like the
variety of people who take public transport’, 22 as well as convenience, cost, and the ability to relax –
many people said that they liked public transport because it gave them time to read for instance, and
it is these aspects along with the ecological benefits that people need to be made aware of.
Walking is universally accepted as a healthy activity that offers autonomy and a connection with
community and natural environment. The physical and mental health aspects of walking cannot be
undervalued or overstressed in a society that is becoming more and more unhealthy on both counts
– ‘I think when I walk. It's time for me. I see some nice people on the way say to work. I like that my legs feel
toned. On a fresh winter's morning I feel invigorated. On a summer's morning with the sunshine on your face I
feel happy. Walking gives me that.’ 23
Although it can be seen that for the most part people would opt for the high-satisfaction, low-impact
option, the choice is not often easily made in reality, for instance in the words of one respondent -
‘Most people want to live the self-sufficient dream but it's not practical for everyone. I have to live in an urban
environment so I can work, get paid and support myself. Lots of the more dramatic lifestyle actions like fitting
solar water heating, recycling rain water and growing your own food are beyond your control if you do not own
your house. Of course transportation choice is significantly more open, everyone can exercise their beliefs and
make a difference’. 24
The next chapter will suggest ways in which we can try and address the imbalance of investment into
our society and affect lifestyle change using, among other things, the recommendations suggested
by this chapter.
Chapter 6
Treatment : Connection
“The thing that saved me was that I managed to

tear myself away from my exclusive existence and
see the true life of the simple working people, and
realise that this alone is genuine life. I realised that
if I wanted to understand life and it’s meaning I had
to live a genuine life and not that of a parasite.”
Leo Tolstoy
Chapter 6 – Treatment : Connection
6.1 Definition
connection \k ’nek ? n\ n. 1. the act of connecting; union. 2. something that connects or relates; link or bond.
3. a relationship or association. 4. logical sequence in thought or expression; coherence. 5. the relation of a
word or phrase to its context. 6. (often pl.) an acquaintance, esp. one who is influential. 7. a relative, esp. if
distant and related by marriage. 8. a. an opportunity to transfer from one train, bus etc., to another. b. the
vehicle scheduled to provide such an opportunity. 9. a lnk, usually a wire or metallic strip, between two
components in an electric circuit. 10. a communications link, esp. by telephone. 11. Sl. A supplier of illegal
drugs such as heroin. 12. Rare. Sexual intercourse. – connectional adj.
Chapter 1 introduced the concept of true sustainability and defined it as requiring equal amounts of
investment in terms of energy, money and time into the three broad spheres of economy,
environment and society, and suggested that a massive imbalance of investment into economy has
produced many of the ills we see in our environment, society, and selves today.
Chapter 2 expanded on this and suggested that issues of health must be regarded alongside
sustainability and a lack of investment in an area will manifest itself as poor health, be it physical,
emotional or mental, environmental, societal or personal.
Chapter 3 examined the profile of over-investment into economy, and Chapter 4 looked in more detail
at specific examples, ending with a postulation that much of our behaviour is driven by basic needs
that are being exploited but neglected by modern aspirations; aspirations which are not necessary to
meet those needs – a notion that is borne out by the questionnaires in Chapter 5.
This chapter will suggest ways in which modern lifestyles can change, investment may be more
equally distributed, and how sustainability and a better all-round health for planet, society and
citizens may be achieved. The chapter will broadly follow the same format as those gone before, and
will attempt to suggest solutions to the problems previously explored.
6.2 Global Connection
It can be seen that over-production and consumerism are the main recipients of the imbalance in
investment into economy, and as well as drawing resources away from environmental and social
improvement, are also the main perpetrators of global environmental and social degradation, and the
poor mental and emotional health that people suffer as a result.
Globally free-market economics undoubtedly satisfy significant human needs whilst fostering
technological development - however it is also riddled with greed and excess, exploitation and
corruption. 1
This is largely due to the production-sided logic that dominates economics and business, which deals
with problems by ‘producing’ solutions, which creates problems elsewhere and is inherently un-
ecological. The alternative to this, whilst continuing to employ basic free-market practices, is to
fundamentally alter the focus of economics onto efficiency, or the ‘consumption angle’. 2
Economics is the science of providing human needs with the resources available. A production-sided
view takes those resources and produces as much as possible from them – ‘goods are good, more
goods are better’ 3, it bases its science on the point of sale or decision to purchase a good, with very
little thought to why that decision is made or what happens after. 4
Briefly, viewing from a consumption angle views all economic activity as consuming (or using up),
and attempts to meet human needs as efficiently as possible, using resources only when and if
necessary. Ecological consideration is integral, as is analysis into the impacts of consumption, and
research into decisions not to purchase (for example why people grow food rather than buy it), and
as such incorporates satisfaction, wellbeing, the importance of work & leisure, and the nature of
demand. 5
Viewed from a production angle each process from raw material to finished product is value-added,
from a consumption angle they are carefully examined and notions of over-consumption and mis-
consumption are replaced with optimum efficiency and best resource use - ‘The consumption angle
lends itself to explicit assignment of responsibility for excess throughput’. 6
It is unlikely that such a radical change in economic thought will happen overnight, and there remains
a need to ‘green up’ the present system. The effects of distancing has seen power move away from
factory floors, the traditional battlegrounds of environmental activism, up & down stream. 7
Environmentalists will have to follow - ‘In particular, activism and advocacy will have to follow power
downstream to the ideologies, symbols, relationships, and practices that drive consumption’ 8 We can no
longer simply attempt to kerb emissions but must look into consumption patterns and corporate
responsibility.
As discussed in Chapter 3 consumer sovereignty is an industry concept that absolves producers of

responsibility and at the same time drives the supply of goods. Similarly environmental movements
that cite consumer behaviour as the main problem are also guilty of the ‘individualisation of
responsibility’ and are therefore doomed to failure. 9
Consumer behaviour must be questioned however. We are

seemingly on a never-ending conveyor belt of consumption, but
why and to what end? - ‘Will each home have 10 rooms and a
swimming pool and, if so, where are we going to build them? Will we
then inhabit the terrestrial heaven that the advocates of endless growth
have promised us?’10
It has been shown that humans do not strive for material

possessions but instead to seven key factors of happiness, and
yet virtually everything that politicians promise depends on
money - more growth, higher GDP, more things, ‘but imagine if
they abandoned all other targets and adopted just the one - to increase
the sum of national felicity. Placing happiness as the focus of our
attentions turns the world on its head.’ 11
Instead of investing unbalanced amounts of energy, time, money and materials into production and
distribution, our society could be investing balanced resources into low commodity potential goods
that satisfy basic human needs, such as human rights, ecological integrity, contentment, or mental
health - ‘Intuition is enough for almost everyone to understand that not everything in the good life can be
packaged and sold. Yet the full development of those noncommodities also requires time, attention, and
resources.’12
LCPs are felt inherently on a local level 13 and therefore need to be addressed on a local level,
however commercial law and trade agreements are becoming increasingly global – in order to meet
our needs there is a strong requirement to devolve legal and political power to community level.
T he same may be said of our transport systems, which are currently dictated by the global
automobile industry that markets its product vociferously but takes no responsibility for the after
effects, which as shown in Chapter 4 are being particularly felt at community level.
Practicality and convenience ensure that the private car has its place, as reflected in the
questionnaire results, but that place differs significantly depending on a persons situation, and it can
be seen in the results that other forms of transport offer benefits that cars do not, which may often
make them the better option.
In an urban situation for instance the car ceases to be

advantageous and becomes generally detrimental to quality of
life yet continues to command large proportions of investment.
Richard Rogers advocates giving local authorities stronger
management powers allowing them to target resources better,
and also a ‘simplified legal framework that strengthens a sense of
neighbourhood and prioritises the needs of pedestrians, cyclists and
public transport users.’ 14
The WHO’s healthy cities project suggests integrating health,

equity and environmental quality in transport planning. It calls to
improve public transport options and reduce car use, accidents,
air pollution and CO2 emissions, to improve accessibility to jobs
and services for those who do not use cars, and to enhance
accessibility by foot/bike, promoting healthy exercise to increase wellbeing, reduce heart disease,
and obesity and promote a sense of community. 15
Our transport systems must be considered on a local rather than national level, and power to make
decisions must be devolved to communities and individuals. Indeed the most ecological, healthy,
enjoyable, social, and autonomous transport option is walking, and it would make sense to give
pedestrians top priority in urban movement systems.
T here may be deep psychological reasons why we gain so

much from walking, according to ecopsychology it may be that
connecting with nature satisfies needs within us that we have
long since forgotten to appreciate.
If we hold within us ‘reservoir[s] of joyous, trusting, and loving

connections with the natural world’ 16 then it is reasonable to
suggest that those reservoirs may be drawn upon to allow our
lives to become more fulfilled. By honouring our connections to
nature, rather than neglecting them in favour of aspirations to
materialistic wealth, we would become more environmentally
aware in a way that is mentally and emotionally rewarding, ‘a
possibility the environmental movement could use for good political
purposes.’ 17
Evidence shows that our relationship with the natural world is very important to our psychological
welfare, (chapters 2, 4) and yet so little resources are invested into understanding that relationship.18
It may be regarded that it is exactly because we have invested so much of our time and resources
into industrialisation and have neglected our relationship with nature, that we are in any
environmental crisis at all.
Perhaps all we need to do in order to deal with this crisis is to re-connect with nature and fully
understand our relationship with it, physiology researchers confirm that reconnecting with nature
makes sense. 19 Michael J Cohen has recorded fantastic results with his practical solutions, based on
a premise that: ‘The depressing anger, anxiety, and sadness produced by our new brain mislabelling,
overlooking, or rejecting our old brain’s natural senses and feelings stresses us.’ ‘Reconnecting with nature
reverses our destructive processes. It creates tangible connections with nature and an environmentally
responsible psychology that enables us to unlearn our destructive personal, social, and environmental ways.’ 20
Ecopsychologist Theodore Roszak suggests that since we have switched to a more indoor life we
have found it necessary to fulfil our senses by emotionally bonding to nature-detached technologies,
which is why we constantly crave ‘stuff’ but are never fulfilled by it, and that in fact most of our basic
needs can be provided by nature 21 - ‘there is a greater richness than the limitless acquisition of things.
Changing these perceptions at the deepest level of the personality plays as great a part in dealing with our
environmental crisis as any economic reform.’ 22
To become more connected with global processes we must conversely become more connected to
physical and biological processes on a community and individual level.
6.3 Local (Community) Connection
T he previous chapters have described our fractured and unhealthy communities and suggested
reasons for that ill health. Undoubtedly some of those reasons are due to misguided town planning or
impoverished town planning departments, after all ‘urban design and planning can manage the dynamism
of towns and cities to tackle social problems and achieve social inclusion.’ 23
People in deprived circumstances are often those who most need access to knowledge, natural
environments, and better services. Our society invests the majority of its resources in ways that
mean these people have televisions and play stations, out-of town-shopping centres and cars to get
to them, are physically healthy and can expect to live to a ripe old age. However it neglects to invest
in education, natural areas, or communal facilities for impoverished communities – investment that is
likely to thwart discontentment, community violence and crime, and generally improve wellbeing. 24
As would strengthening a sense of neighbourhood by prioritising

