Utopia Revisited
To me, a utopia is a society in which the basic needs of all citizens are met equitably. This includes access to high quality public transportation, specialized education, physical and mental health care, and affordable housing and food. Additionally, a utopian society maintains a strong democracy so that the state cannot be corrupted by corporations or other actors that don’t prioritize the needs of citizens. Lastly, in a utopia, social and environmental well being is the primary goal, and decisions are made with future generations in mind.
I don’t think that profit is compatible with environmental or social sustainability in our current market economy. Right now, massive corporations are unregulated and only interested in profit, not social or environmental good. From fashion to agriculture to livestock to technology, industries across the world are pushing resources to the brink of extinction. However, if these industries were to cut out the middlemen to the point where profit goes directly to the producer, profit and sustainability could be more compatible. For example, in South Korea there is a cooperative that provides farmers with 75% of the profit made from products. In this system, farmers are able to maintain their business while operating sustainably.
One of the main issues that the film argues is wrong with production chains is that companies use cheap labor in developing companies to resource necessary components for technology. For example in the Congo, local residents mine cobalt for smartphones for very little money. I agree that this is a major problem because in this system developing countries are exploited for their resources while western companies earn enormous profits off of selling technology. We can do better by sourcing our technology from socially responsible companies, such as Fairphone, that focus on empowering the communities where resources are mined.
The main institution that can help facilitate a change towards Utopie is the government. Governments can introduce policies that regulate companies, and prohibit them from overusing shared finite resources in the name of profit. Additionally, governments can invest in infrastructure that make sustainable options more accessible to the general public such as expanding public transportation and funding renewable energy.
The story that struck me most in the movie was the young family who lived in a collective housing apartment in switzerland. By living in this housing, the couple was required to only travel using public transportation or by bicycle. This story stuck out to me because in the United States, not having a car is extremely impractical, especially for families with young children. In order to transition to a society where cars are not the primary mode of transit, there would need to be an entire upheaval of not just the public transportation system, but the way cities are designed as well.
