Green dictatorship

It was exactly a week ago today that I was trying to make a point at London Remade's 'Green and Thrifty' seminar, about a political-economic pendulum swinging back and forth between two polar opposites: A no-holds-barred free market; and total state intervention. Trying to derive a lesson from the Utility Scheme, one of my main arguements was that no matter how benign the intentions of an authoritarian action are, history shows us that the public never fully abides by what has been put forward as mandatory. It is very interesting to see that this argument can in fact strike a chord in today's current affairs.

A recent piece of news talks about a decision by the German civic authorities to make solar panels mandatory in the town of Marburg. This legislation sets a rule for "every new house or those whose roofs or heating systems are being renovated to install solar panels".

Looks like killing two birds with one stone: Battling climate change and surviving at a time when energy prices are soaring. Nothing wrong up to this point? Don't be so quick to judge.


Just like its predecessors from history has shown us, this legislation too, has not been greeted with a warm welcome by some townspeople, if not many.

"We are facing a green dictatorship but nobody dares to say anything," said opposition politican Hermann Uchtmann.

"It's not by force that one gets people to comply," said Haus und Grund, an association of property owners.

In the talk about the Utility Scheme, I was calling such government intervention paternalistic, very similar to the initiative a father would take for his children, with positive intentions but without asking their opinion. (pater=father)

An important question arises from this metaphor: As the children of Mother Earth, can we save our mother—and, of course, ourselves—on our own? Or will we have to wait for our father to take control and abide by what he thinks is best?

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An evening with the maker of 'The Story of Stuff'

Annie Leonard, the genious behind the short movie ‘The Story of Stuff’, was in Istanbul on May 31st for a screening of the movie. I was among the few lucky Istanbulites–nothing related to being invited, due to people’s lack of awareness!–who were able to watch the movie with her, after which, a Q&A session took place.

I already had a question in mind as I approached the movie theatre, since I had watched the movie several times–thanks to its brilliant webpage. What preoccupied my mind was about something which I had come to realize after looking at what socially and environmentally aware thinkers has said back in the 50s and 60s: We today cannot help but refer greatly to their studies, go against what they’ve gone against, and circulate around the same terms: Corporatism, consumerism, planned & perceived obsolescence, etc.

After this analysis, my question to her was about what she would give as an answer to what I keep asking myself: “Have we failed in coping with these menaces, and if we have, what has gone wrong?”

Annie was so sincere to avoid merry optimism, and agree with the fact that we have been failing and going worse. She strongly emphasised that having a soft spot for green issues is not enough, and the important thing is to see the big picture, “the economic undermine”, as she called it. Feeling the need to addressing my general criticism on a personal level, she underlined how she sees her contribution to the movement to be: She said that, most important of all, she feels responsible to the world as a U.S. citizen. Because, she added, besides all the export of garbage the U.S. has been carrying out in the course of the last 50 years, she pointed to the fact that her country has also been increasingly exporting its way of thinking and lifestyle. She told that this is what particularly worries her the most, and it has recently been approved when she saw “20 billboards of Sex and The City in the Istanbul Airport”.

Well, I think she has definitely had another major contribution: Articulating these issues with a very down to earth tone, in an easy to grasp and accessible format. Follow this link to another article to learn more about her work.

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