Motion #05

Philosophical Basis Climate and Economy Updates

Background

To view the background paper for this motion, click here.

Synopsis

Updates to the Core Values and Philosophical Basis to reflect changes to the scientific literature and recent updates to the Policies for a Sustainable Society (PSS) that recognise that the effects of climate and biodiversity crises are now more evident and warrant more urgent and ambitious action.

Motion

SOC notes: This motion will require a two-thirds majority to pass.

Changes to Core Values and the Philosophical Basis

Core principle 9 currently reads:

“The success of a society cannot be measured by narrow economic indicators, but should take account of factors affecting the quality of life for all people: personal freedom, social equity, health, happiness and human fulfilment.”

Insert at the end “Indicators of societal and ecosystem health should be mindful of the fact that human influence has already caused rapid climate change and significantly damaged biodiveristy and ecosystem health.” so that it reads:

“The success of a society cannot be measured by narrow economic indicators, but should take account of factors affecting the quality of life for all people: personal freedom, social equity, health, happiness and human fulfilment. Indicators of societal and ecosystem health should be mindful of the fact that human influence has already caused rapid climate change and significantly damaged biodiversity and ecosystem health.”

Bring this core value forward to number 2 and renumber accordingly.

Core principle 4 currently reads:

“Every person, in this and future generations, should be entitled to basic material security as of right.”

Replace “should be” with “is” and delete “as of right”, so that it reads:

“Every person, in this and future generations, is entitled to basic material security.”

Core principle 10 currently reads:

“Electoral politics is not the only way to achieve change in society, and we will use a variety of methods, including lifestyle changes, to help effect progress, providing those methods do not conflict with our other core principles.”

After “including lifestyle changes,” insert “and non-violent direct action,” so that it reads: “Electoral politics is not the only way to achieve change in society, and we will use a variety of methods, including lifestyle changes, and non-violent direct action, to help effect progress, providing those methods do not conflict with our other core principles.”

PB102 currently reads:

“PB102 Like all creatures, humankind depends upon a healthy natural environment for its survival. Yet it is human activity, more than anything else, which is threatening the environment and, ultimately, threatening the future of life on Earth as we currently know it.”

Replace “creatures” with “life on earth”, and

Replace “which is threatening the environment” with “that is causing widespread and rapid changes to the climate and damaging ecosystems” so that it reads:

“PB102 Like all life on earth, humankind depends upon a healthy natural environment for its survival. Yet it is human activity, more than anything else, that is causing widespread and rapid changes to the climate and damaging ecosystems and, ultimately, threatening the future of life on Earth as we currently know it.”

PB104 currently reads:

“PB104 Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, society has expected continual increases in material affluence for the people of the world, and has therefore relentlessly pursued the goal of economic growth. Some nations, such as our own, have indeed become very rich and yet within them there is still abject poverty. Meanwhile, the poor nations of the world are becoming poorer as wealth continues to be transferred to the rich nations from the poor ones.”

After “abject poverty.” insert “Inequality in society has a negative impact on everyone’s well-being and even individual affluence does not guarantee wellbeing or life satisfaction.” so that it reads: “PB104 Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, society has expected continual increases in material affluence for the people of the world, and has therefore relentlessly pursued the goal of economic growth. Some nations, such as our own, have indeed become very rich and yet within them there is still abject poverty. Inequality in society has a negative impact on everyone’s wellbeing and even individual affluence does not guarantee wellbeing or life satisfaction. Meanwhile, the poor nations of the world are becoming poorer as wealth continues to be transferred to the rich nations from the poor ones.”

PB106 currently reads:

“PB106 The pursuit of economic growth as a force driving over-exploitation of the Earth must cease to be an automatic aim of human societies. We should instead aim to develop sustainable economies, which improve well-being focused on human values rather than consumerism. Traditional measures of economic activity, such as GDP, should be replaced by new indicators that measure progress towards this aim.”

