Ted Trainer | |
---|---|
Born | F.E. Trainer 1941 (age 82–83) |
Years active | 1975–present |
Academic background | |
Education | PhD |
Alma mater | University of Sydney |
Thesis | A study of orientations to social rules: with special reference to autonomy and some educational implications (1975) |
Academic work | |
Institutions | University of New South Wales |
Website | http://thesimplerway.info/ |
Ted (F.E.) Trainer (born 1941) is an Australian academic,author,and an advocate of economic degrowth,eco-anarchism,simple living,and 'conserver' lifestyles. He is a retired lecturer from the School of Social Work,University of New South Wales. He has written numerous books and articles on sustainability and is developing Pigface Point,an alternative lifestyle educational site near Sydney.
Trainer grew up in Sydney,Australia. He has a PhD from the University of Sydney ("A study of orientations to social rules:with special reference to autonomy and some educational implications",1975) and lectured in education at the University of New South Wales from the 1970s. In the 1980s he shifted gears to join the growing environmental and limits to growth movement in Australia,and became a frequent speaker and activist,largely in New South Wales. He remained teaching at UNSW for several decades,usually delivering an undergraduate course on global problems. He was for many years an Honorary Adjunct Associate Professor in Social Work at UNSW,choosing to work part-time,and also a member of the Melbourne-based Simplicity Institute.
His practical energy has been thrown into Pigface Point,an alternative lifestyle educational site on a swampy meander of the St. George's River 20 km from Sydney,near East Hills/Voyager Point. Trainer lives there with his family,practising voluntary simplicity and the art of re-use. He lives partially in a barter and subsistence economy,and built a house and the grounds from recycled materials and manual labour. [1] His household uses 2% of average Australian electricity consumption and he rarely travels. [2] His site is used as a model to show people how to create an interconnected,resourced and equipped ‘village’/ housing complex. [3] Photos show the extent of the property,which was originally purchased by his father in 1940. [4]
A prolific author,Trainer has published widely [5] on global problems,sustainability issues,radical critiques of the economy,alternative social forms,and the transition to them. He has written numerous books and articles on these topics,listed below.
His theory of social change is called "The Simpler Way". [6] [7] He argues "A sustainable world order is not possible unless we move to much less production and consumption,and much less affluent lifestyles within a steady-state economic system." [5] In The Conserver Society he outlines what such a world would look like,based around intelligent and networked eco-villages providing healthy lifestyles,work and education with much-lowered net consumption.
His calculations of global energy demand,given in Trainer 2007,suggest any shift to renewable energy will have to be accompanied by a radical decrease in global demand,since renewables could not cope with expanding demand. [8] [9]
He maintains a large website of materials for critical global educators. [5] His ideas,pursued in conferences and academic publications,on less resource use and lowered population have distanced him from some idealistic environmentalists,Marxist thinkers wanting to continue industrialism,as well as from pro-growth supporters of individualistic free markets and economic growth.
Samuel Alexander and Jonathan Rutherford (eds.). 2020. The Simpler Way:Collected Writings of Ted Trainer. Simplicity Institute Publishing.
An ecovillage is a traditional or intentional community with the goal of becoming more socially, culturally, economically, and/or ecologically sustainable. An ecovillage strives to produce the least possible negative impact on the natural environment through intentional physical design and resident behavior choices. It is consciously designed through locally owned, participatory processes to regenerate and restore its social and natural environments. Most range from a population of 50 to 250 individuals, although some are smaller, and traditional ecovillages are often much larger. Larger ecovillages often exist as networks of smaller sub-communities. Some ecovillages have grown through like-minded individuals, families, or other small groups—who are not members, at least at the outset—settling on the ecovillage's periphery and participating de facto in the community. There are currently more than 10,000 ecovillages around the world.
Simple living refers to practices that promote simplicity in one's lifestyle. Common practices of simple living include reducing the number of possessions one owns, depending less on technology and services, and spending less money. In addition to such external changes, simple living also reflects a person's mindset and values. Simple living practices can be seen in history, religion, art, and economics.
David Holmgren is an Australian environmental designer, ecological educator and writer. He is best known as one of the co-originators of the permaculture concept with Bill Mollison.
Sustainable living describes a lifestyle that attempts to reduce the use of Earth's natural resources by an individual or society. Its practitioners often attempt to reduce their ecological footprint by altering their home designs and methods of transportation, energy consumption and diet. Its proponents aim to conduct their lives in ways that are consistent with sustainability, naturally balanced, and respectful of humanity's symbiotic relationship with the Earth's natural ecology. The practice and general philosophy of ecological living closely follows the overall principles of sustainable development.
The phrase sustainable industries is related to the development of industrial processes in a sustainable way. The phrase refers to greening of energy intensive industries such as the textiles, steel, cement, and paper industries.
In social behavior, downshifting is a trend where individuals adopt simpler lives from what critics call the "rat race".
The Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy is a German research institution for sustainability research, focusing on impacts and practical application. It explores and develops models, strategies, and instruments to support sustainable development at local, national, and international levels. Research at the Wuppertal Institute focuses on ecology and its relation to economy and society. Special emphasis is put on analyzing and supporting technological and social innovations that decouple the prosperity of economic growth from the use of natural resources. The organization's activities focus on developing transformation processes aimed at shaping a climate-friendly and resource-efficient world.
A green economy is an economy that aims at reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities, and that aims for sustainable development without degrading the environment. It is closely related with ecological economics, but has a more politically applied focus. The 2011 UNEP Green Economy Report argues "that to be green, an economy must not only be efficient, but also fair. Fairness implies recognizing global and country level equity dimensions, particularly in assuring a Just Transition to an economy that is low-carbon, resource efficient, and socially inclusive."
