Green Think Tanks and Ideology

     The book dealt with rivalries in partisan ideologies, yet it never really delved into the other types of think tanks. Any since there are well over a thousand in this country alone, I decided to look into any that are of interest for their mission and possible future influence. While I am sure there are similar think tanks, I looked into a think tank called the "Tellus Institute".

http://www.tellus.org/index.php


     What piqued my interest is that the tone was remarkably different than the ideological think tanks with their banners of "go elephant" or "go donkey". While clearly a caricature, I no less mean that these constant struggles can be boring at times. Tellus is one that I believe can be influential in the future as there is some basis of their "paradigm shift". For instance, they are supporters of the so-called "Great Transition Initiative":

     "Critical to this transition is growing public awareness of the dangers ahead and the need to revise our ways of living – and living together – on this planet. In this, our time of choice, we need a vast movement of global citizens to carry forward a Great Transition."

http://gtinitiative.org/perspectives/values.html

     Their values for this outlook parallel those of many green and New Age movements. That is, the desire that humanity has sought since the Industrial Revolution must come to a close. That, instead of profit, the focus will inevitable shift to a global view while respecting Mother Earth. Some might dare say they sound like a bunch of hippies, and that...may be true. All humoring aside, this represents another by-product of the Global Warming and clean technology movement.

     In a more technical manner, the Tellus Institute publications is detailed on the site as follows:

      "About 300 selected publications are available here on scenarios, energy, water, solid waste, corporate responsibility, and sustainable development."

      So overall, their research is geared toward what one would expect of green think tanks. However, the dynamic that I find rather interesting is how they embed that worldview described earlier heavily. It goes as far to say that a removal of standard policy making must be made for their transition initiative to occur. Their mission statement creates interesting reflections on their research. Consider this flow chart:


     What's striking about this is that a think tank is going against the natural grain to be involved in the policy process, but they instead want a shift away entirely from that to their "eco-communalism" and "new paradigm". It also present a very black and white argument. Instead of creating a gray area between these paths, Tellus essentially believes that society will ultimate go to "business as usual", fear and chaos, or some Zen garden of sorts. Thus, Tellus is a rare long-term focused think thank that purports societal change in identity.

     This picture, while clearly being simplified, I believe should be more of a chain than having so many ends. First, they seem to think that the world whole has to be singing Kumbaya or something when most likely the world will become very interwoven with fragments not participating. There will most likely always be a North Korea in the world, and some countries will breakdown due to internal conflict at some points. Nonetheless, there can still be a solid chance that the world will become more eco-friendly and environmentally conscious. Tellus' aim is possible, but it will involve policy reform and some tears along the way. A shift in culture is painful since most prefer the status quo, and there will be setbacks even in a "New Age". Thus, I say it will be a chain more so than 3-6 distinctive endings.

     This link is really interesting. It shows their view on what happens in each scenario in different regions around the world:

 http://www.tellus.org/results/results_Indicators_NA.html

     Emphasis was placed on harmony with nature in a way reminiscent of the Native Americans. To me, people are too embedded in this electronic infrastructure. Millions of years we were woven with nature, yet now we cannot get off our computer (I know I can't until I get this blog done!). Some might argue its evolution, and I embrace it, but the idea that technology solves all is wrong for the foreseeable future. America as a whole has this innate appreciation for self-sufficiency, yet I doubt many could function without electricity. This kind of dependence is risky as now the light switch dictates collective sanity. I'm not saying do everything by the old-fashioned way but do appreciate that this planet is all we have. No magic worm holes have been found, and we can never get to another planet to survive as of now.