In the first sentence, after “economic growth” insert “must cease to be an automatic aim of human societies”, replace “a force” with “it is”, and delete “must cease to be an automatic aim of human societies”, and

In the second sentence, replace “sustainable economies, which improve” with “ambitious and equitable plans to bring about a transition to an economy that protects natural systems and improves”, so that it reads:

“PB106 The pursuit of economic growth must cease to be an automatic aim of human societies as it is driving over-exploitation of the Earth. We should instead aim to develop ambitious and equitable plans to bring about a transition to an economy that protects natural systems and improves well-being focused on human values rather than consumerism. Traditional measures of economic activity, such as GDP, should be replaced by new indicators that measure progress towards this aim.”

PB107 currently reads:

“PB107 Traditional politics divides humans from nature and the individual from society. The rejection of this way of seeing the world is fundamental to Green philosophy. Rather than set them against each other, the Green Party seeks healthy interdependence of individual, nature and society.”

In the first sentence replace “Traditional” with “Conventional” so that it reads: “PB107 Conventional politics divides humans from nature and the individual from society. The rejection of this way of seeing the world is fundamental to Green philosophy. Rather than set them against each other, the Green Party seeks healthy interdependence of individual, nature and society.”

PB201 currently reads:

“PB201 The human species is a latecomer to the biosphere. Our survival depends upon the continued survival of all the ecosystems which evolved before us. The Green Party therefore sees humanity as necessarily a dependent part of the natural environment. When human activity threatens the environment around us, that activity threatens our future survival. Political objectives should accept our dependence, not seek to transgress it. We do not believe that any other species is expendable.”

Delete “The human species is a latecomer to the biosphere.”, and Replace “When human activity threatens the environment around us, that activity threatens” with “Human activity has caused widespread and rapid damage to the environment and this is now threatening”, so that it reads:

“PB201 Our survival depends upon the continued survival of all the ecosystems which evolved before us. The Green Party therefore sees humanity as necessarily a dependent part of the natural environment. Human activity has caused widespread and rapid damage to the environment and this is now threatening our future survival. Political objectives should accept our dependence, not seek to transgress it. We do not believe that any other species is expendable.”

SOC note: Text highlighted below was taken as a part and defeated.

PB301 currently reads:

“PB301 Implementing the policies which will create an ecological society will necessarily take many years. It will require a great deal of social change if we are to accommodate the massive environmental changes facing us. We can, nevertheless, identify a number of principles upon which a truly sustainable society will be based.”

Replace “which will create an ecological society will necessarily take many years” with “that will bring about a transition to an equitable and sustainable society is both urgent and essential” so that it reads:

“PB301 Implementing the policies that will bring about a transition to an equitable and sustainable society is both urgent and essential. It will require a great deal of social change if we are to accommodate the massive environmental changes facing us. We can, nevertheless, identify a number of principles upon which a truly sustainable society will be based.”

PB302 currently reads:

“PB302 Democracy A healthy society is based on voluntary co-operation between equal individuals in a democratic society. Those decisions that establish a secure basis for such co-operation need to be taken by society as a whole through the democratic processes, but other issues should be left to individuals and communities to decide for themselves. An ecological society will be made up of self-governing communities of a variety of sizes which will regulate their own social and economic activities. Nothing should be decided at a higher level if it can be decided at a lower one. But the Green Party accepts that regional and national governments will continue to have an important role.” Insert at the end “The Green Party recognises that deep and widespread change is necessary to avert climate and biodiversity disaster however we believe that while these changes must be brought about through democratic means, they must be developed and implemented quickly.” so that it reads:

“PB302 Democracy

A healthy society is based on voluntary co-operation between equal individuals in a democratic society. Those decisions that establish a secure basis for such co-operation need to be taken by society as a whole through the democratic processes, but other issues should be left to individuals and communities to decide for themselves. An ecological society will be made up of self-governing communities of a variety of sizes which will regulate their own social and economic activities. Nothing should be decided at a higher level if it can be decided at a lower one. But the Green Party accepts that regional and national governments will continue to have an important role. The Green Party recognises that deep and widespread change is necessary to avert climate and biodiversity disaster however we believe that while these changes must be brought about through democratic means, they must be developed and implemented quickly.”