the needs of pedestrians, cyclists and public transport users as
mentioned above, one of 10 points that Richard Rogers
advocates for creating an ‘Urban Renaissance’, the others
suggesting such methods as providing local authorities with
more incentives, investment, power and resources. 25
With this increased investment urban planners can influence the

social, natural, and economic environments of communities.
Investments of time must come from individuals, who have a
key role to play in improving the health and wellbeing of
communities and their inhabitants – to foster a real long-lasting
sense of community, it is the community itself that must provide
those individuals.
The WHO healthy cities project advocates developing healthy urban planning principles and
practices as a priority. Its broad aim is to refocus urban planning on health, quality of life, and the
wellbeing of inhabitants – ‘If cities are to become healthy and attractive places to live in the future, it is vital
that urban planners in every country focus on people and how they use buildings and developments, rather than
on the buildings themselves.’ 26 When will other facets of our lives be judged by the same qualities?
T he previous chapters have broadly shown that consumerism is having a profound effect on the
health of western and global communities. One reason that the perpetrators of this phenomenon
have gone unchallenged is due to distancing, as described in chapter 3, and an obvious way to
reduce those effects would be to narrow distances, to reconnect producer with consumer.
One method would be to enforce cradle to the grave responsibility of products, or Extended Product
Responsibility (EPR). 27 EPR initiatives could easily be embodied in law, and would ensure all
producers take responsibility for their part in the life cycle of a product, from raw material through to
distribution, and including eventual disposal.
EPR schemes are essentially calling on producers to view their product with a consumption-oriented
lens, to design for repair, re-use and recycling. Producers will seek to cut waste to a minimum,
including unnecessary transportation, and consumers will be able to make informed environmentally
sound purchase decisions. It is likely that such schemes would significantly simplify production
chains, reduce physical distance, and allow greater discourse between producer and end user. 28
Narrowing the distance between consumer and waste will also reduce the production of waste. The
greater the physical distance between the consumer and their waste, the more waste that is
generated.29 As physical distance grows so does mental distance, consumers can throw away their
rubbish and forget about it, they do not see it again and are largely ignorant of what happens to it.
There are fewer and fewer places for it to go however, and increasingly it is transported to poor
nations who are made to bear further burden for the rich. Dealing with waste on a community or
municipal level would relieve those poor nations of that indignity as well as reminding consumers of
the consequences of their choices, resulting in a reduction of waste as well as the promotion of waste
reduction schemes and less wasteful packaging.
Ecocertification and labelling schemes (ECLs) could also be an important way to reduce consumption
and waste. By including with every product a simplified breakdown of the energy and resources
consumed by, and social and environmental effects of, the life cycle of a product, several factors with
regard to distancing are negated. Consumers are able to become more aware of the significance of
their decisions and ecological products prevail.
A huge proportion of our waste is either compostable or is the

packaging from compostable goods. Doorstep organic
vegetable box schemes cut down this waste as well as cutting
down transportation, chemical usage, storage and distribution
costs. They also promote low-commodity, low-impact farming
techniques, which as previously mentioned are ecologically
sound, more labour-intensive, and are therefore better for the
health of planet, community and individual.
Better still is growing your own food which, as the questionnaire

results show, also gives people great satisfaction, teaches
ecological awareness, is a great form of exercise and allows
people to connect with nature and not the television set. The
promotion of growing ones own food, composting, local food
exchanges, farmers markets, and veggie box schemes would have a profound effect on
consumerism, our communities, and the quality of our lives. 30
Another community-based re-connection idea is that of a local currency, or Local Exchange Trading
Systems (LETS), which attempt to reduce the scale of global industrial production and distribution by
ensuring investment back into local production and service provision. 31 Rather than individuals
spending general currency on goods and services, communities foster their own currency, often
based on man-hours, which are then exchanged within the community. This not only ensures wealth
stays within a community but also cultivates a sense of collective identity.
People who are involved with LETS often experience a ‘lightness of being’ with respect to their
trading relationships. 32 In large-scale economies environmental awareness and a sense of
responsibility are undermined as economic processes spread out over greater distances - ‘individuals
often experience a sense of alienation where large and anonymous economic forces seem to control their destiny
in hard-to-understand ways.’ 33
A return to local goods and services, small-scale production, and local currencies not only reduces
waste and consumption but also creates meaningful and important community conditions, which
results in increased contentment, reduced crime and greater wellbeing, 34 indeed the Green party
argues that people only realise their full identity and potential in the context of the broad social values
and experiences of their community.
In order to help global, local and personal health and wellbeing, it can be seen that there must be a
shift from selfish thinking back to community thinking - ‘a far better road map to happiness, lies in the
common good. Happiness is easier to find in collective things than in the short-lived pleasures of shopping.’ ‘The
evidence is clear: our wellbeing depends on cooperation and the public good, not personal enrichment’. 35
6.4 Personal Connection
T he preceding chapters have explained that although we

essentially want for no material possessions, we are unhappy
and attempt to buy happiness as marketed by the media. We
have been led to assume that having more money will enable us
to buy more happiness, and we spend more and more time
either at work or commuting to work, which is not only deeply
unsatisfying but also leads to the breakdown of our private and
community relationships. 36
We gain very little contentment from material possessions at all

- ‘once countries and households are free of material need the biggest
contributor to life satisfaction seems to be a healthy set of personal
relationships’ 37 but a lot from our relationships - ‘the relative
happiness of late teenagers and those passing middle age may relate
to their spending more time on friendships.’ 38
We need to be able to spend more time on our social lives and relationships, but time is a scarce
resource in a culture that is working increasingly long hours. One solution to this problem is that of
job-sharing, where workers trade money for time. Job sharing can be a very successful practice for
those who have jobs that can be shared – a rising proportion of jobs however are professional and
specialist and do not lend themselves well to being apportioned.
It is exactly these kind of professional, office-based jobs that can

be done from home however, and home working has been
proven to offer many advantages. Nearly 60% of all those
questioned said that they’d like to work from home, 33% of
those that do find it much more productive than working in the
office and 45% of office workers are attracted to working from
home because they would spend less time and money on
commuting. 39 40
Whilst working from home can be more productive, home

workers also use their breaks more effectively. Coffee and chats
with colleagues are replaced by breaks to do the housework
(58%) the shopping (49%), a spot of gardening (43%) or
exercise (36%). Working from home is also less stressful and
generally healthier, 77% of respondents either never, or rarely
take time off work due to sickness, and 66% think that their stress levels are definitely lower. 41 42
In total 92% saw working from home as an advantage, citing the flexibility to determine their own
working hours and having greater freedom as the biggest advantages. Advantages that they may not
have considered are the benefits to themselves and their communities of spending more time in their
local neighbourhoods, and the reduction in car use and congestion as a consequence of their staying
at home, ‘the UK workforce travels 78.5 billion miles to get to work’. 43 44
Working from home will not necessarily confront why we feel it necessary to work such long hours in
order to buy more stuff however – although it may be surmised that a significant proportion of
‘cultural gossip’ is passed-on in and on the way to the office.
A large part of the responsibility for this must be placed at the

door of the media and advertising, whose job it is to create a
buying environment in our culture, to ‘swamp it in muzak’, 45
encouraging us to have fun, not question ourselves or our
culture, and not to think ‘too deeply’ so that we continue to buy
stuff that is of no real value to us at all.
‘People will only cease cluttering the world with more junk then the
planet can metabolise if they can recognise junk when they see it’ 46 -
somehow people must become aware of the reality that they are
being fed, it must be ‘revealed for the childish absurdity that it is’. 47
Perhaps one way would be to divert a significant amount of the
resource stream that currently flows into advertising into art –
‘the gentle discipline of the appetite’. 48
An increase in investment into the arts (painting, sculpting, dance, theatre, music, literature etc) may
be considered as an investment into society or economy, and both would gain. It would lead to a
general increase in standards and expectations, enrich our culture, and raise the threshold of what
we anticipate from our media.
Current access to democratic communication and the mass media is massively constricted, only the
very richest can afford to preach to the masses, and it is the very richest who gain from the perpetuity
of a trash culture. Our media must be democratised to allow more people to become involved in the
creation, enjoyment and appreciation of art and communication, leading to a stronger and wider
expression of our culture and the representation of worthwhile aspirations. 49
Chapter 4 introduced the ideas of adaptive behaviour and psychological reactance, which assert that
we become stressed when controlled – one wonders the level of stress the world’s media causes us
in this regard. One may also ponder how much contentment is forgone by the state supplying us our
basic needs of heat and light - as mentioned previously building a fire can provide immense
satisfaction.
In the US an estimated 250,000 residences have switched off from the grid and onto ‘home power’.
These people have been offered no tax incentives, have invested their own time and money, and are
prepared to continuously monitor and adjust their energy-use patterns according to energy availability
– ‘as a result, home power promotes and sustains an altered sense of function and consequence at every flip of
an electrical switch drawing from the energy of the sun’ 50 and as such users experience a ‘profound
reorienting of daily life’ 51 as well as a very tangible connection to nature and the elements.
Individuals who generate they’re own power have chosen a

