Conservator Society Still a Dream

摘要

Society is all too committed to the notion of "progress" as measured through economic growth and population expansion. The notion of working toward a "sustainable future" is not given much serious thought. Energy policy, for example, concentrates on expanding supply, with relatively little R&D being devoted to improving the efficiency of energy use or developing low-carbon fuels. Yet without a change in course, human activities are destined to further degrade the global environment. That was my message in 1988, when I argued that it was imperative to create what I called a "conservator society." After reviewing humanity's "progress" during the intervening years, however, I have concluded, sadly, that I would change my argument very little. To say that more sustained effort will be needed to achieve the conservator society is obviously an understatement.