TOWARD GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP AND SUSTAINABILITY

DEGROWTH: a movement advocating for lesser or slower macroeconomic growth as a way to

achieve sustainable development.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: economic development that focuses on fulfilling the basic
needs of citizens rather than amassing profit.
FOOD SECURITY: state that exists when all citizens have a stable and unhampered access to s
ufficient and nutritious food.
GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP: citizenship that puts emphasis on one’s responsibilities to the intern
ational community.
GLOBAL WARMING – has made life less tenable and sustainable in many vulnerable commu
nities. Basic necessities such as food, potable water, and clean air have become less abundant as
extreme climate change started negatively affecting planting and harvest seasons.
OVER EXTRACTION OF RESOURCES – also seems to worsen in many parts of the world.
Corporation are expropriating frontier lands for cattle farming, as well as mountains and forests f
or mining.
THE ECONOMIC SYSTEM’S SUSTAINABILITY – is now in question as it becomes obvio
us that not all citizens can aspire to live excessively – for such will drive carbon emission soaring.

MACROECONOMIC GROWTH – occurs in many countries, but millions still suffer form hu
nger and malnutrition.
MASSIVE FOOD WASTE – happens in a number of developed countries, while millions of pe
ople in developing countries starve.
THE KEY TO SUCCESS IN THIS NOBLE ENDEAVOR LIES IN GOING BACK TO
BASICS – living simply that the world maybe as it had been in the old days of the once unexploi
ted earth.

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT - is a concept that refers to a mode of growth that meets th

e needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own n
eeds. It involves balancing economic, social, and environmental considerations to create a more i
nclusive and equitable society while minimizing negative impacts on the environment.

KEY PRINCIPLES OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Environmental Conservation:
Promoting responsible resource use, minimizing pollution, and protecting ecosystems to ensure t
he health and well-being of the planet.
Social Equity:
Focusing on social justice, poverty reduction, and the improvement of living standards for all me
mbers of society, with an emphasis on vulnerable and marginalized populations.
Economic Prosperity:
Supporting economic growth that is inclusive, sustainable, and does not compromise the well-bei
ng of future generations. This may involve promoting innovation, efficient resource use, and resp
onsible business practices.
Inter-generational Equity:
Ensuring that the benefits of development are shared across generations, and that the actions take
n today do not hinder the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
Community Engagement:
Involving local communities in decision-making processes to ensure that development projects a
re culturally sensitive, meet local needs, and contribute positively to community well-being.

Plociennik contrasts stability with sustainability by emphasizing that the former means short ter
m firmness in position, permanence and resistance to change, especially in disruptive way. On th
e other hand, sustainability “considers the long term capacities of a system to exist, not its shor
t-term resistance to change.”

THE CURRENT VERSION OF GLOBALIZATION IS UNSUSTAINABLE FOR A

NUMBER OF REASON:

How Westerner live and consume?

Western-centric globalization is premised on the idea of making everyone live and consume like
a typical Westerners does.

- The typical American consumes 3,750 calories per day (compared to developing country like R
epublic of the Congo’s 1,590 calories) and has a per capita carbon emission of 16.4 metric tons
(compared with the world average of just 4.991 metric tons.) Hence, it is simply not an option to
live in such a way as this would rapidly finish off the world’s finite resources.
As former Uruguayan President Jose Mujica notes in the documentary entitled, The Poorest Presi
dent (2014), we will need two Earths if we are to live like typical Americans.

Global race to the bottom with regard to wages and corporate tax rates.
Wages: In the context of wages, the race to the bottom typically involves countries trying to attr
act businesses by offering lower labor costs. This can lead to a situation where companies move t
heir operations to countries with lower labor standards and wages, potentially exploiting workers
and undermining labor rights. This competition can result in a downward pressure on wages glob
ally, as companies seek the most cost-effective locations for their operations.

Corporate Tax Rates:Similarly, the race to the bottom can be observed in the context of corpor
ate tax rates. Countries may lower their corporate tax rates to attract multinational corporations, h
oping to stimulate economic growth and job creation. However, this can create a situation where
countries compete to offer the lowest tax rates, leading to a reduction in overall tax revenues and
potentially impacting the ability of governments to fund public services and infrastructure.

This socially destructive tandem is in the process of impoverishing millions of ordinary folk, wea
kening the financial muscle of governments to provide social services.
–What is the point of wealth creation if majority of people would still be poor and hungry a
fter years or decades of GDP growth?
–There ought to be a limit to wealth accumulation so as to redistribute the Earth’s resource
s in a more equitable manner to ensure that the exhaustion of the world’s resources will be
slowed down.

Continuous commodification of the world’s resources.

Under the current economic system, it allows huge corporations to have almost unlimited access
to these resources which is bound to exhaust world’s finite resources.