‘fundamental departure from traditional consumer behaviour’ 52 opting
instead for an environmentally friendly alternative and a sense of
control over their own lives - ‘home power has been more concerned
with recovering a more basic and perhaps more essential sense of
being “equal to” the world: a sense that one can function effectively, on
one’s own behalf, in the world’. 53
The rewards of GIY (generate-it-yourself) 54 are gained from

designing and building your own generation system, from
becoming more independent, more autonomous, and also from
the enduring satisfaction of becoming connected with the
process - ‘Home power reaffirms the notion that people’s needs and desires cannot always be satisfied on the
consumption treadmill.’ 54
Home power is a constituent part of a movement dubbed the ‘Voluntary Simplicity Movement’ (VSM)
whose advocates turn their backs on many aspects of modern society - ‘Simple living in an age of instant
gratification and globalized mass consumption deserves our attention.’ ‘By its very existence the VSM insists that
real reductions in consumption bring real benefits to be enjoyed rather than sacrifices to be endured’. 55
Perhaps ecological solutions lie in asking these ‘downshifters’

why they do it. Many cite job stress, disillusionment, or feelings
of disconnection from real-life, others state, “to get my life back”. 56
The VSM certainly seems to reward those who are able to take
it up, and perhaps more should be given the opportunity - ‘might
not the path to more sustainable levels of consumption best be paved
by policy measures that would confer on others the same power over
work that voluntary simplifiers are themselves now asserting?’ 57
Choosing to live frugally fundamentally questions public policy

and its notion that human happiness derives from the
consumption of goods and services. Since the 1980’s the US
public have withdrawn from all forms of civic engagement and
yet downshifters are bucking the trend by becoming increasingly
involved in their neighbourhoods and communities. 58
Widespread promotion of the VSM could not only benefit our environment and society but also allow
people to discover ‘the joys of cultivating a capacity for restraint.’ 59
6.5 Summary
T his chapter has shown that in order to treat the global, social and personal malaise there is a
general need to scale down, slow down, democratise, and decentralise; to downshift from the high-
speed resource-hungry lifestyles we have become accustomed to and stressed by, to more
sympathetic ways of living on our planet and within our communities - we must think big and act
small. ‘To “think globally” is to recognise the diversity and complexity of local environments and peoples around
the world, to see the need for local initiatives informed by local knowledge and local community initiatives. In this
way, “thinking globally” reinforces the urgency of the need to “act locally”.’ 60
Globally over-production, consumption and consumerism must

be seriously researched and severely restricted using common-
sense ecological methods. Such research will throw up the huge
need for investment into LCPs, which are more likely to be of
benefit to our wellbeing and like our transport systems need to
be considered on a local level.
At the same time re-evaluating our relationship with nature,

reconnecting with it and giving it the respect it deserves will not
only lead to an immediate improvement in our mental health and
alter our view of the media-filled world we have replaced our
outdoor lives with, but will also ensure that our thinking will
become effortlessly more ecological.
There is a desperate need for power, investment, and resources to be diverted to local government,
which would also benefit from a greater involvement and commitment from its citizens who need to
be better educated and empowered so they feel that they can make a difference.
Ecological thinking and corporate responsibility will see the demand and effects of products, services
and waste increasingly being regarded on a local level, and communities can be enriched and
recharged by LETS schemes, and the massive benefits of home-grown or locally grown produce.
These benefits will also be felt by the individual who will feel
much more satisfied with a less stressful, more social,
community-based lifestyle. In order to reach this state there is a
need for hours spent getting to or at work to be significantly
reduced, which can be easily achieved if only people realise the
futility of constantly aspiring to media-driven false realities.
That knowledge may be gained through studying the VSM and

extolling its virtues, and also by affecting a fundamental change
in the way we regard and access the media, by investing in the
arts and limiting advertising which seeks to sell using the power
of discontent.
Cars have their place, they offer practicality and autonomy. Television has its place, it enables us to
spread knowledge and culture. Marketing, magazines, hair products etc etc all have their place. The
trouble starts when a society becomes obsessed with materialism and neglects its community and its
environment.
We need to re-evaluate what is important, who we are, what we truly want and what we need.
We need to be brave enough to be honest with ourselves. We need to be involved in meaningful

relationships with our selves, community and environment. We want to be happy.
Chapter 7
Prognosis : Conclusion
“The good of the soul must be made to seem of

greater appeal than the pleasures of the flesh”
Theodore Roszak, The Voice of the Earth

