Blog post 7: Art as a means of alleviating social Exclusion. Is it worth the investment?

BLOG POST 11: SUSTAINABILITY & SOCIAL CONSCIENCE
‘So there’s the Earth and then there’s me’ (Week 1, Term 2)

This post will juxtapose two understandings of ‘self’ in relation to the world and will consider how these different identifications of self can influence the creation of Social Apathy and/or Social Conscience. Such depictions include that of the individual, autonomous being that exists internally, aware of an outward and external world, and contrastingly that of the self-within-the-world that exists interdependently with the earth and recognizes it as both influencing and being influenced by the world in which they exist.

“Homosapiens… the only species to suffer psychological exile… that aspect of the human condition known as self-consciousness, the awareness of oneself and of the distinction between oneself and the external world” (Stibbe, 2009:185). To believe one has no affect on the world, the world has no affect on them and that their singular being is void of connection to others, can result in a being who is Socially Apathetic. Social apathy is the “feeling that, despite sympathy or compassion, ‘it has nothing to do with me’, or that ‘it’s not my problem’” (Stibbe, 2009:107). One could thus be socially apathetic in their responsibility towards the earth, the environment and others within society. A Socially Apathetic being who does not take responsibility for the part they play within the earth’s system, is unlikely to engage with the sustainable practices required to meet the needs of climate change, poverty and future generations.

One who is not Socially Apathetic, according to Stibbe, is Socially Conscience. Social Conscience is “shaped by a person’s moral framework (with) interconnected elements (of) consciousness, structure, and agency” (Stibbe, 2009:106). A person with a social conscience is likely to concern themselves with issues such as the unjust poverty gap, homelessness, climate change and how many are affected by such issues with no fault of their own. The difference between social conscience and individual conscience is illustrated in the below diagram (Stibbe, 2009:106).

In order to combat Social Apathy and promote Social Conscience, it is important that sustainability education reinforces the responsibility of individuals as influential components within the earth’s system and furthermore, recognizes how the consequences of bad sustainable practice does not just harm the earth, but within an interdependent framework, also harms the actor. The Gaia System (Stibbe, 2009) reinforces educating for sustainability through systems (interdependent) thinking.

Through utilizing education, one can begin to develop their social conscience and consider positive practices they can take to impact on their world and thus equally themselves. Stibbe further encourages educators to help young people find an area requiring sustainable practice/impact that could be of particular and/or innate interest to them. Another way to promote man as interdependent is to educate philosophies that adopt the ‘interdependent’ approach for inspiration towards positive sustainable practices (Stibbe, 2009). Examples include, Buddhist and Taoist philosophies, which we will address in the next post.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Stibbe, A. (2009) The Handbook of Sustainability Literacy: Skills for a Changing World. Dartington: Green Books.