Volume 16.1: Human Nature and Sustainability (Gowdy) - PDF

HUMAN NATURE AND SUSTAINABILITY: INDIVIDUAL BEHAVIOR IS NOT INDIVIDUAL
John Gowdy, PhD: Conference Distinguished Guest Lecturer
At the root of public policy debates about sustainability are starkly contrasting views of “human nature.” If one believes that people are by nature selfish and greedy, one is likely to support public policies motivated by narrow self-interest. If one takes a more benign view that if left alone people will live in harmony, one is more likely to favor policies based on mutual aid, sharing, and cooperation. Findings from such diverse fields as anthropology, behavioral economics, and neuroscience suggest that behavior depends on the physical environment, neurology, cultural context, and individual and social history. Focusing on individual behavior alone misses the drivers of unsustainability—namely, a global economy whose viability depends on growth and exploitation, and the increasing concentration of wealth in the hands of an elite that controls the public policy agenda.