Chapter 7 – Prognosis : Conclusion
7.1 Prognosis : Conclusion
We must become sustainable. Time, materials and energy must be invested equally into
environment, society and economy, on global, local and personal scales, with the prime concern to
benefit and uphold physical, emotional and mental health in the most ecological way possible.
The Green Movement for all its good intentions is not working. It is not working for the opposite
reasons consumerism is working – one says ‘You can have it all!’ and is backed by government, the
other wants to take it all away and is led by ‘dissidents’. In order to be heard above the din of
industrialism the Green Movement has had to pander to consumerism, and as such has become part
of the problem.
The Green Movement would be more successful if it were able to promote not what needs to
forsaken but what can be gained by adopting ecological practices. The findings of this thesis suggest
that much can be gained, not least personal empowerment and contentment, two worthy aspirations
for anybody.
These positive ambitions may be promoted to individuals and also enveloped in political and civil law
- ‘If, after our physical welfare, our wellbeing is what matters most, then personal or national economic growth
should cease to be the primary goal of the majority of people or politicians in developed nations’, 1 a factor that
could have huge repercussions for society and the environment.
The advertising industry for example is a huge engine that drives consumption, any curtailment of
which would have significant benefits for the planet. Advertising is currently shielded by laws of fair
trade and free-market. These laws do not regard mental health. If a proven link between aspirations
as advertised and degrading environmental, social, and mental health were established, lawyers
could significantly kerb the worst excesses of advertising by citing “dysfunctional environmental
relations syndrome”, 2 or similar.
T he media shames us into believing we are not what we are supposed to be or not as successful as
we should be. At the same time we feel a deep guilt for the neglect of our planet. We are unable to
tolerate these feelings. Instead we strive for perfection or control, we criticise and blame and judge.
We show contempt for ourselves and others, we patronise, we get jealous, we plead indifference and
we get angry. 3
To cure our shame we must realise its source, we must acknowledge it, and we must embrace it –
this will involve pain. Most neurotic behaviour is due to the avoidance of legitimate pain. Most human
illness is due to the avoidance of emotional suffering or dealing with modern day stressors. 4
The more we avoid shame the worse it gets, and the worse our societies and our environment get.
We need to realise the shame within us and express our feelings. We need to legitimise our trauma
by writing and talking about it. 5 We need to break free from our self-centred prisons of individualism
and reconnect with our communities and the world around us.
When mental health and self-discovery become the focus of our society the Great Global Industrial
Circus will immediately seem banal, coarse and vulgar. It is merely avoidance.
M oney and attempting to procure more money does not make us happy. The ‘selfishness of
individualism’, 6 endlessly pursuing personal pleasure regardless of others does not make us happy.
Neglecting our communities and our planet does not make us happy.
The quality of our relationships with family and friends make us happy. Giving and receiving makes
us happy. Living in communities that value our opinion and deliver good democratic government
make us happy. Gaining satisfaction from our work makes us happy. Avoiding poor health, especially
poor mental health, makes us happy. 7 Having control over our lives makes us happy.
Appendix 1 : Questionnaire 1 Data
8.0 Appendix 1 : Questionnaire 1 Data
8.1 Questionnaire 1
Please answer the following questions being as honest as possible. They focus on three main areas
(recycling, food growing, solar water) - only answer the questions that are relevant to you.
1. Do you recycle? (If so is your recycling collected from your doorstep?) (y/n)
2. If not why not? (please delete all not applicable) Not considered, Too time consuming, Too
expensive, No information/provision in my area
3. If so, on a scale of 1 (none) to 5 (loads) how much satisfaction do you feel you get from recycling?
4. On a scale of 1 (none) to 5 (loads) to what extent do you feel that through recycling you have
become more conscious of environmental/social issues?
5. Do you grow any of your own food?
expensive, No information, No Garden
7. If so, on a scale of 1 (none) to 5 (loads) how much satisfaction do you feel you get from growing
your own food?
8. On a scale of 1 (none) to 5 (loads) to what extent do you feel that through growing your own food
you have become more conscious of environmental/social issues?
9. Do you produce your own hot water/power (i.e. Solar water / PV)?
expensive, No information, No space
11. If so on a scale of 1 (none) to 5 (loads) how much satisfaction do you feel you get from producing
your own power/hot water?
12. On a scale of 1 (none) to 5 (loads) to what extent do you feel that through home power
production you have become more conscious of environmental/social issues?
13. If you could, and irrespective of time or cost, would you consider installing renewable power
production modules into your home (e.g. solar water panels) and/or producing your own food if it
gave you greater control of your life and an increased feeling of contentment?
14. How would your opinion change, if it meant investing a lot of time and/or money?
15. Would time or money be the biggest obstacle?
Msc Architecture: Advanced Environmental and Energy Studies, A pril 2004, James R Smith : Power To The People? Pg64
8.2 Questionnaire 1 – Non-Greens Data
Who? Q1 Q2 Q3.1 Q3.2 Q4 Q5 Q6 Q7 Q8 Q9 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 comments
AA 1 2 1 1 5 1 3 1 1 1
AD 2 1 1 0 4 7 1 1 2
AH 2 1 1 0 4 1 1 Recycle Man
AJ 1 4 3 0 8 7 1 1 2
BC 1 1 2 H 4 3 1 7 1 1 3
BC 1 5 4 1 5 4 3 1 1 1
BJ 1 5 5 1 5 2 3 1 1 1
BM 2 3 2 0 2 10 1 1 3
PR 2 5 2 0 4 12 1 1
RB 0 4 1 4 1 10 1 1
DR 2 3 2 0 4 3 1 1
TH 1 4 2 0 1 1 1 1 1
JT 2 2 3 0 2 7 1 1 1
CB 2 2 4 H 4 5 1 7 1 2
CS 2 4 3 0 9 1 1 1 3
PVS 2 4 4 1 3 3 3 1 1 3
DW 1 4 1 0 4 7 1 1
EH 2 3 1 0 4 1 1 1
ES 1 4 5 1 4 4 1 1 3
ES 2 4 4 H 4 5 1 4 1 Q15 - 'No obstacle'
SG 2 3 2 0 4 1 1 3
ID 1 5 4 0 4 1 1 1
AS 2 4 2 0 4 4 1 1 3
GS 1 3 2 0 5 6 1 1 2
JM 1 3 3 1 5 3 3 1 3 Green Lekky
EJ 1 1 1 0 4 1 1 1 2
RC 2 4 3 0 9 7 1 1 1
MA 2 3 2 1 5 3 10 1 1
ST 1 4 4 H 9 4 2 10 1 3
TC 2 5 5 1 5 5 3 1 1 1
KS 1 5 4 1 5 3 10 1 1
DH 1 5 4 1 5 1 1 1 1
AS 2 5 5 1 5 3 10 1 1 1
FJK 1 4 2 1 5 2 8 1 1 3
JT 2 4 3 H 9 3 1 8 1 3
GL 2 1 1 0 4 1 1 3
LD 0 4 0 4 1 1 1
MW 2 4 owa H 4 3 1 1 1 1 3
MB 1 5 3 1 3 4 1 3 3 1 1 3 Battery charger
MS 1 4 4 1 5 5 10 1 1
MF 2 5 3 1 5 3 1 1 1 2 Recycling comments
ME 2 4 2 1 4 2 9 1 1 2
MK 0 2 0 4 1 1 1 1
RM 1 5 5 0 9 10 1 1
MB 0 2 0 9 1 1 1
NW 2 4 4 0 2 4 1 2
NN 1 4 4 0 1 3 1 1 3
OW 1 3 2 0 4 4 1 1 1
PS 2 4 2 1 5 2 4 1 1
TP 0 4 0 4 4 1 1 2
RW 2 4 4 H 3 2 10 1 1 1
RH 2 3 1 1 5 1 4 1 1 3
SAK 2 4 2 0 4 10 1 1 1
SH 1 5 3 1 5 3 7 1 1 1
SB 1 5 2 0 4 3 1 1 1
SP 0 2 1 5 2 1 1 1
BS 2 4 1 1 5 1 4 1 1 1
SS 0 2 1 5 3 12
SM 2 4 3 0 4 1 1 2 Green lekky
SM 1 4 3 0 4 12 1 3
SH 2 3 3 0 4 1 1 1 3
SF 1 5 5 0 4 10 1 1 1
ROH 2 4 4 1 5 5 3 1 2
SS 0 2 0 2 4 1 1 2
TB 1 4 2 0 4 4 1 1 1
TM 1 4 3 1 5 4 3 1 1 1
TW 1 3 3 1 2 3 1 3
T&G 2 4 3 1 5 3 3 1 2
VS 2 3 2 0 4 1 1 1 2
VL 2 5 3 0 4 13 1 1 2
ZM 1 4 owa 1 4 3 4 1 1
KS 1 5 4 1 5 3 10 1 1
RD 1 4 2 0 4 1 1 1 1
SI 2 3 3 1 4 2 8 1 1 2 Q8 - Slugs, not using chems
CD 1 3 5 H 4 5 5 4 1 1 Recycling. Uses Juice
AA 1 3 owa 0 4 7 1 1
SV 2 4 1 0 4 4 1 1 2
AEG 1 4 4 1 5 5 1 4 4 1 1 had spw, too exp in new house
HG 2 4 3 1 5 3 4 1 3
SV 2 4 1 0 4 4 1 1 2
JS 2 5 5 1 2 2 4 1 1 1
NAFM 1 2 owa 1 4 3 2 10 1 1 3 hates rubbish, wants to reduce
GB 2 4 4 1 5 4 1 1 1 1
MS 2 4 3 H 4 4 2 6 1 1 2 Veg - time vs benefits query
ML 2 3 3 0 4 12 1 3 composts
JT 0 2 0 4 1 1 1 3
JD 2 5 5 0 4 4 1 1 1
ED 0 2 0 4 1 3 See Q13-15
HB 1 2 3 0 9 1 1 3
BF 1 5 4 1 5 5 4 1 1
SB 2 4 owa 0 2 8 1 1 2
RS 2 4 3 1 5 1 9 1 1 3
MH 0 4 1 5 2 1 1 3
TM 2 5 5 0 2 7 1 1 1
C&C 2 2 3 0 2 1 1 2
JB 1 3 3 0 2 1 1 1
JW 2 1 1 0 2 13 1 1 3
JM 1 4 2 0 4 4 1 2
BAJ 1 4 2 0 4 12 1 3
JF 2 3 4 0 4 4 1 1 2 KIDS
JC 2 4 2 0 4 1 1 1
KL 1 3 owa 1 5 owa 2 1 1
KD 1 5 3 1 5 3 3 1 1 1
LC 2 2 2 0 4 10 1 1 1
LF 1 5 3 H 4 5 4 7 1 1 1
LG 2 4 4 1 5 3 7 1 1 1
LM 2 5 1 0 4 4 1 1
PB 2 3 2 0 9 1 doesn't want more control
LB 1 2 2 0 4 1 1 1 1
8.3 Questionnaire 1 – Greens Data
Who? Q1 Q2 Q3.1 Q3.2 Q4 Q5 Q6 Q7 Q8 Q9 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 comments
AW 2 3 2 0 4 4 1 1
BF 2 2 2 0 4 4 1 2
BB 2 5 3 1 5 3 3 1 1 1
BC 1 5 4 1 5 3 1 4 4 1 1 q14 5 year benefit
CC 2 3 1 1 5 4 10 1 1 q14 5 year benefit
CAT 1 1 1 1 5 5 1 5 1 1 3
CAOB 1 3 3 0 4 4 1 1
CO 1 3 3 0 4 4 1 1
DS 2 2 2 H 4 5 2 10 1 3 green tariff better
DR 1 4 1 1 5 4 10 1 1 1 if not conscious garden easier
FF 1 3 1 1 5 3 4 1 1
GK 1 3 3 1 5 5 4 1 3
JH 0 4 1 5 2 4 1 1
JV 1 3 2 0 4 1 3 2 1 1 1
BB 2 4 5 1 3 owa 3 1
UJ 2 3 3 1 5 5 3 1 1 1
ND 1 1 1 0 4 4 1
JF 1 2 2 0 1 4 1 1 good food available, +Q14
CAM 0 4 0 9 10 1 3 Q15 comments
DZ 2 4 3 1 5 1 1 5 4 1 1 2
CD 2 5 4 1 5 4 6 1 1
WS 1 3 owa 0 2 3 1 3
CAM 1 5 owa H 5 4 10 1 1 Q8 - grounding, connecting
SS 2 5 2 0 4 1 1 1 1
CB 2 5 owa H 2 3 1 1 Lots of notes
AS 2 5 1 0 4 10 1 3
KL 2 3 2 1 4 3 4 1 1
JS 2 5 5 0 2 3 2
JS 2 4 owa 0 2 3 1 1
BR 1 4 2 1 5 2 10 1 1 1
JC 1 3 3 1 4 3 4 1 3
JC 1 5 5 1 5 4 4 1 1 1
JY 2 3 2 0 2 3 1 1 1
MT 2 4 5 0 2 10 1 1 kids
CW 2 4 2 0 4 4 1 1
KK 1 4 5 1 5 owa 4 1 1
LS 1 5 5 0 4 1 4 3 1 1 1
ML 1 3 2 0 2 1 5 owa 1 2
OSB 1 4 owa 1 5 4 1 5 4 1 1 3
PA 1 3 owa 1 5 5 1 5 5 1 1
PH 1 5 owa 1 5 3 3 1 1 1
RH 1 4 2 1 5 5 4 1 3 13-15 comments
SW 1 4 owa 1 5 2 1 5 owa 1 1
SALW 1 4 2 1 3 4 4 1 1
SV 1 4 3 1 5 2 1 4 5 1 1
SH 1 2 2 0 4 3 1 1
SC 1 3 3 1 5 4 4 1 1
ST 2 3 owa 1 5 2 3 1 1 1
SST 2 5 2 0 4 4 1 1 1
SF 2 5 5 1 5 5 3 1 1 1
VJ 1 3 4 1 5 5 2 1 Q4, 8 comments
8.4 Questionnaire 1 – Recycling Graphs
Non Greens Greens Recycle Combined Recycle

Recycle No
No No 8%
10% 4%
Collect
41% Collect
Collect 47%
50%
Take Take
40% Take 45%
55%
Non-Greens Why Greens Why Combined Why

Not? Not? Not?
Provision
36% Provision
46%
Time
54%
Time
64%
Provision
100%
8.4 Questionnaire 1 – Recycling Graphs
Satisfaction Of Those Who Do
60
50
No. People
40
Non Greens
30 Greens
Combined
20
10
0
1 2 3 4 5
Satisfaction Level
Raised Awareness Of Those Who Do
45
40
35
No. People
30
Non Greens
25
Greens
20
Combined
15
10
5
0
1 2 3 4 5 OWA
Raised Awareness Level
8.5 Questionnaire 1 – Food Graphs
Non Greens Food Growing Greens Food Growing Combined Food Growing
Herbs Herbs Herbs

9% 6% 8%
No
39%
No
No 49%
Yes
53%
38% Yes
43%
Yes
55%
Non-Greens Why Not? Greens Why Not? Combined Why Not?
N/C N/C N/C

CC
3% 4% 5%
Time
Time
25%
27%
Time
35%
Expense
1% Provision Expense
61% 1%
Provision
Provision 69%
71%
8.5 Questionnaire 1 – Food Graphs
70
60
50
No. People
Non Greens
40
Greens
30
Combined
20
10
1 2 3 4 5
Satisfaction Level
25
20
No. People
15 Non Greens
Greens
10
Combined
0
1 2 3 4 5 OWA
8.6 Questionnaire 1 – Power Graphs
Non Greens Power Greens Power Combined Power

ProductionYes Production Production
Yes
2% Yes 8%
20%
No
No 80% No
98% 92%
Non Greens Why Greens Why Combined Why

Not? Not? N/C Not?
6% Time
3%
N/C
Provision 36%
35% N/C Provision
45% 39%
Prov
Expense
53%
38%
Time
1%
Expense Time Expense
19% 1% 24%
8.6 Questionnaire 1 – Power Graphs
5
No. People
Non Greens
4
Greens
3
Combined
2
0
1 2 3 4 5
Satisfaction Level
4
No. People
3
Non Greens
Greens
2
Combined
0
1 2 3 4 5 OWA
8.7 Questionnaire 1 – Life Change Graphs
Non Greens Lifestyle Change Non Greens Change Mind? Non Greens Factor?
No Neither
4% 4%
Both
27%
No
45% Money
48%
Yes
55%
Time
Yes 21%
96%
Greens Lifestyle Change Greens Change Mind? Greens Factor?

