We live in a time when most of humanity has accumulated enough intellectual capital to realise that greed and boundaries between people are absolutely useless for its further development. Charitable initiatives are currently in place to help many people in need to achieve the minimum conditions for their survival and to contribute to their cultural, intellectual and technological development. Unfortunately, much more work is needed. It is extremely unfair for some to live in luxury, while others have no roof over their heads, drink dirty water, and eat scantily. We have been keeping our eyes closed for these people long enough and we continue to ignore their problems. The time has come for us to resolutely begin thinking and acting on all these issues. This means to self-educate ourselves, because such a way of thinking cannot come from the past, it is a product of the present. We should also educate our children in the same manner.
Often our personal problems turn out to be very small when compared to the problems of people in need. How many material benefits do we need for living happily? And what makes us happier — the material or the spiritual?
Much of humanity has entered a phase in which it is saturated with food and goods. The problem is that those goods are not evenly spread. Every day, food, clothing, and raw materials are wasted while there many people remain deprived of these essentials. It is extremely important that resources they are used in an optimal way, by saving some of the resources for production. It is also important for self-education to include new principles and methods for solving these problems because it is obvious that momentary satisfaction does not result in complete contentment. Let us note here that it is not a question of making some people live on the backs of others but to help those in need so that they will be able to support themselves in the future and raise their living standards. For example, feeding a needy homeless person will save him for the day, but in no way, will it change his way of living.
Often our personal problems turn out to be very small when compared to the problems of people in need. How many material benefits do we need for living happily? And what makes us happier — the material or the spiritual?
To rely solely on the external assistance of the state and its institutions is not always the right solution to problems because such organs do not always have the opportunity or means to respond to locally-occurring problems.
One of the global problems that has already come to mankind in the coming decades is the change in climate which endangers many by natural anomalies and upheavals. As a consequence, a large number of people see themselves compelled to look for new homes. It is becoming increasingly clear how important it is that action is taken in this direction. Exploitation of natural resources is a different aspect of the same issue. It seems that people are working towards solving these problems, but their full elimination is still far away. It is therefore necessary that new forces are included in the struggle for preserving the natural world.
Self-education, active follow-up and implementation of ideas is required to be clarified in the Environmental Manifesto. Its purpose is to show how we can optimize the use of energy and resources through small steps in our personal lives to save them and redirect them to people in need or to urge ourselves to work in this direction. This is the task, this is our task. Change can come from inside to outside, if the opposite happens we should be happy but experience shows that is highly unlikely. Even the responsibilities of institutions depend on the conscience of individuals working in them. Caring for life, health, knowledge, and nature will free up time and resources that can be harnessed more efficiently. We must realise that saving our resources can be done by decreasing the use of extra goods, process based on education and greed on one hand, and rethinking of what humans are and where they are going on another. One more thing — nature doesn’t need man, but man needs nature. Polluting nature isn’t like smoking a cigarette — it does not harm others differently, it harms everyone.
It is time for a new wave of young people for whom life in peace is the basis for development, and ecology — a mandatory basis for progress. It is time to rethink the rapidly changing world. It is time to break some of the previous stereotypes. Be creative and proactive in thinking and acting on these issues!
The writer is a PhD candidate at Sofia University and a climate ambassador. He can be reached on [email protected]
Published in Daily Times, November 1st 2017.