I've been wanting to start these writings since forever ago. Those who have known me for a while probably heard me saying:
"Sustainability is such a complex topic; I bet most people don't imagine the scope it has; I should write about it!”
The truth is, it is such a dynamic field that keeping up with the constant changes and developments might feel daunting. But at the same time, I am convinced that I already have a bunch of valuable knowledge that is worth sharing with people that might find it interesting. However, rather than doing it on a uni-directional way, I would like to start a constructive dialogue around some topics that tend to be controversial, which really need to be addressed in order to navigate our "Common Reality”.
As one of my main premises, I want to keep this as human as possible, which is why no AI will be used for the writing process. I like to make this remark because my objective is not to merely deliver theoretical information, but to provide opinions, express emotions, and most importantly, create fruitful interactions to hopefully grow all together.
Who am I?
I guess to make this really human, I can start by introducing myself. I am a proud Costa Rican (Pura Vida!), born in the central valley of a small but beautiful country. I prefer mountains over beaches, which is why I still don’t know how to surf, but have as well collected some pretty cool uphill views over my lifetime. I come from what we could call a mid-high income household within a mid income country.
And why is this relevant?, you might ask…
The truth is, we should know that this initial state determines much of what happens next in your life, and radically influences your views of the world (i.e. your perceptions of reality). These perceptions are multiple, and are constructed based on your own personal experiences, which include your education, your work, hobbies, friends, etc. At the same time, they tend to be self-reinforcing, meaning that the more immersed you are in these perceptions, the more like-minded information you receive. In fact, it is likely that this article reached your feed because the algorithms thought that it somehow matches your interests.
This has caused something I call a segmentation of reality, which naturally creates an increasingly contrasting set of needs across society. From continents to countries and cities, these differences can be easily noted.
The recently released Global Resources Outlook shows that an average North American today consumes almost twice the resources of an European; high income countries consume 5 times more than lower-middle income ones; and the world (as a whole) consumes 3 times more than 50 years ago.
With this I am not intending to judge anybody; actually the contrary. I have understood that we, immersed in our own subsets of reality, work hard everyday towards the achievement of whatever we consider wellbeing according to our standards; but the fact is, for some people achieving this goal requieres much more resources than for others.
Does this make sense? Well, given the world's economic history, it actually does. There is a causality on how and why we transitioned from being hunters and collectors to the complex creatures we are today. But I think the right question to ask ourselves is: is this OK? This fundamental question should inspire us to transgress current barriers that hinder an access to a “Common Reality”, where we have an even knowledge on the complexities and inequalities of our world, and how this impacts our famously called “Sustainability” as a species.
It all traces back to Sustainability
The term Sustainability is traditionally linked to concepts like recycling, renewable energy, circular economy, electric vehicles, veganism, or “green products" (whatever that means). But in reality, it is so much more than that. It is an interdisciplinary field where social and exact sciences converge in order to decipher how to achieve sustained human wellbeing while respecting the physical boundaries of our planet. From economists to biologists; from chemists to psychologists; from engineers to lawyers. The field is so broad that it is difficult to map it on a single picture. But I decided to give it a try…
After studying industrial engineering and working in supply chain management roles in Central America, I decided to devote my talent and knowledge to the field of Sustainability. In the search for revolutionary approaches around the topic, I traveled to the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB), where I cursed a Master's Program in Interdisciplinary Studies for Environmental, Economic and Social Sustainability, with an emphasis on Industrial and Urban Ecology. This allowed me to achieve the desired intersection between business and environmental sciences, which is reflected on my current role as Life Cycle Assessment researcher at a technology centre in Catalonia.
Why "The Common(s) Reality”?
We all share the same reality. We might (and should) differ on our interpretation of it, but we can’t afford to have different versions of it. At the same time, it is not only ours, but we share it with The Commons: all those things and beings that we intrinsically share and depend on, of which nobody is the actual owner, and without which we are unable to thrive as a society. Therefore, to understand our fundamental relationship with The Commons, and with people outside our reality, it becomes key to share common ground on the information that we have available.
I will start by releasing a bi-weekly post to keep this conversation going, but I hope the frequency increases over time. While the draft of the next content is already prepared, I encourage this to become a dynamic environment where relevant topics can be proposed, and discussion becomes part of the content.
Change is never easy. But if it’s in the right direction, it will always be rewarding. Are you in?
Hola Jose! I think I haven't seen or talked to you since high school, glad to see you are doing good, and of seeing people i know working and interested in sustainability.
It is a complex topic, but as you said, it tends to be seen from an environmental perspective only, and only the "simple" and narrow perspective of it; I'm used to mainly keeping on the environmental perspective too due to my career and job, but I'm deeply interested in sustainability as a whole.
I personally do think is not easy to dive deep in it, I trouble because there are so many areas involved as you commented, and also there are so many distractions (as simple as green washing), and so many things are happening in the world that is hard sometimes to see how it can all be worked out in the right direction, and also which is the right direction.
I hope this project of yours grows and I'm very excited to learn from it.
Such a great initiative, Jose! Happy to be a part of it and keep discussing the challenges we face as a society in the pursuit of a sustainable future, from different parts of the world.
Un abrazo!