No Neither
4% 4%
Both
Yes 18%
29%
Time
8%
No Money
71% 70%
Yes
96%
Appendix 2 : Questionnaire 2 Data
9.1 Questionnaire 2
Dear All
Firstly, thank you once again for answering my questionnaire - I got 162 replies and some very useful
data.
So useful in fact that my thesis has taken a slight turn... It is still concerned with ecopsychology and
empowerment (in order to increase environmental and social consciousness) but it has become
apparent that any such study must include data on our travelling habits.
Could I ask therefore for an extra minute of your time to answer some more questions?
Well, in the advent that i can:
1. Do you drive a car & if so how often? (please delete) Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Less
2. What do you like about your car?
3. Do you use public transport & if so how often? (please delete) Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Less
4. What do you like about public transport?
5. Do you ever walk to your destination & if so how often? (please delete) Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Less
6. What do you like about walking?
9.2 Questionnaire 2 – Non-Greens Data
Who? Q1 Q2 Q3 COMMENTS
N G'S D W M D W M D W M
AEG 1 2 8 3 2 2 1 7
VF 0 1 0 1 1 2 3
AJ 2 6 8 1 7 2 1 5 Car = Music
BC 1 8 3 2 3 1 7
RB 0 1 0 1 1 2 7
BL 0 2 8 1 2 3 5 BIKE
RC 1 6 7 8 0 2 1 3 7
BM 1 7 8 0 2 1
CCS 2 8 9 3 2 8 3 1 5
CB 0 1 8 2 1 3 5
CD 0 2 2 4 1 1 2 4
PVS 1 5 6 9 0 1 1 5
ED 1 0 3 7 3 1
EH 1 8 3 2 2 1 3
ES 1 2 6 0 3 1
ES 0 2 5 2 1 5
FJK 3 5 9 1 2 4 1 1 2 4
GB 3 9 3 2 8 1 1 8 BIKE
GS 2 6 1 2 1 1
HG 3 5 9 2 2 5 1 1 2
JE 0 1 0 1 1 2
JS 2 6 9 2 2 8 1 5
JT 1 8 0 1 1
JS 2 8 1 7 1 1 2
JW 0 1 2 5 1 0
JM 2 5 8 1 7 8 1 2
JT 3 5 6 1 4 2 1 3 Likes Driving
JF 2 6 8 9 1 2 8 1 1 2 4 5 BABY
JC 2 5 1 2 5 1 1 7 8 Driving Stressful
LC 1 6 8 2 8 3 1
LF 0 1 4 10 3 1 3
LG 1 6 8 2 0 2 1
LM 0 1 4 1 1 2
LD 0 1 2 3 1 1 2 5
MW 2 5 8 9 1 2 8 2 1 3 5
MB 2 5 8 3 2 4 1 1 3 4 7
MP 3 5 6 3 8 1 1 2 3 8
MS 2 8 1 2 4 7 2 1 3 4
MF 0 1 5 1 1 2 3 8 Read Walking Notes
MK 2 8 10 1 3 7 1
MM 0 1 3 7 2 2 3 5
NW 1 5 6 0 1 1 2 5
NN 2 5 1 2 8 1 1 2 5
OW 1 8 3 2 3 3 Walking unsafe
PR 3 5 6 1 2 8 2 5
RS 1 6 9 2 0 2 1 3 Needs car for work
RW 0 2 2 8 2 2 8
RH 1 5 8 3 2 5 1 2 5 8
SAK 1 6 3 2 4 5 1 1 4
SF 3 5 6 8 1 2 5 8 1 1 3 4
SB 2 8 2 8 1 1
SP 0 2 8 1 1 8
BS 2 6 8 9 2 2 8 3 1 2 3
SV 0 2 2 4 7 1 2 3 5
SM 3 10 1 8 1 1 3 5
SH 0 1 0 3 1 5
SB 2 6 8 3 2 5 1 1 3
SF 3 6 8 9 1 4 1 1 2 3
TC 3 8 2 2 1 1 2
TM 2 5 6 8 1 8 1 1 2 3 5
VS 2 5 1 2 7 2 1 3 8
9.3 Questionnaire 2 – Greens Data
Who? Q1 Q2 Q3 COMMENTS
G'S D W M D W M D W M
ARP 2 10 1 2 10 1 1 2 3
AS 2 8 1 8 1 8
AW 2 9 1 3 4 7 1 1 2 P/T - window to world
BR 2 5 8 3 7 8 1 1 2 3 Walk comments
BB 1 4 6 2 4 8 2 3 4 8
BP 2 8 2 8 1 3
BC 1 4 6 9 2 8 10 3 1 2 3
CC 2 8 9 1 3 4 8 1 1 4 7
CC 1 8 0 0
CD 0 2 2 8 2 1 2 3 Bike
JC 0 2 2 3 7 2 1 2 3
COB 2 6 8 0 3 2 3
CB 0 1 4 3 1 4 7 Bike
CO 1 8 0 1 1 2 3 7
DZ 1 8 3 2 2 1 5
DS 0 1 4 7 8 1 1 5
DW 0 1 8 3 1 2 4
FF 0 0 1 1 2 3
GK 3 6 8 2 2 3 3 3 Cars comments
JH 0 1 8 1 2 3 5
JMP 3 6 3 2 6 1 2
JV 0 2 2 4 8 1 1 2 3 Bike
JC 2 6 8 9 3 2 4 6 1 1 2 3 Family. Bike
JS 1 8 3 4 2 1 3
JS 2 5 8 0 1 1 2 3
JY 0 3 2 1 1 7
JF 0 1 10 1 1 2 3
KS 0 1 4 1 1 4
KS 0 2 2 8 1 1 3 5 8 Bike. Hire Car Occ.
LS 0 2 8 2 1 3 8
ND 2 5 8 0 1 1 5
OSB 2 8 0 1 1 2 3 7 Walking Notes
PA 0 3 2 4 6 3 1 2 3
PH 2 8 2 2 7 8 1 1 Bike
SW 1 8 3 2 4 2 1
SW 1 5 9 3 2 1 1 3 5
SV 1 6 8 3 10 3 2 3
IS 3 9 2 3 1 1 2 3
ST 1 8 2 2 2 1 2
SF 1 5 6 8 3 4 3 2
ST 0 2 2 3 10 1 1 3 Connected comms
SS 3 8 9 1 2 4 8 2 2 3 4
TW 0 1 3 4 10 1 1 3 4 Walking comms
VJ 1 8 3 2 4 6 1 1 3 4
WS 1 5 6 8 3 2 8 2 1 2 5
9.4 Questionnaire 2 – Car Use Graphs
Non G's Car Use Non G's Daily Car Use Likes Non G's Weekly Car Use Likes
Nothing Relax Exists

Monthly Practical 4% 7% Practical 3% Auton
16% 7% Auton
Don't 15% 21%
11%
28%
Conv
Weekly 35% P.Space
P.Space
30% 29% 21%
Conv
Daily 40%
26% Cost
7%
Non G's Monthly Car Use Likes Non G's Total Car Use Likes
Exists
5% Exists Nothing Relax
1%
Practical 3% 3%
Practical Auton 14% Auton
21% 32% 20%
Conv Conv P.Space

16% 32% 24%
P.Space Cost
26% 3%
Greens Car Use Greens Daily Car Use Likes Greens Weekly Car Use Likes
Monthly Practical Ecology Exists

Auton
9% 9% 9% 5%
Practical 16%
Auton 16%
Don't 14%
35% P.Space
Weekly
11%
27%
Conv
45% P.Space
23%
Daily Conv
29% 52%
Greens Monthly Car Use Likes Greens Total Car Use Likes
Exists Ecology
2% 4%
Practical Auton
15% 13%
Practical P.Space
33% 34%
P.Space
19%
Conv
Conv 47%
33%
Combined Total Car Use Combined Daily Car Use Likes Combined Weekly Car Use Likes
Nothing Relax
Exists
Monthly 2% 4% Ecology Auton
Practical 4%
13% Practical
8% 4% 19%
Don't 15%
Auton
32%
12%
Weekly P.Space
28% Conv/ 17%
40% P.Space
26%
Conv
Daily Cost
45%
27% 4%
Combined Monthly Car Use Likes Combined Total Car Use Likes
Nothing Relax
Exists 2%
Exists 1%
4% Ecol
Auton 2%
2%
Practical 24%
Practical Auton
24% 14%
17%
P.Space
23%
Convl
Conv P.Space 37%
20% 28% Cost
2%
9.5 Questionnaire 2 – Public Transport Use Graphs
Non G's P.T. Use Non G's Daily P.T. Use Likes Non G's Weekly P.T. Use Likes
Nothing
Don't Nothing
Monthly Exists 9%
10% Relax 10%
18% 2%
25%
Relax
Conv 32%
20%
Conv
View 33%
Weekly
23% 7%
Daily
49% Cost Ecology Ecology
15% 13% 10%
Auton Cost Auton
9% 5% 10%
Non G's Monthly P.T. Use Likes Non G's Total P.T. Likes
Nothing
Conv Exists
7%
16% 1%
Cost Conv Relax

5% 22% 35%
Relax
Auton 52%
16%
View
Cost 3%
10%
Ecology Auton Ecology
11% 10% 12%
Greens P.T. Use Greens Daily P.T. Use Why? Greens Weekly P.T. Use Why?
Relax Exists
Don't Exists
13% 9% 8%
16%
Monthly View Relax
29% 13% 30%
Conv
Conv 31%
Daily 26%
27%
Ecology View
Weekly Cost 30% Cost 15%
Ecology
28% 9% 8%
8%
Greens Monthly P.T. Use Why? Greens Total P.T. Likes
Exists Exists
Conv 4% 8%
9% Relax
26%
Cost
Relax Conv.
4%
40% 22%
Autony
17%
View
Cost 10%
7%
Auton
Ecology 6% Ecology
26% 21%
Combined P.T. Use Combined Daily P.T. Use Likes Combined Wkly P.T. Use Likes
Don't Nothing Nothing

Exists Relax
Monthly 12% 6% Exists 4%
6% 20%
23% 4%
Relax
32%
Conv
21% View Conv
9% 32%
Daily
Weekly 39%
View
26% Ecology 9%
Cost Cost
13% 19% Auton Ecology
Auton 6%
6% 4% 9%
Combined Mnthly P.T. Use Likes Combined Total P.T. Likes
Exists Nothing
Conv 2% Exists
4%
12% 4%
Cost Relax
5% Convl 31%
Relax 22%
45%
Auton
17%
Cost
9% View
6%
Ecology
19% Auton Ecology
8% 16%
9.6 Questionnaire 2 – Walking Graphs
Non G's Walking Non G's Walk Daily Likes Non G's Walk Weekly Likes
Conv Conv
Monthly Nothing
Cost 7% Cost 6%
15% 1% 6%
3%
Health
Auton Health
32%
13% Auton 36%
17%
Weekly Ecology
26% Daily 7% Ecology
59% 3%
View
13% Relax
Relax View 6%
24% 26%
Non G's Walk Monthly Likes Non G's Walk Total Likes
Cost Conv Nothing