PB305 currently reads:

“PB305 Rights of Future Generations

The suffering of future generations as a result of global warming caused by current generations makes it crucial that their rights are recognised and championed by organisations within society today.”

Replace “global warming” with “human-induced climate and biodiversity breakdown” so that it reads:

“PB305 Rights of Future Generations

The suffering of future generations as a result of human-induced climate and biodiversity breakdown caused by current generations makes it crucial that their rights are recognised and championed by organisations within society today.”

PB411 currently reads:

“PB411 We reject the view that wealth can be measured solely in monetary units, a view which allows its adherents to think it consists primarily of the results of human labour. This error has caused successive governments to pursue objectives which appear to increase the nation’s wealth while in fact they reduce it. Symbols of wealth, like money, reinforce the error and dominate political decision making. Economic growth is a poor guide to human welfare.”

Replace “, like money,” with “ – like money, power, and influence - ” and after “human welfare” insert “that has caused and is causing enormous social and environmental harm”, and At the end insert “, and extreme harm to other species, particularly animals under human control and influence” so that it reads:

“PB411 We reject the view that wealth can be measured solely in monetary units, a view which allows its adherents to think it consists primarily of the results of human labour. This error has caused successive governments to pursue objectives which appear to increase the nation’s wealth while in fact they reduce it. Symbols of wealth - like money, power, and influence - reinforce the error and dominate political decision making. Economic growth is a poor guide to human welfare that has caused and is causing enormous social and environmental harm, and extreme harm to other species, particularly animals under human control and influence.”

PB412 currently reads:

“PB412 New economic ideas, institutions and organisations are needed to reduce our dependence on such symbols. Economic policy should be directed not to maximising the forms of wealth that can be measured in monetary terms, but to ensuring that the needs of all are met.” At the end, insert “The transition to an equitable and sustainable economy must be facilitated at the speed and scale needed.” so that it reads:

“PB412 New economic ideas, institutions and organisations are needed to reduce our dependence on such symbols. Economic policy should be directed not to maximising the forms of wealth that can be measured in monetary terms, but to ensuring that the needs of all are met. The transition to an equitable and sustainable economy must be facilitated at the speed and scale needed.” PB413 currently reads:

“PB413 A sustainable society can be prosperous, but it cannot have continually rising affluence. We accept that there is a limit to the wealth each person can receive, and this is true no matter how much or how little work needs to be done to produce that wealth. Some redistribution of income will be required. What wealth there is must be shared in such a way that everyone has a guarantee of economic security, otherwise people will not heed ecological restraints in their daily lives.” In the third sentence, replace “income” with “wealth”, and

Replace “economic security, otherwise people will not heed ecological restraints in their daily lives” with “secure access to the means to live a flourishing life as part of a healthy wider ecosystem” so that it reads:

“PB413 A sustainable society can be prosperous, but it cannot have continually rising affluence. We accept that there is a limit to the wealth each person can receive, and this is true no matter how much or how little work needs to be done to produce that wealth. Some redistribution of wealth will be required. What wealth there is must be shared in such a way that everyone has a guarantee of secure access to the means to live a flourishing life as part of a healthy wider ecosystem.”

PB420 currently reads:

“PB420 Under the present system, economic growth is supported by unlimited consumption of both renewable and non-renewable resources. However, in a finite world there is not an infinite supply of natural resources. The Green Party recognises limits to growth. Limits to growth are likely to be imposed primarily by resource depletion and the ever-increasing costs of pollution. Furthermore, land also is in limited supply. An expanding world population demands expanding food supplies. Irresponsible land use planning, degradation of land through human activity and changes in land quality and availability due to the climate emergency, mean that land must be managed in such a way as to ensure sustainable human development and safeguard biodiversity’”

In the third sentence, replace “costs of” with “harm caused by”, and after “pollution” insert “, including greenhouse gas emissions”, and

At the end of PB420, replace the inverted comma with a full stop, so that it reads:

“PB420 Under the present system, economic growth is supported by unlimited consumption of both renewable and non-renewable resources. However, in a finite world there is not an infinite supply of natural resources. The Green Party recognises limits to growth. Limits to growth are likely to be imposed primarily by resource depletion and the ever-increasing harm caused by pollution, including greenhouse gas emissions. Furthermore, land also is in limited supply. An expanding world population demands expanding food supplies. Irresponsible land use planning, degradation of land through human activity and changes in land quality and availability due to the climate emergency, mean that land must be managed in such a way as to ensure sustainable human development and safeguard biodiversity.”

