Drops: about growth
what do COP26, a plant, and our bodies have to do with each other?
Everything that stops growing starts to decay.
This is a truth in nature; plants and animals (including ourselves) are constantly giving us this example.
I have noticed a preoccupying use of words around the problems of the world. So much of the language around Cop 26, starting today and considered one of the most privileged conferences to date, uses the terms developed and developing when referring to nations. These terms are still used in media and by major NGOs and UN agencies.
Not only is this problematic because it creates a damaging hierarchical nature to solution-building, but also because it implies that some countries (mainly Western) are kind of done growing.
The possibility of growth and transformation must be permanent in our language and minds in the face of obstacles so that we can deal with them in a joyful manner. I want to specify that I don’t mean economic growth, which is how capitalist thinking has told us to measure growth, I mean a growth that is rooted in humility and a constant strive to do better whilst being grateful for what has been achieved.
The countries that are often referred to as developed are in the process of destroying the planet, the incongruence is baffling to me. This brings me to ask some fundamental questions which I believe should lead our rethinking of how we look at how growth is defined. When we think of ourselves as growing or evolving, how does that growth look like? What if we approached world problems in this way?
When there is space for growth there is space to be accountable for how we contribute to that growth. What if this thinking was applied to conferences like COP26? If world leaders approached obstacles with humility perhaps we would get somewhere.
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Drops is a Waves column created by Virginia Vigliar, it showcases short reflections and knowledge sharing for you to water. If you need a quick break, want to be immersed in poeticism with purpose, then this is for you!
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