Cost 6% 1%
7%
Auton 4%
13%
Auton Health
14% 36%
Health Ecology
View 53% 5%
20%
View
Relax 17% Relax
7% 17%
Greens Walking Greens Walk Daily Likes Greens Walk Weekly Likes
Don't Conv Conv

Monthly Cost 3%
2% Auton 8%
18% 6% Auton
7% 8% Health
Health
34% 32%
Ecology Ecology
6% 8%
Weekly
22% Daily
58%
View View
25% 24%
Relax Relax
19% 20%
Greens Walk Monthly Likes Greens Walk Total Likes
Cost Conv
Cost
Ecology 6% Health 4%
Auton 5%
11% 22% 6% Health
31%
Ecology
7%
View
28%
View
Relax 25%
33% Relax
22%
Combined Walking Frequency Combined Walk Daily Likes Combined Walk Weekly Likes
Don't Nothing Conv

Monthly Cost Convl 1% Cost
1% 5% 7%
16% 5% 3%
Auton Health Auton Health
10% 33% 13% 35%
Ecology
6% Ecology
Weekly 5%
25% Daily
58%
View
18% View Relax
Relax
22% 25% 12%
Combined Walk Monthly Likes Combined Walk Total Likes
Cost Conv.
Auton 6% Cost 5%
6% 4%
Ecology Auton Health
Health
6% 37% 10% 35%
Ecology
6%
View
24%
View
21%
Relax Relax
19%
21%
References
10.0 References
10.1 Chapter 0 : Introduction
1. Theory of adaptive behaviour first discovered in: N Baker N & M Standeven, Thermal Comfort for free-running
buildings, Energy in Buildings 23, march 1996
2. J.W Brehm, A Theory of Psychological Reactance, New York, Ac ademic Press, 1966
3. For example The Ecologist
4. James Lovelock, Gaia: The Practical Science of planetary Medicine, Gaia Books Ltd, 1991
5. Alex Begg, Empowering The Earth, Green Books, 2000
6. David Edwards, Free To Be Human, Green Books, 2002
7. Thomas Princen Et Al, Confronting Consumption, MIT Press, 2002
8. Alex Begg, Empowering The Earth, Green Books, 2000, pg 89
11. George Monbiot, What Do We Really Want?, The Guardian Newspaper, 27.08.02
12. Theodore Roszak, The Voice Of The Earth, Phanes Press Inc, 2001, pg 35
13. British Association of Anger Management, www.angermanage .co.uk
14. Michael Maniates, Individualization, MIT Press, 2002, pg 47 (Confronting Consumption)
15. Timothy Luke, The (UnWise) (Ab)(Use) of Nature: Environmentalism as Globalised Consumerism, Alternatives
Vol.23 No.2, June 1998
16. Timothy Luke, The (UnWise) (Ab)(Use) of Nature: Environmentalism as Globalised Consumerism, Alternatives
Vol.23 No.2, June 1998
10.2 Chapter 1 : Sustainability

1. Ken Conca, Consumption and Environment in a Global Economy, MIT Press, 2002, Pg 135 (Confronting
Consumption)
2. G Brundtland Our common future: The World Commission on Environment and Development, Oxford University
Press, 1987
3. Report Of The United Nations Conference On Environment And Development, Rio de Janeiro, 3-14 June 1992
4. See http://www.agenda21.org
5. M. Jacobs, The Green Economy, University of British Columbia Press, 1993
6. International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI), International Development Research Centre
(IRDC), & United Nations Environment Program. 1996. The Local Agenda 21 Planning Guide. Toronto: ICLEI;
Ottawa: IDRC
7. Mark Roseland. Toward Sustainable Communities. New Society Publishers, 1998
8. Forum for the Future Annual Report 2000, http://www.forumforthefuture.org.uk/
9. UK Government Sustainable Development website – http:/www.sd-commission.gov.uk
15. World Health Organisation, www.who.int/en
17. International Healthy Cities Foundation, http://www.healthycities.org/
18. United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), http://www.unesco.org/
19. UNESCO, http://www.unesco.org/
21. Ros Coward, The Ecologist, Jan 2004
23. Thomas Princen Et Al, Confronting Consumption, MIT Press, 2002, pg 317
25. David Edwards, Free To Be Human, Green Books, 2002, pg 37
10.0 References
10.3 Chapter 2 : Health
2. Hugh Barton & Catherine Tsourou, Healthy Urban Planning, Spon Press, 2000
3. Thomas Princen, Consumption and Its Externalities: Where Economy meets Ecology, MIT Press, 2002, pg 24
4. http://www.who.int/about/definition/en/
5. Dinyar Godrej, The Great Health Grab, New Internationalist, issue 362
6. New Internationist, Big Pharma: Making a killing, Issue 362
7. http://www.who.int/
8. World Health Organisation, City Planning for Health and Sustainable Development, European Sustainable
Development and Health Series: 2, 1992
10. Numerous Sources, Including: The New Internationalist, The Ecologist, The Guardian, Greenpeace, Friends of the
Earth
11. Theodore Roszak, The Voice of the Earth, Phanes Press Inc, 2001, pg 307
12. Theodore Roszak, The Voice of the Earth, Phanes Press Inc, 2001
13. Theodore Roszak, Interview with Dr. Jeffrey Mishlove, Thinking Allowed Productions 1998
15. Theodore Roszak, Voice of the Earth, Phanes Press Inc, 2001, pg 304
16. Michael J. Cohen, Reconnecting with Nature, Ecopress, 1997, pg 27
17. http://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health
18. Dr Trisha McNair, Pets and Health, BBCi
19. M. Santamouris et al, Energy and Climate in the Built Environment, James & James, 2001
20. Theodore Roszak, The Voice of the Earth, Phanes Press Inc, 2001; Michael J. Cohen, Reconnecting with Nature,
Ecopress, 1997
22. T Fjeld et al, The Effect of Indoor Foliage Plants on the Health and Discomfort Symptoms among Office Workers,
Indoor Built Environment, 1998
23. N Baker N & M Standeven, Thermal Comfort for free-running buildings, Energy in Buildings 23, march 1996
24. Michael J. Cohen - Reconnecting with Nature, Ecopress, 1997, pg 118
25. Michael Argyle, The Psychology of Happiness, 2nd Edition, Routledge, 2001
26. Michael Maniates, In Search of Consumptive Resistance, MIT Press, 2002, pg223 (Confronting Consumption)
30. Richard Reeves, Life’s Good. Why Do We Feel Bad?, The Observer, 19.05.02
31. Oliver James, Children Before Cash, The Guardian, 17.05.03
32. http://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/
33. Oliver James, They Fuck You Up, Bloomsbury, 2003
36. Child Of Our Time, BBC, 2003; Fast Forward Into Trouble, The Guardian, 14.06.03
37. Polly Toynbee, Money and Happiness, The Guardian, 07.03.03
38. Will Hutton, In Pursuit of True Happiness, The observer, 09.03.03
39. Prof Richard Layard, London School of Economics
40. George Monbiot, What Do We really want?, The Guardian, 27.08.02
41. Daniel Kahneman, Princeton University, 2002 Nobel Laureate in Economics
43. Karl Marx, Wage-Labour and Capital, pg33
44. Oliver James, Children Before cash, The Guardian, 17.05.03
45. George Monbiot, Apocalypse Now, The Guardian 29.07.99
46. Richard Reeves, Life’s Good. Why Do We Fell Bad? The Observer, 19.05.02
47. The Formula For Happiness, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health
49. Michael Argyle, The Psychology of Happiness, 2nd Edition, Routledge, 2001, pg 37
10.0 References
54. Professor Andrew Oswald, Warwick University
56. Will Hutton, In Pursuit of True Happiness, The Observer, 09.03.03
57. Richard Reeves, Life’s Good. Why Do We Fell Bad? The Observer, 19.05.02
58. Nic Marks, The Well-being Programme, New Economics Foundation, http://www.neweconomics.org/gen/
59. Nic Marks, The Well-being Programme, New Economics Foundation, http://www.neweconomics.org/gen/
62. George Monbiot, What Do We Really Want? The Guardian, 27.08.02
63. Jack Manno, Commoditisation: Consumption Efficiency and an Economy of Care and Connection, MIT Press,
2002, pg67 (Confronting Consumption)
64. Will Hutton, In Pursuit of True Happiness, The Observer, 09.03.03
10.4 Chapter 3 : Disconnection