For example:
1. Mining sites are excavated until they run out of gold;
2. There is not enough timber for everyone to have their own wooden furniture replaced annually
or for production of paper products. (In 1990, the world land area was 31.801% forest; in 2015, it
decreased to 30.825%.
3. The world’s oceans are overfished, much of the world’s coral are also dying. (In 2013, 32% of
the world’s fish stocks were being exploited beyond their sustainable limit, up from 10% in the 1
970s, according to FAO.)
4. There is not enough farmland for real-estate developers to turn into sites of box type, high-rise
condominiums. The rapid urbanization of the Philippines indeed comes at a price; in fact, it rema
ins food insecure despite housing the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Luzon.

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AND DEGROWTH

Degrowth is being considered as an alternative method of global sustainable development.
– It requires a paradigm shift away from profit motive to the common good; from wants to needs ;
and from luxury to simplicity so it will be suitable home to future generations.
– This concept encourages people to formulate simpler demands, focusing on meeting everyone’
s basic necessities.
– It compels every country to ensure that their citizens have food, jobs, shelters, and other necess
ities rather than fulfilling their whims and caprices first.
– Perhaps, there should be one car per family.
– In the near future, they advocated that one can avail discounted rates in buying a new phone w
hen an old one is brought for recycling.

Degrowth/“Buddhist Economics”
A movement advocating for lesser or slower macroeconomic growth as a way to achieve sustaina
ble development.
– “people should live simply so others, human and non-human, may simply live.”
– Degrowth emphasizes the need to reduce global consumption and production and advocates a
socially just and ecologically sustainable society with well-being as the indicator of prosperity, i
nstead of GDP.

Pachamama Socialism
Pachamama is the name of an indigenous earth goddess and is equivalent for the term “Mother
Earth.”
– In 2011, Bolivia passed the world’s first laws that granted nature with rights equal to humans. I
t institutionalized a paradigm shift that relabels nation’s mineral deposits as “blessings” so as mu
ch as possible, it will be conserved. If it is merely called as materials, people will not cease extra
cting it.
– This development model still wants modernization for nations, but not at the expense of the en
vironment.

Buen Vivir
Proponents of buen vivir assert the primacy of limiting consumption and developing the collectiv
ist idea that builds on indigenous Quecha people’s concept of sumak kawsay – “community-cent
ric, ecologically balanced and culturally-sensitive.
– ”This is a creative expression of the alter-globalization movement call for a system that prioriti
zes people over profits, communities over corporations, and the environment over economic gro
wth.
– It put prime importance on the well-being of the larger community of the Earth’s inhabitants.

Balch further reveals that one of the defining characteristics of buen vivir is harmony (state of ag
reement, peaceful coexistence, or balance), specially harmony among humans, and harmony bet
ween humans and nature.
– It highlights that humans are stewards of Earth and never its owners.

Green Business
Green businesses seek to balance economic success with environmental and social consideration
s.
– The Green Party of the US has its Green Transition Program that advocates for a sustainable ec
onomy which is “environmentally sound, economically viable, and socially responsible.”
– It outlines several initiatives that will lead to the transition from the current mode of capitalist d
evelopment to a more pro-environment way of doing business.
– Even the capitalist joined this organization such as Elon Musk who is known for his giant Tesl
a, and Tesla is at the forefront of solar power research.
 SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

– The SDGs were established on January 1, 2016 which is expected that over 15 years, countries
will use their resources to eradicate poverty and inequality; as well as reverse climate change.
– ’SDGs 7, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, and 15 directly correspond with calls reshaping the current economi
c system to a more sustainable one.
– The UN admits that these goals are not legally binding, but governments are expected to act to
ward the achievement of the 17 SDGs.

GLOBAL FOOD SECURITY

Food security defines as a ‘‘situation that exists when all people, at all times, have physical, soci
al, and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs an
d food preferences for an active and healthy life.” (United Nations’ Committee on World Food
Security).
This definition comprises four key dimensions of food supplies: availability, stability, access, an
d utilization (FAO, 2002).

This definition comprises four key dimensions of food supplies: availability, stability, access, an
d utilization (FAO, 2002).

Availability: Sufficient quantities of food must be consistently available to all individuals within
a population. This involves both the quantity and quality of food.
Access: People must have the economic and physical means to obtain the food they need. This i
ncludes having income or resources to purchase food and physical access to markets and distribu
tion channels.
Utilization: Food must be used effectively by the body, and individuals must have the knowledg
e and ability to utilize food for proper nutrition. This includes factors such as health, hygiene, an
d sanitation.
Stability: The access to and availability of food should be stable over time. People should not b
e at risk of losing their access to food due to sudden shocks or fluctuations in factors like prices o
r environmental conditions.