PB421 currently reads:

“PB421 Conservation of land and natural resources will be very important in order to protect the natural environment from pollution and degradation. The Green Party believes that technologies which promote reuse and recycling of materials and products should be given priority over the production of goods from newly generated resources. We believe our towns and cities should be structured in such a way as to maximise resource conservation.”

In the first sentence replace “will be” with “is”, and

In the second sentence, after “goods from newly” insert “extracted or”, and In the last sentence, replace “towns and cities” with “urban and rural communities”, and Before “structured” insert “re”, and replace “in such a way” with “through fair means facilitated by common physical and digital infrastructure so”, so that it reads:

“PB421 Conservation of land and natural resources is very important in order to protect the natural environment from pollution and degradation. The Green Party believes that technologies which promote reuse and recycling of materials and products should be given priority over the production of goods from newly extracted or generated resources. We believe urban and rural communities should be restructured through fair means facilitated by common physical and digital infrastructure so as to maximise resource conservation.”

PB450 currently reads:

“PB450 The Green Party believes that, since human well-being depends on the use of land and its physical resources, property laws should be designed to ensure that all have access to the things they need. All those who have a stake in property should have a real say in how it is managed. Common goods need to be accountably managed by the community that depends on them.” Replace “have a stake in property” with “are impacted by how a property is managed” so that it reads:

“PB450 The Green Party believes that, since human well-being depends on the use of land and its physical resources, property laws should be designed to ensure that all have access to the things they need. All those who are impacted by how a property is managed should have a real say in how it is managed. Common goods need to be accountably managed by the community that depends on them.”

PB460 currently reads:

“PB460 The Green Party recognises that work plays a central part in a healthy and balanced life. People have a natural desire to make a contribution to the common good.”

In the first sentence replace “work” with “making a contribution to the common good”, and Replace the second sentence “People have a natural desire to make a contribution to the common good.” with “We recognise that work is not the only way in which it is possible to contribute to the common good.” so that it reads:

“PB460 The Green Party recognises that making a contribution to the common good plays a central part in a healthy and balanced life. We recognise that work is not the only way in which it is possible to contribute to the common good.”

PB461 currently reads:

“PB461 We therefore oppose the view of work which treats it as an unfortunate necessity to be performed by machines whenever possible and we oppose the reduction of people’s working lives to a series of simple, repetitive activities. Labour-saving devices may be valuable in some circumstances, but not all. We believe that access to creative, rewarding work is a fundamental human right. We also oppose the view that hard work is to be praised for its own sake. A healthy life is a balanced one, including time for both work and leisure.”

In the first sentence remove “therefore”, and replace “which” with “that”,

Replace “creative, rewarding work” with “the social and material means necessary to live a flourishing life”, and

After “fundamental human right.” insert “We oppose the view that access to social and material means is necessarily accessed through wage labour.”, and

Replace “A healthy life is a balanced one, including time for both work and leisure.” with “A flourishing life is one that includes time for self-development, respect, fulfilment and the opportunity to contribute to the common good as well as time for relaxation, replenishment and enjoyment.”, so that it reads:

“PB461 We oppose the view of work that treats it as an unfortunate necessity to be performed by machines whenever possible and we oppose the reduction of people’s working lives to a series of simple, repetitive activities. Labour-saving devices may be valuable in some circumstances, but not all. We believe that access to the social and material means necessary to live a flourishing life is a fundamental human right. We oppose the view that access to social and material means is necessarily accessed through wage labour. We also oppose the view that hard work is to be praised for its own sake. A flourishing life is one that includes time for self-development, respect, fulfilment and the opportunity to contribute to the common good as well as time for relaxation, replenishment and enjoyment.”