1. George Monbiot, What Do We Really Want?, The Guardian, 27.08.02
2. George Monbiot, Apocalypse Now, The Guardian, 29.07.99
3. Emily S. Rosenburg, Spreading The American Dream: American Economic and Cultural Expansion 1890-1945,
Hill & Wang, 1982, pg27
5. Thomas Princen, Consumption and its Externalities: Where Economy meets Ecology, MIT Press, 2002
2002
2002
10. Alex Begg, Empowering The Earth, Green Books, 2000 pg 78
13. http://www.sustainable-development.gov.uk/
14. Thomas Princen, Consumption and its Externalities, MIT Press, 2002
18. Michael Maniates, Individualization, MIT Press, 2002
19. Sunder Katwala, Life, Government and the Pursuit of Happiness, The Guardian, 02.02.04
20. Theodore Roszak, The Voice of the Earth, Phanes Press Inc, 2001, pg22
22. Michael Maniates, In Search of Consumptive Resistance, MIT Press, 2002
2002
2002
2002
27. Graham Diggines, Shoppers dislike being spoilt for choice, The Guardian, 24.04.00
28. Matt Weaver, Consumerism speeds decline of parks, The Guardian, 07.05.02
10.0 References
38. Alex Begg, Empowering The Earth, Green Books, 2000 pg88
40. Thomas Princen, Distancing: Consumption and the Severing of Feedback, MIT Press, 2002
2002
2002
2002 pg 85 (Confronting Consumption)
2002, pg 92 (Confronting Consumption)
47. Thomas Princen, Distancing: Consumption and the Severing of Feedback, MIT Press, 2002, pg128 (Confronting
Consumption)
53. Nick Cohen, The unfree market, The Observer, 07.03.04
56. Marilyn Bordwell, Jamming culture, MIT Press, 2002, pg 238 (Confronting Consumption)
57. Marilyn Bordwell, Jamming culture, MIT Press, 2002, pg 238 (Confronting Consumption)
58. AC Grayling, The last word on Consumerism, The Guardian, 06.01.01
61. Richard Reeves, Life’s Good. Why Do We Feel Bad?, The Guardian, 19.05.02
62. Michael Maniates, In Search of Consumptive Resistance, MIT Press, 2002, pg 207 (Confronting Consumption)
63. Cathy Scott-Clark and Adrian Levy, Fast forward into trouble, The Guardian, 14.06.03
67. Eleanor Bailey, Do not adjust your mind set, The Observer, 13.07.03
70. Marilyn Bordwell, Jamming culture, MIT Press, 2002
72. Eric Helleiner, Think Globally, Transact Locally, MIT Press, 2002
73. Jesse Tatum, Citizens or Consumers, MIT Press, 2002, pg 315 (Confronting Consumption)
81. Michael J. Cohen, Reconnecting With Nature, Ecopress, 1997, pg 67
82. http://www.sustainable-development.gov.uk/taking-it-on/index.htm
83. http://www.sustainable-development.gov.uk/taking-it-on/index.htm
10.0 References
10.5 Chapter 4 : Symptoms
1. Mark Roseland, Toward Sustainable Communities, New Society Publishers, 1998
3. The Guardian Newspaper, Numerous articles, Jan 2003 – present.
6. I Illich, Energy and Equity, Harper & Row, 1974
8. Olle Hagman, Mobilizing Means of Mobility: Car Users’ Constructions of the Goods and Bads of Car use, Elsevier
Science Ltd, 2003
Science Ltd, 2003
10. M. Santamouris et al, Energy & Climate in the Built Environment, James & James, 2001
11. BBC News, Lead link to Youth Crime, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/2632261.stm
13. National Statistics Website, http://www.statistics.gov.uk/
16. Richard Rogers, Delivering The Urban Renaissance, The Guardian, 21.07.02
19. British Association Anger Management, http:/www.baam.co.uk/
Science Ltd, 2003
21. Alex Begg, Empowering The Earth, Green Books, 2000, pg88
2002
Science Ltd, 2003
Science Ltd, 2003
Science Ltd, 2003
32. HM Government Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), http://www.defra.gov.uk/
35. Ecotec, Beyond The Bin: The Economics Of Waste Management Options, A Final Report To Friends Of The
Earth, Uk Waste And Waste Watch, 2000
36. For instance: The Recycling Consortium, http://www.recyclingconsortium.org.uk; or Recycle For London,
http://www.recycleforlondon.com/
37. The Recycling Consortium, http://www.recyclingconsortium.org.uk
38. For instance: The Recycling Consortium, http://www.recyclingconsortium.org.uk; or Recycle For London,
http://www.recycleforlondon.com/
2002 (Confronting Consumption)
42. Michael Maniates, Individualization, MIT Press, 2002 (Confronting Consumption)
2002 (Confronting Consumption)
10.0 References
45. Jennifer Clapp, The Distancing of Waste, MIT Press, 2002
48. Jennifer Clapp, The Distancing of Waste, MIT Press, 2002, pg 170 (Confronting Consumption)
51. Health and Safety Executive, http://www.hse.gov.uk/hthdir/noframes/hdsbs.htm; London Hazards Centre, Sick
Building Syndrome: causes, effects and control, http://www.lhc.org.uk/index.htm
52. Health and Safety Executive, http://www.hse.gov.uk/hthdir/noframes/hdsbs.htm; London Hazards Centre, Sick
Building Syndrome: causes, effects and control, http://www.lhc.org.uk/index.htm
56. Nick Baker, Designing For Comfort: Recognising the Adaptive Urge, University of Cambridge, 2003
59. J.W Brehm, A Theory of Psychological Reactance, Academic Press, 1966, pp93
60. J.W Brehm, A Theory of Psychological Reactance, Academic Press, 1966
61. J.W Brehm, A Theory of Psychological Reactance, Academic Press, 1966
10.6 Chapter 5 : Questionnaires

2. NAFM – Questionnaire Respondent
3. VJ – Questionnaire Respondent
4. DR – Questionnaire Respondent
5. CAM – Questionnaire Respondent
6. VJ – Questionnaire Respondent
7. Richard Rogers, Cities for a Small Planet, Faber and Faber, 1997
8. CAM – Questionnaire Respondent
9. RH – Questionnaire Respondent
10. GK – Questionnaire Respondent
11. JC – Questionnaire Respondent
12. AW – Questionnaire Respondent
13. BR – Questionnaire Respondent
14. OSB – Questionnaire Respondent
15. OSB – Questionnaire Respondent
16. ST – Questionnaire Respondent
17. STW – Questionnaire Respondent
18. CB – Questionnaire Respondent
19. JF – Questionnaire Respondent
20. MS – Questionnaire Respondent
21. JC – Questionnaire Respondent
22. ST – Questionnaire Respondent
23. MF – Questionnaire Respondent
24. RH – Questionnaire Respondent
10.7 Chapter 6 : Reconnection

2. Thomas Princen, Consumption and its Externalities: Where Economy Meets Ecology, MIT Press, 2002
3. Thomas Princen, Consumption and its Externalities: Where Economy Meets Ecology, MIT Press, 2002
6. Thomas Princen, Consumption and its Externalities: Where Economy Meets Ecology, MIT Press, 2002, pg 42
(Confronting Consumption)
8. Ken Conca, Consumption and Environment in a Global Economy, MIT Press, 2002
10.0 References
10. George Monbiot, What Do We Really Want?, 27.08.02
2002
2002
15. World Health Organisation, www.who.int/en; International Healthy Cities Foundation, http://www.healthycities.org/
19. Michael J. Cohen, Reconnecting with Nature, Ecopress, 1997
22. Theodore Roszak, The Voice of the Earth, Phanes Press Inc, 2001 pg 40
33. Eric Helleiner, Think Globally, Transact Locally, MIT Press, 2002, pg 260 (Confronting Consumption)
36. Prof Andrew Oswald, Warwick University
39. MORI, Home Workers Do It In Their Pyjamas, 1999
40. MORI, British Office Workers Want To Work From Home, 2001
50. Jesse Tatum, Citizens or Consumers: The Home Power Movement, MIT Press, 2002, pg 301 (Confronting
Consumption)
51. Jesse Tatum, Citizens or Consumers: The Home Power Movement, MIT Press, 2002, pg 301
54. James R. Smith
55. Jesse Tatum, Citizens or Consumers: The Home Power Movement, MIT Press, 2002, pg 314 (Confronting
Consumption)
61. Eric Helleiner, Think Globally, Transact Locally, MIT Press, 2002, pg 270 (Confronting Consumption)
10.0 References
10.8 Chapter 7 : Conclusion
3. Recognised reactions to shame, British Association of Anger Management, http:/www.angermanage.co.uk
4. British Association of Anger Management, http:/www.angermanage.co.uk
5. British Association of Anger Management, http:/www.angermanage.co.uk
7. Lord Richard Laynard, Director of the Centre for Economic Performance, London School Economics
Bibliography
11.0 Bibliography
11.1 Books