Post-capitalism is a hypothetical state in which the sociological, economic, and political systems of the world require a regulatory process for systemwide Environmental/Climate Justice. This would entail making Sustainability/Climate Change a number one political ideology. When both the sociological and ecological environments are prioritized over the economic and political spheres for a concurrent [global] society it can be construed as Post-Capitalism. What is actually Sustainable Post-Capitalism is the regulatory teleological directive [Degrowth] that enables a global society to develop without exacerbating climate change, economic debt or other negative sociological consequences such as increasing income disparity/oppression that can be associated with 'Green' Capitalism, Gentrification and a polarized Neo-political climate. To create logistical autonomy between the global north and global south can be construed as sustainable Post-Capital societal development.
Frugality is the quality of being frugal, sparing, thrifty, prudent, or economical in the consumption of resources such as food, time or money, and avoiding waste, lavishness or extravagance.
Ecological sufficiency, or simply sufficiency, refers to the concept or strategy to reduce the environmental footprint of societies through moderating the need for energy, carbon and material-based services and products. The term was popularised by authors such as Thomas Princen, a professor at MIT, in his 2005 book The Logic of Sufficiency. As a goal, sufficiency is about ensuring that all humans can live a good life within planetary boundaries, meaning without overshooting the ecological limits of the Earth and thus limiting resource use and pollution. Princen argues that "seeking enough when more is possible is both intuitive and rational – personally, organizationally and ecologically. And under global ecological constraint, it is ethical."
Mark Diesendorf is an Australian academic and environmentalist, known for his work in sustainable development and renewable energy. He currently teaches environmental studies at the University of New South Wales, Australia. He was formerly professor of environmental science and founding director of the Institute for Sustainable Futures at the University of Technology, Sydney and before that a principal research scientist with CSIRO, where he was involved in early research on integrating wind power into electricity grids. His most recent book is Sustainable Energy Solutions for Climate Change.
Greenhouse Solutions with Sustainable Energy is a 2007 book by Australian academic Mark Diesendorf. The book puts forward a set of policies and strategies for implementing the most promising clean energy technologies by all spheres of government, business and community organisations. Greenhouse Solutions with Sustainable Energy suggests that a mix of efficient energy use, renewable energy sources and natural gas offers a clean and feasible energy future for Australia.
Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability (LOHAS) is a demographic defining a particular market segment related to sustainable living, "green" ecological initiatives, and generally composed of a relatively upscale and well-educated population segment. The author Paul H. Ray, who coined the term Cultural Creatives in his book by the same name, explains that "What you're seeing is a demand for products of equal quality that are also virtuous." Included in the cultural creative demographic are consumers of New Age goods and services.
Clean growth is goal 7 of the UN's sustainability goals, first published in 2009. Clean growth refers to economic growth that is energy efficient, uses sustainable agricultural practices, and uses renewable energy technologies according to the ‘Poles’ outlined in the UN's Sustainable Development Goals. In other words, it is economic growth tied to conscious and sustainable principles with the aim of reducing, minimising, or eliminating altogether the potential negative side effects that economic and income growth can have on the environment.
Degrowth is an academic and social movement critical of the concept of growth in gross domestic product as a measure of human and economic development. Degrowth theory is based on ideas and research from a multitude of disciplines such as economics, economic anthropology, ecological economics, environmental sciences, and development studies. It argues that the unitary focus of modern capitalism on growth, in terms of the monetary value of aggregate goods and services, causes widespread ecological damage and is not necessary for the further increase of human living standards. Degrowth theory has been met with both academic acclaim and considerable criticism.
Micro-sustainability is the portion of sustainability centered around small scale environmental measures that ultimately affect the environment through a larger cumulative impact. Micro-sustainability centers on individual efforts, behavior modification, education and creating attitudinal changes, which result in an environmentally conscious individual. Micro-sustainability encourages sustainable changes through "change agents"—individuals who foster positive environmental action locally and inside their sphere of influence. Examples of micro-sustainability include recycling, power saving by turning off unused lights, programming thermostats for efficient use of energy, reducing water usage, changing commuting habits to use less fossil fuels or modifying buying habits to reduce consumption and waste. The emphasis of micro-sustainability is on an individual's actions, rather than organizational or institutional practices at the systemic level. These small local level actions have immediate community benefits if undertaken on a widespread scale and if imitated, they can have a cumulative broad impact.
Environmentally sustainable design is the philosophy of designing physical objects, the built environment, and services to comply with the principles of ecological sustainability and also aimed at improving the health and comfort of occupants in a building. Sustainable design seeks to reduce negative impacts on the environment, the health and well-being of building occupants, thereby improving building performance. The basic objectives of sustainability are to reduce the consumption of non-renewable resources, minimize waste, and create healthy, productive environments.
A sustainability organization is (1) an organized group of people that aims to advance sustainability and/or (2) those actions of organizing something sustainably. Unlike many business organizations, sustainability organizations are not limited to implementing sustainability strategies which provide them with economic and cultural benefits attained through environmental responsibility. For sustainability organizations, sustainability can also be an end in itself without further justifications.
Sustainable consumer behavior is the sub-discipline of consumer behavior that studies why and how consumers do or do not incorporate sustainability priorities into their consumption behavior. It studies the products that consumers select, how those products are used, and how they are disposed of in pursuit of consumers' sustainability goals.