2.- Give local examples of problems and solutions, but not lose the perspective of the global scale

2023/06/07 Elhuyar Zientzia

• Ingurumena
• Dekalogoa

The climate is not easy to understand the dimension that the consequences of the emergency will take if they occur remotely and do not suffer directly. It is difficult to gauge, for example, what kind of famines have caused droughts in Africa. Distant, abstract examples are more effective in connecting with the reality one can feel close to: examples that approach space, that realize the gravity of the situation and that are also perceived as a problem and a responsibility, those that approach time to make us see that it is a present and not a future. Therefore, use local and specific examples whenever possible.

However, when proposing solutions, it is important to be clear about the concept of scale. And that is that the emergency has a planetary scale and all cultures, socio-economic situations and ecosystems have to be taken into account for the solution to be effective. The same questions answer differently according to the scale: what is valid for the local scale does not have to be valid for the global scale.

For example, what is proposed in Europe should not be useful in the Amazon, or the policies developed in the Northern Basque Country, such as agriculture or construction, should not be useful in the South. Likewise, what is proposed from the urban-centric point of view, is it worth in the expressive domains? Or does what is useful for the population of high socioeconomic level take into account the needs and realities of people of low socioeconomic status? Never lose sight of scale.