It is another issue related to the sustainability of the world’s current economic system.
Food is a basic of their success or failure in securing this basic need for their people. requirement
for human survival and history on how societies rose and fell on the basis.
For example: Rome kept its citizens partly satisfied for centuries through a system of panem et ci
rcenses (bread and circuses), which made “the poorest plebeians happy enough and reasonably w
ell fed so that they would not riot.
- Panem et circenses is done by providing them with “free grain and controlled food prices which
mean the plebeians could not starve , while free entertainment – such as chariot races and gladiat
ors in amphitheaters and the Circus Maximus meant that they would not get bored and restless.
- In 21st century, although the world produces enough food for a population of over seven billion
people, the 2012 UN Hunger Report Articulated that in 2010-2012, 852 million people in develo
ping countries remained hungry; while 16 million were undernourished in developed countries.

Thus the availability of sufficient food to meet demand at the macro level is not enough to e
nsure the prevention of hunger and malnourishment at the local level.
The challenge is not merely to produce more food but to ensure that whatever is being produced
will be made available to everyone.
Hence, global food security does not only mean the capacity to produce enough food for everyo
ne’s need, but also the capability to ensure that every citizen gets affordable, good, nutritious foo
d on their table with little or no disruption.

Consequently, global food security is tied with the goal of resolving poverty as “the links betwee
n poverty, food security and human security are particularly evident in the face of food price hike
s, in at least two significant ways:

Firstly, sudden and sharp increases of food prices are most harmful to those who are poor – in m
any developing countries in Asia and Africa, a majority of households spend 50-70% of their mo
nthly incomes on food alone. In the face of sudden increase in food prices, such households beco
me vulnerable and malnourish. For as long as big corporation treat food as for-profit commoditie
s rather than basic needs of human beings, there will not be enough food for everyone.

UNO recognized the Right to food in the Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, vital for the enj
oyment of all other rights. (Art. 25).

The 4 Indicators of the Global Hunger Index:

– share of the population that is undernourished

– The share of children under the age of five who are wasted (i.e. who have low weight for their
height, reflecting acute undernutrition)
– The share of children under the age of five who are stunted (i.e. who have low height fo
r their age, reflecting chronic undernutrition)
– The mortality rate of children under the age of five
KEY FACTS ON FOOD LOSS AND WASTE

– Every year, about 1.3 billion tons of food for human consumption, or nearly 1/3 of food produ
ced in the world, gets wasted or lost.
– Developed and developing countries relatively dissipate the same quantities of food – 670 mill
ion tons and 630 million tons, respectively.
– Consumer in rich countries waste about 22 million tons of food each year.
– In Europe and North America, around 95-115 kg of food is wasted per capita per yearWhereas
in sub-Saharan Africa, South and Southeast Asia, food waste equals 6-11 kg per capita.
– ¼ of the global food waste could be recovered and it is enough to feed 870 million hungry peo
ple in the world.

What is the difference of food loss in the third world and first world?
First World – food loss and waste in develop countries is often attributed to consumer behavior
and preferences. There is food waste in developed countries because First world consumers hate
“ugly food”
Third World – food loss and waste in developing countries is usually linked with the lack of inf
rastructure in harvesting, processing, storing, and transporting food supplies.

FAO LIST OF PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS

– Strengthening the supply chain through the direct support of farmers and investments in infrast
ructure, transportation, as well as expansion of the food packaging and industry.
– Farmer-buyer agreements
– Raising awareness among industries, retailers and consumers as well as finding beneficial use
for food that is presently thrown away are useful measures to decrease the amount of losses and
waste.
– Bill on reducing food waste through food donation and food waste recycling.
– Food waste to foodwise

GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP
– It empowers citizens from around the globe to resolve the world’s myriad of contemporary pro
blems at a local, national, and even on international level.
– The concept of global citizenship underscores the idea that, in an increasingly interconnected w
orld, individuals have a shared responsibility for the well-being of the entire global community. I
t encourages a perspective that goes beyond national borders and emphasizes collaboration and c
ooperation for the greater good.

Global citizenship – cultivates respect and harmony among world citizens in terms of the politi
cal, economic, environmental, and sociocultural aspects.
Learn-Think-Act – it is a framework that implement global citizenship education in schools to b
etter understand various social and environmental issues, develop self-awareness and must take a
n action to foster real difference.

A Global Citizenship Should…

–Understands the complexity of our interconnected world
– Understands our biggest challenges
– Knows their social, ethical, and political responsibilities
– Displays leadership and teamwork
– Solves problems through innovation and entrepreneurship
– To be effective global citizens, we need to be able to solve problems, make decisions, think cri
tically, communicate ideas effectively and work well with others.

GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP EDUCATION

– International Solidarity is the idea of primarily serving one’s community and nation, while a
t the same time trying to help from other countries by sharing resources and expertise to the grea
test extent possible.
– UNESCO offers the Global Citizenship Education (GCED) program for the period of 2014 - 2
021.
– SDG 4 – “ensure that all learners are provided with the knowledge and skills to promote sustai
nable development through education for sustainable lifestyle, human rights, gender equality, pro
motion of a culture of peace and non-violence, and appreciation of cultural diversity.” (Target 4.
7 of Goal 4)