![]() ![]() It is necessary, then, to address the issue of creating more sustainable social living zones. When civil unrest manifests, as it already has in various cities as people protest against food inflation, austerity measures, and political corruption, many more major European and American cities will see bouts of violence, disorder and degrees of chaos. As most major cities go, life is comfortable within the home, yet moving around within the city offers less and less pleasure, safety and comfort. In these modern times, no event occurs in isolation, as everything is connected to everything else thus, everything matters. A disruption to a part of the infrastructure, such as the power grid, can cause various domino effects, creating havoc. As Western societies, and their cities, have become increasingly complex, their supply infrastructures have likewise become increasingly complex, interdependent and fragile. In short, the average urbanite is partly (and sometimes wholly) dependent on the plentiful supply of "always-available" goods, such as food and energy. This is especially so if the individual is dependent on supermarket food supplies, gas station fuel and other necessary external amenities. This situation will be exacerbated when disruptive events impact the daily life of the urbanite. Urban life is increasingly out of balance with the needs of the people. This could foster a new sense of contracted and coherent communities to replace the alienation of large urbanized areas and suburban sprawl. To accomplish this may require new forms of social community: emerging micro-communities, transit-orientated communities, garden cities, eco-cities and others. ![]() As in quantum physics, each living organism has the capacity to function both as a sentient individual (a particle) and as a part of the unified collective field (a wave). It may help to remember that progress rarely is achieved through extremes: neither through total individualism (anarchy) nor through an absolute collective (totalitarianism). Many people have been starved of the developmental input that comes from dynamic social intercourse. To a large degree, modern urban living has contributed to isolating individuals from their wider social community and from the influence of their peers. All these features support a communal immersion, the very opposite of what has been occurring within the Western urban landscape. Elgin has stated that for a sustainable future to be viable, there are six requirements: (1) to dismantle consumerism, (2) to return to ecological living, (3) to engage with sustainable futures, (4) to create a conscious democracy, (5) to embrace a reflective paradigm and (6) to work toward reconciliation. Social scientist and futurist Duane Elgin has written extensively on the subject of social consciousness and evolving societies. As the renowned metaphysical poet John Donne once wrote, "No man is an island." This can work as an encouragement for each person to develop to the best of his or her capacity, able to transform dynamic inner power into a productive and useful force. In this way people are being encouraged to become more creative, constructive, and influential within collective life. The social community should once again become an empowering body, a collective that invests diverse individuals to work together for the common good. A part of the needed social transformation will be the rise of increased social agency through peoples' collectives, as we are seeing now with the Occupy movements. Yet this form of social castration has been increasingly contested over recent years by the welcome emergence and rise of some powerful and potent civil movements and nongovernmental organizations. Unfortunately, most political systems dumbfound and dumb-down the masses and castrate the power of the people. The worth of any society is the sum of the citizens who comprise it. ![]() Just as humanity is a social species, individuals are the building blocks of society. ![]()
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