2. Bannister & Fransella, Inquiring Man: The Psychology of Personal Constructs, Croom Helm, 1980
6. James Bruges, The Little Earth Book 2 nd Edition, Alastair Sawday, 2001
7. Noam Chomsky, The Chomsky Reader, Serpents Tail, 1995
9. Michael J. Cohen, Reconnecting with Nature, Ecopress, 1997
10. Collins Dictionary and Thesaurus, William Collins & Sons Ltd, 1990
11. Stephen R Covey, The 7 habits of highly effective people, S&S Sound Ideas, 1989
12. Desai & Riddlestone, Bioregional Solutions For Living on One Planet, Green Books, 2002
14. Herbert Girardet, Creating Sustainable Cities, Green Books, 1999
15. James Gleick, Chaos, Sphere Books, 1988
16. Stephen Hawking, A Brief History of Time, Bantam Books, 1999
18. Ron Hubbard, Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health, New Era, 1992
19. Aldus Huxley, Island, Flamingo Modern Classics, 1994
20. Aldus Huxley, Brave New World, Penguin Modern Classics, 1968
21. I Illich, Energy and Equity, Harper & Row, 1974
22. M. Jacobs, The Green Economy: Environment, Sustainable Development, and the Politics of the Future
(University of British Columbia Press, 1993)
24. Naomi Klein, No Logo, Flamingo, 2001
25. Langston & Ding et al, Sustainable Practices in the Built Environment, Butterworth Heinman, 2001
26. James Lovelock, Gaia: The Practical Science of planetary Medicine, Gaia Books Ltd, 1991
2002
30. W. Arthur Mehrhoff, Community Design: A Team Approach to Dynamic Community Systems, Sage, 1999.
31. Hugh Piggott, It’s a Breeze, CAT Publications, 2001
32. M. Scott Peck, The Road Less Travelled and Beyond, Rider, 1997
33. Popkin, Stroll & Kelly, Philosophy Made Simple, W.H Allen, 1979
35. Thomas Princen, Consumption and Its Externalities: Where Economy meets Ecology, MIT Press, 2002
37. James Redfield, The Celestine Prophecy, Bantam Books, 1994
38. Richard Rogers, Cities For A Small Planet, Westview Press, 1998
40. Theodore Roszak, The Voice Of The Earth, Phanes Press Inc, 2001
41. M. Santamouris et al, Energy and Climate in the Built Environment, James & James, 2001
42. Eric Schlosser, Fast Food Nation, Penguin, 2002
43. Peter Smith, Architecture in a Climate of Change, Architectural Press, 2001
44. Jesse Tatum, Citizens or Consumers, MIT Press, 2002
45. B. Tuckman & M. Jensen, Stages of Small Group Development. Group and Organizational Studies, 1977
46. N. Wates, The Community Planning Handbook: How people can shape their cities, towns and villages in any part
of the world, Earthscan Publications Limited, 2000.
47. Whetton, Cameron, Woods, Effective Conflict Management, Pearson Higher Education, 1996
11.0 Bibliography
11.2 Publications & Articles
4. Sheri Blake, Community Design Centres: An Alternative Practice, .pdf
5. J.W Brehm, A Theory of Psychological Reactance, New York, Academic Press, 1966
6. Paul Brown, Shopping Until You Drop Leads To Misery, The Guardian, 17.09.03
7. G Brundtland Our common future: The World Commission on Environment and Development, Oxford University
Press, 1987
8. Rebecca A. Clay, Green is good for you, Monitor on Psychology, Volume 32, No. 4 April 2001
9. Nick Cohen, The unfree market, The Observer, 07.03.04
10. Ken Conca, Consumption and Environment in a Global Economy, MIT Press, 2002
11. Graham Diggines, Shoppers dislike being spoilt for choice, The Guardian, 24.04.00
12. DTI, Our Energy Future: Creating a Low Carbon Economy, 2003
13. The Ecologist
14. Ecotec, Beyond The Bin: The Economics Of Waste Management Options, A Final Report To Friends Of The
Earth, Uk Waste And Waste Watch, 2000
15. T Fjeld et al, The Effect of Indoor Foliage Plants on the Health and Discomfort Symptoms among Office Workers,
Indoor Built Environment, 1998
16. Dinyar Godrej, The Great Health Grab, New Internationalist, issue 362
17. AC Grayling, The last word on Consumerism, The Guardian, 06.01.01
18. Greater London Authority, The Draft Culture Strategy, GLA, 2003
19. Greater London Authority, The Draft London Plan, GLA, 2002
20. Green Party Manifesto, Manifesto for a Sustainable Society, html, 2003
21. The Guardian, Summary report, Urban regeneration: The new agenda for British housing, Creating new
communities?, 2003
22. Olle Hagman, Mobilizing Means of Mobility: Car Users’ Constructions of the Goods and Bads of Car use, Elsevier,
2003
23. Rosemary Hiscock et al, Do Cars Provide Psycho-social Benefits to their Users?, Permagon, Transportation
Research Part D7, 2002, 119-135
25. Tim Jackson, Policies for Sustainable Consumption, Centre for Environmental Strategy University of Surrey, 2003
27. Oliver James, They Muck You Up, The Psychologist, Vol 16 No 6, 2003
28. Sunder Katwala, Life, government and the pursuit of happiness, The Guardian, 02.02.04
29. Greater London Authority, The Draft London Plan, 2002
30. Timothy Luke, The (UnWise) (Ab)(Use) of Nature: Environmentalism as Globalised Consumerism, Alternatives Vol.23 No.2,
1998
31. Richard Layard, Money and Happiness, transcript of The Talk Show, Monday 7 April 2003
32. Jean Nicol-Maveyraud, Mind Over Money, The Psychologist, Vol 16 No 5, 2003
37. New Internationist, Big Pharma: Making a killing, Issue 362
40. See http://www.agenda21.org
42. Howard Steele, State of the Art: Attachment, The Psychologist, Vol 15 No 10 2002
44. TRIP, Breaking the habitual choice of the private car, Centre for Transport Research on environmental and health
Impacts and Policy, 2000
46. World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), The Brundtland Report (Our Common Future),
1987
11.0 Bibliography
47. World Health Organisation, City Planning for Health and Sustainable Development, European Sustainable
Development and Health Series: 2, 1992
11.3 Websites
1. Adbusters, http://www.adbusters.org/index.html
2. Association for Community Design (ACD), www.communitydesign.org
3. British Association of Anger Management, www.angermanage.co.uk
4. BBC, http://news.bbc.co.uk/
5. BBC Health Stories, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/
6. British Wind Energy Association, http://www.bwea.com/index.html
7. Campaign Interactive, http://www.sustainable-cities.org/home.html
8. Department of Trade and Industry, UK, http://www.dti.gov.uk/epa/digest.htm
9. Department of Trade and Industry, Work-life Balance, http://164.36.164.20/work-lifebalance/
10. Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, UK, www.defra.gov.uk
11. Dictionary/Thesaurus, http://dictionary.reference.com/
12. International Community for Ecopsychology, http://www.ecopsychology.org/
13. Empowerment Resources, http://www.empowermentresources.com/
14. The Environment Agency, UK, www.environment-agency.gov.uk
15. Enslavement (Psychological Reactance), http://www.enslavement.org.uk/reactance.html
16. Centre for Environmental Philosophy, http://www.cep.unt.edu/centerfo.html
17. Campaign Interactive, European Sustainable Cities & Towns Campaign & European Sustainable Cities Project,
http://www.sustainable-cities.org/home.html
18. Forum for the Future Annual Report 2000, http://www.forumforthefuture.org.uk/
19. Frugal Living, http://frugalliving.about.com/
20. Future Forests, http://www.futureforests.com/
21. Greater London Authority http://www.london.gov.uk/
22. Green Party, http://policy.greenparty.org.uk/
23. Greenpeace, http://www.greenpeace.org/homepage/
24. Global Statistics, http://www.xist.org/index.php
25. Health and Safety Executive, http://www.hse.gov.uk/
26. Home Power, http://www.homepower.com/
27. How Stuff Works, http://www.howstuffworks.com/
28. Ideas House, Designing Questionnaires, http://www.ideas-house.com/questionnaires
29. Independent, http://www.independent.co.uk/
30. Independent Media, http://www.indymedia.org.uk/
32. Kyoto Protocol, http://unfccc.int/resource/docs/convkp/kpeng.html
33. Light Up The World Foundation, http://www.lightuptheworld.org/
34. London’s Ecological Footprint, http://www.oneworld.org/guides/thecity/superorganisms/footprint.html
35. The Mental Health Foundation, http://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/,
36. National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory, http://www.naei.org.uk/
37. National Statistics Website, http://www.statistics.gov.uk/
38. National Wind Power, http://www.natwindpower.co.uk/index.htm
39. Neighbourhood Statistics, http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/
40. New Economics Foundation, http://www.neweconomics.org/gen/
41. One World, http://www.oneworld.net/
42. Photography, http://www.photosig.com/
43. Population, http://www.population.com/
44. Prime Ministers Strategy Unit, http://www.strategy.gov.uk/
45. Audience Dialogue (Questionnaires), http://www.audiencedialogue.org/gloss-quest.html
46. Questionnaire and Survey Design, http://www.statpac.com/surveys/
47. Radical Routes, http://www.radicalroutes.org.uk/start.html
48. The Recycling Consortium, http://www.recyclingconsortium.org.uk
49. Recycle For London, http://www.recycleforlondon.co.uk/
50. The Royal Commission On Environmental Pollution, http://www.rcep.org.uk/newenergy.html
51. Simple Living, http://www.simplyliving.net/
52. Sustainable Development Commission, http:/www.sd-commission.gov.uk
53. United Nations Development Programme, http://www.undp.org/
11.0 Bibliography
54. United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), http://www.unesco.org/
55. United Nations Environment Programme, http://www.unep.org/geo2000/english/figures.htm
56. United Nations Population Fund, http://www.unfpa.org/
57. UK Government Sustainable Development, http://www.sustainable-development.gov.uk/
58. UK Government Commission for Integrated Transport, http://www.cfit.gov.uk/
59. Water UK, www.water.org.uk
61. WHO, Healthy Cities, http://www.who.dk/eprise/main/WHO/Progs/HCP/Home
11.4 Miscellaneous Inspiration

1. Lecture: Melissa Taylor and Sofie Pelsmakers, Durable Cities and Lasting Communities, 2003
2. Lecture: Sofie Pelsmakers, Sustainability, 2002
3. Lecture: Paul Allen, Sustainability, 2002
4. Lecture: Peter Harper, Environmental Issues on a Global Scale
5. Lecture: Peter Harper, Global Environmental Objectives
6. Mark Thomas Product, 2003 Tour
7. Yaan Arthus-Bertrand, The Earth From The Air Exhibition, 2003
8. Stop The War! protest march, London, 2003
9. Sustainable Energy, Energy Efficiency & Environmental Solutions Expo 2003, Olympia, London
10. The Centre for Alternative Technology, Machynlleth, Wales

Power To The People JRS2004

Încărcat de

Informații document

Titlu original

Drepturi de autor

Formate disponibile

Partajați acest document

Partajați sau inserați document

Opțiuni de partajare

Vi se pare util acest document?

Este necorespunzător acest conținut?

Drepturi de autor:

Formate disponibile

Power To The People JRS2004

Încărcat de

Drepturi de autor:

Formate disponibile

Can the promise of human contentment,

gained through greater empowerment and

‘It is impossible not to notice that, in some of the

M odern Western lifestyles are not good for us.

We look on powerless, bewildered or oblivious;

Those pushing for environmental and social

People strive to be useful, helpful, respected,

We must focus all of our efforts, resources, and

Our planet and our society will heal themselves

I am particularly grateful to Blanche for her inspirational

Big shout out to my siblings-in-arms who made the whole

Love and apologies to friends and family who have

Endless appreciation to Mum & David for providing a

Dedicated to Claire, for the good times; I will love forever

0.0 Introduction – Paradigm Page 7

1.0 Chapter 1 – Aim : Sustainability Page 10

1.1 Definition Page 11

2.0 Chapter 2 - Diagnosis : Poor Health Page 16

2.1 Definition Page 17

3.0 Chapter 3 - Affliction : Disconnection Page 24

3.1 Definition Page 25

4.0 Chapter 4 - Symptoms : Attempts to Exert Control in a Disconnected Society Page 33

4.1 Definition Page 34

5.0 Chapter 5 – Diagnosis : Questionaires Page 41

5.1 Definition Page 42

6.1 Definition Page 53

7.0 Chapter 7 - Prognosis : Conclusion Page 62

7.1 Prognosis : Conclusion Page 63

8.0 Appendix 1 - Questionnaire 1 Data Page 64

8.1 Questionnaire 1 Page 65

9.0 Appendix 2 - Appendix 2 : Questionnaire 2 Data Page 78

9.1 Questionnaire 2 Page 79

10.0 References Page 93

10.1 Chapter 0 : Introduction Page 94

11.0 Bibliography Page 102

11.1 Books Page 103

“Never give children a chance of imagining that

Aldus Huxley, Island

0.0 Introduction – Paradigm

The seed was germinated recently by the discovery of theories

This negative image is not entirely the fault of the media

The green movement has not only failed to control consumerism

“If the qualities associated with commodities are

Jack Manno, Commoditisation: Consumption

T he UK government suggests that at the heart of sustainability

• Protection of the environment: ‘We must act to limit global

T he World Health Organisation (WHO) clearly sees its role as

UNESCO is aware of the urgent need to develop better relations

It also forwards a new element to the debate, that of ethical

Indeed in most current definitions, understandings and reports,

It has been suggested that the present emphasis on sustainable

It is worth mentioning that the Brundtland report continues after

‘Compromise, in corporate terms, is failure. Success is defined only in terms of profitability.’ 27

1.4 Summary Communal

Sustainable development has, since its inception as

interdependence of humans and the environment

The definitions of sustainable development that are

allegory, this is clearly unsustainable.

Diagnosis : Poor Health

“The twin voices of this demon could hardly

David Edwards, Free To Be Human

Figure 3 – The Main Determinants Of Health

2.2 Global (Environmental) Health