Hope and Opportunity in a

One Planet region

There is a very real danger that a focus on the vast ecological and socio-cultural challenges we face can leave people feeling depressed, anxious, fearful, overwhelmed, powerless and despairing – and thus very unlikely to take or support the actions necessary at all levels to address these immense challenges.

We believe that the antidote to despair is hope, and that we have a collective responsibility to find (realistic) hope and point to the opportunities inherent in times of change. Naomi Klein titled her book on climate change and capitalism “This Changes Everything” – and if that is true of climate change, it is even more true for the broader set of ecological changes encompassed by the Anthropocene. 

The good news is that while the challenges are real and must be faced, there are many opportunities inherent in a situation where everything has to change, which is what we mean by profound socio-cultural transformation. For example, there are many health and wellbeing co-benefits from clean energy systems, active transportation, more dense and livable mixed-use communities, sustainable farming, and a low meat diet, to name just a few examples. Each of these benefits bring with them new economic opportunities, as we reconfigure our economic system to one that is compatible with a One Planet living concept. 

We see it as an important part of our work to bring attention and activation to these and many other sources of hope and opportunity, and to identify new ideas, projects, activities, and programs in the Greater Victoria Region, such as the Local Seeds Project