Decision-Making for a Sustainable Environment: A Systemic Approach

290 Pages·2012·5.253 MB·English

by  Chris Maser

Environmental Science
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“Decision Making for a Sustainable Environment is a challenging read on a  E
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whole range of levels. Deeply personal, deeply reflective, courageous, and 
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atypically altruistic. If you find yourself in self-analysis while reading this book,  S
then you have got the point. ... Not for the faint-hearted, [it] reminds us that  IO
humans have a power and responsibility to make wise decisions when it comes  N
to sustaining the natural world that we are part of.”
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—Dr. Andrew W. Claridge, Senior Research Scientist, NSW National Parks and  A
Wildlife Service, Australia K
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Increasingly, environmental decision making is like playing a multidimensional 
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game of chess. With interactions between the atmosphere, the litho- A

hydrosphere, and the biosphere, the game is at once a measure of complexity,   S F
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uncertainty, interdisciplinary acuity, social-environmental sustainability, and  y
s R
social justice for all generations. As such, it demands a systemic point of view. 
Decision Making for a Sustainable Environment: A Systemic Approach  te A
m

gives readers the tools to replace the dysfunctional, symptomatic decision  S
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making that has plunged the world into environmental crises with a systemic  c U

approach that fosters social-environmental sustainability. A S
p T
p A
Based on the author’s more than 45 years of research and international  r I
o N
experience, the book guides policy makers and managers to work with—rather 
a
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than within—theoretical and methodological frameworks to achieve multidi- c
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mensional and multilayered policy decisions. Organized into three parts, it 
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describes the inviolable biophysical principles that define the limitations of  E
human choices, examines in depth why the conventional command-and-
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control form of decision making tends to become dysfunctional, and explores  N
what it takes to be a psychologically mature decision maker. V
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Proposing new ways of thinking and problem solving, this book provides  O
readers with the ideas, language, approaches, and examples to move toward  N
genuine social-environmental sustainability. It offers counsel on how to be a  M
psychologically mature trustee of planet Earth and leave a more viable legacy  E
for future generations. N
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K15203
ISBN: 978-1-4665-5216-6
90000
9 781466 552166

Social-Environmental Sustainability Series
Series Editor
Chris Maser
Published Titles
Decision Making for a Sustainable Environment: A Systemic Approach,
Chris Maser
Economics and Ecology: United for a Sustainable World,
Charles R. Beaton and Chris Maser

Chris Maser and Carol A. Pollio
Sustainable Development: Principles, Frameworks, and Case Studies,
Okechukwu Ukaga, Chris Maser, and Michael Reichenbach
Social-Environmental Planning: The Design Interface Between Everyforest
and Everycity, Chris Maser
Boca Raton London New York
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I lovingly dedicate this book to my three grandchildren
Camden, Scott, and Evan Richards.
May our decisions begin NOW—and continue henceforth—to
create a lasting legacy of social-environmental sustainability
for them and all children, present and future.

