Planting trillions of trees can lead to deforestation (Jones). This statement makes no sense, but yet it is true. The reason this oxymoron of a statement is true is human fallibility. Incentivizing planting trees also incentivizes farmers to clear out their trees so that they can plant more trees and receive awards. This situation proves a philosophical thought by Roger Scruton; homeostatic systems are the best method of dealing with the environment.
A homeostatic system corrects itself in response to change. Homeostatic systems exist in an end of themselves. They don’t have a goal other than surviving and thriving. An example of a homeostatic system would be the government. It exists simply to exist. It isn’t trying to accomplish a specific set of goals like an environmentalist non-government organization (NGO) would. An environmental NGO exists for the purpose of trying to help the environment. Scruton says, “NGOs often exist purely for the sake of their own goals,” (Scruton). Neither I nor Scruton are arguing that those existing for a noble goal like environmentalism have bad intentions. Rather, due to human infallibility, existing for a purpose leads to bad consequences because not all factors are taken into account. For example, Greenpeace, a well-intentioned organization, fought against Shell over their oil platform. Shell wanted to sink the platform into the sea. However, Greenpeace, to protect the environment boycotted Shell and pressured their shareholders to dismantle the platform. Shell gave in and spent an additional $50 million to dismantle the oil rig. We should praise Greenpeace for winning and protecting the environment. However, Greenpeace was wrong. Not only did it cost Shell an insane amount of money, but it was actually less environmentally friendly to dismantle because of the amount of energy that it took. Nowadays, environmentalists advocate that oil rigs be sunk into the ocean as a positive for the environment because it gives fish more habitat (Scruton). Even though Greenpeace had good intentions, they were utterly wrong. Human fallibility proves that being goal-oriented is useless because it attempting to accomplish the goal, you may do the opposite.
Since goal-oriented systems aren’t efficient at protecting the environment and supporting sustainability, homeostatic systems are responsible. Homeostatic systems take into account all aspects of a situation. This is very important when considering the climate change crisis. As mentioned in my previous blog post, many worldly issues are interconnected because people have the view that they need to dominate other things. They dominate the environment, other sexes, other races, other nations, etc. Homeostatic systems have the ability, unlike NGOs, to consider all aspects of an issue. If a systems-only goal was to only focus on sustainability, then they would be ignoring the issues that are connected to it. They would ask everyone to take responsibility for the environment instead of those most benefited. For example, minorities have historically been more affected by environmental hazards than white people (Cole et al.). To ignore this fact is to ignore the core problem, and if you ignore the core problem, you cannot find the correct solution.
In conclusion, I’m not arguing that NGOs should not exist. They bring well-needed attention to important problems. The environment is a perfect example. However, it is important to remember that no matter how certain you may think you are, you are fallible. You may be wrong. Instead of smearing others for their actions, like how Greenpeace smeared Shell, try to understand their perspective and try to cordially work with them. It was reported Greenpeace never tried to actually discuss the issue with Shell (Scruton). The first step to working with others is accepting the truth that you could be wrong.
Cole, Luke W., and Sheila R. Foster. From the Ground Up: Environmental Racism and the Rise of the Environmental Justice Movement. NYU Press, 2001. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt9qgj6v. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Jones, Benji. “The Surprising Downsides to Planting Trillions of Trees.” Vox, 22 Sept. 2021, www.vox.com/down-to-earth/22679378/tree-planting-forest-restoration-climate-solutions.
Scruton, Roger. How to Think Seriously about the Planet: The Case for an Environmental Conservatism. Oxford University Press, 2015.