Contents
Foreword.................................................................................................................xiii
Editor’s.Note...........................................................................................................xvii
Preface.....................................................................................................................xix
Acknowledgments...................................................................................................xxv
Section i nature’s Urgent Message to the
World’s Decision Makers
Chapter 1 The.Principles.of.Biophysical.Sustainability........................................3
The.Waterbed.Principle.........................................................................4
The.Law.of.Cosmic.Unification............................................................6
Nature’s.Inviolable.Biophysical.Principles............................................9
Principle.1—Everything.Is.a.Relationship.......................................9
Principle.2—All.Relationships.Are.All.Inclusive.and.
Productive.of.an.Outcome..............................................................10
Principle.3—The.Only.True.Investment.in.Our.Global.
Ecosystem.Is.Energy.from.Sunlight...............................................11
Principle.4—All.Systems.Are.Defined.by.Their.Function............12
Principle.5—All.Relationships.Result.in.a.Transfer.......
of.Energy........................................................................................13
Principle.6—All.Relationships.Are.Self-Reinforcing.
Feedback.Loops..............................................................................14
Principle.7—All.Relationships.Have.One.or.More........
Trade-offs.......................................................................................17
Principle.8—Change.Is.a.Process.of.Eternal.Becoming...............19
Immediate.Change.....................................................................19
Understanding.Historical.Change.............................................19
Change.as.a.Historical.Continuum............................................20
Principle.9—All.Relationships.Are.Irreversible............................22
Principle.10—All.Systems.Are.Based.on.Composition,.
Structure,.and.Function..................................................................22
Principle.11—All.Systems.Have.Cumulative.Effects,.Lag.
Periods,.and.Thresholds.................................................................24
Principle.12—All.Systems.Are.Cyclical,.But.None.Are.
Perfect.Circles................................................................................27
Principle.13—Systemic.Change.Is.Based.on.Self-Organized.
Criticality........................................................................................28
Principle.14—Dynamic.Disequilibrium.Rules.All.Systems..........29
vii
viii Contents
Summary.............................................................................................30
Notes....................................................................................................31
Chapter 2 Decision.Making.and.Nature’s.Rules.of.Engagement.........................37
Every.Decision.Has.Its.Antithesis.......................................................37
Air:.The.Breath.of.Life—And.of.Death.........................................38
Water:.A.Captive.of.Gravity...........................................................39
Soil:.The.Great.Placenta.................................................................40
Biodiversity:.The.Variety.of.Life...................................................40
Human.Population:.A.Matter.of.Equality......................................41
Sunlight:.The.Source.of.Global.Energy.........................................42
Climate:.The.Global.Arbiter..........................................................43
Turning.the.Key..............................................................................43
The.Inviolable.Rules.of.Decision.Making..........................................45
Rule.1—Everything.Is.a.Relationship............................................45
Intra-Personal............................................................................45
Inter-Personal.............................................................................46
Between.People.and.the.Environment.......................................48
Between.People.in.the.Present.and.Those.of.the.Future...........50
Rule.2—All.Relationships.Are.All.Inclusive.and.Productive.
of.an.Outcome................................................................................51
Rule.3—The.Only.True.Investment.Is.Energy.from.........
Sunlight..........................................................................................55
Rule.4—All.Relationships.Involve.a.Transfer.of.Energy...............55
Rule.5—All.Systems.Are.Based.on.Composition,.Structure,.
and.Function...................................................................................61
Rule.6—All.Relationships.Have.One.or.More.Trade-offs.............62
Rule.7—All.Systems.Have.Cumulative.Effects,.Lag.Periods,.
and.Thresholds...............................................................................65
Rule.8—Change.Is.an.Irreversible.Process.of.Eternal..
Becoming........................................................................................66
Rule.9—Systemic.Change.Is.Based.on.Self-Organized.
Criticality........................................................................................69
Rule.10—Dynamic.Disequilibrium.Rules.All.Systems.................70
Rule.11—Success.or.Failure.Lies.in.the.Interpretation.of.an.
Event...............................................................................................71
Rule.12—People.Must.Be.Equally.Informed.If.They.Are.to.
Function.as.a.Truly.Democratic.Society........................................72
Rule.13—We.Must.Consciously.Limit.Our.“Wants”.....................72
Rule.14—Simplicity.Is.the.Key.to.Contentment,.
Adaptability,.and.Survival..............................................................72
Rule.15—Nature,.Environmental/Cultural.Wisdom,.and.
Human.Well-Being.Are.Paramount...............................................73
Rule.16—Every.Legal.Citizen.Deserves.the.Right.to.Vote...........75
Contents ix
Rule.17—This.Present.Moment,.the.Here.and.Now,.Is.All.
We.Ever.Have.................................................................................75
Summary.............................................................................................76
Notes....................................................................................................76
Section ii When the Decision Making Becomes
Self-Serving
Chapter 3 The.Stages.of.an.Environmental.Agency............................................87
Introduction.........................................................................................87
An.Introduction.to.Command-and-Control.Decision.Making...........88
The.Inception.of.an.Agency................................................................89
We.Are.the.Agency.............................................................................90
Stages.in.the.Cycle.of.an.Agency........................................................90
Stage.One........................................................................................90
Stage.Two.......................................................................................92
Stage.Three.....................................................................................92
Stage.Four.......................................................................................92
When.Dysfunctional.Decision.Making.Creeps.In..............................93
The.Homeostatic.Command-and-Control.of.Decision.Making..........96
The.Mythology.of.Abnegating.Personal.Responsibility.....................99
Myth.One—I.Can’t.Change.Because.I’m.Locked.In...................100
Myth.Two—I.Can’t.Commit.Future.Leaders.to.a.Course.
of.Action.......................................................................................101
Myth.Three—It’s.Not.My.Responsibility.Because.It’s.Not.in.
My.Job.Description......................................................................101
Myth.Four—I.Can’t.Make.a.Decision.Because.I.Lack.
Definitive.Data..............................................................................101
Myth.Five—It.Can’t.Be.True,.So.I.Won’t.Believe.It....................102
Myth.Six—Yes,.But.I.Have.to.Face.Reality.................................103
Myth.Seven—What.You.Are.Asking.Can’t.Be.Done—It’s.
Impossible.....................................................................................104
The.Unpredictability.of.Environmental.Laws..................................105
Setting.the.Stage.for.the.Engagement.of.Coping.Mechanisms.........108
How.Coping.Mechanisms.Influence.the.Effectiveness.of.
Decision.Making...............................................................................110
Anger.and.Aggression..................................................................110
Appraisal......................................................................................111
Defensiveness...............................................................................112
Denial...........................................................................................112
Displacement................................................................................114
Filters............................................................................................116