Ecological Reciprocity

I have always been a great believer in the power of reciprocity. Say something nice to someone, and the chances are they will respond in kind at some stage.

Let someone cut in on the peak hour drive, and they will pass the favour along somewhere down the line. It is such a simple kind of idea. You do something for me, and I am far more likely to do something of equal or greater value for you. There are tomes written about it, and you can Google the term for a swath of information from pop psychology to serious study.

Wikipedia says that basically, reciprocity means that in response to friendly actions, people are frequently much nicer and much more cooperative than predicted by the self-interest model; conversely, in response to hostile actions they are frequently much more nasty and even brutal.[i]

Pretty logical, and we all intuitively understand it. So, it is an obvious and simple idea, but, as usual, here’s the bit I don’t get…

We live here on planet earth. Whether you are a believer of Gaia theory, an environmentalist or a neo-liberal capitalist, everything you do is as a result of the, for want of a better term, ‘generosity’ of the planet. We all accept that, surely? Our air is filled with oxygen courtesy of plant life, our water is cycled through natural systems that have developed over millions of years, the fertility of our soil, the crops we grow, everything we eat, wear, burn, use to make power comes from the single closed system that is the earth.

But where is the reciprocity?

In days of yore, it was there in abundance. We call it the circle of life and things like that, but ultimately it was a system of growth, death, decay and growth, continuing perpetually. Changing, yes. Morphing, yes. A system of peaks and troughs and feast and famines, absolutely, but one system across the entire planet of give and take.

Now, it seems we folks have decided that take is the order of the day, with very little give in return. We take fertility from the soil to grow all sorts of things, and then take more out of the system somewhere else to replace it (Australia, where I live, is a net importer of fertiliser for example, despite there being enough organic waste produced here every year to more than adequately replace that which is taken out. The same can be said all over the world). We suck up the oil and burn it, pumping pollutants into the air and then it is gone. We burn the coal, use the iron ore, eat, wear and build with the plants, and grow, use and eat the animals, and really all we give back is waste in some form or another. Thanks folks, says planet earth, thanks a lot.

Where’s the reciprocity in that?

So, congratulations to the folks at places like Phosphorus Futures (http://phosphorusfutures.net/) who recently won the Eureka Award for leading the way in educating us all to ways of giving back to the system that supports us. Although not their intention, these people have highlighted the fact that we in the West are currently acting like spoilt children always demanding more and never expecting to have to give back in return. Look them up. They are really on to something.

And next time you bin something that could be composted back into the system, or ditch the glass bottle with the rest of the crap in the bin instead of recycling, just remember that if you keep taking from someone and never give back in return, eventually they will seriously crack the shits and the game will be over for good.

In short, all the stuff you hear about ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ and ‘tread lightly on the earth’, has really one very basic principle in mind. Think of the planet as a living thing with a conscious, that is constantly giving and from which we are constantly taking, and which will eventually have a moment when it gets pissed off and does something, to quote the Wikipedia example up above, ‘much more nasty and even brutal’ compared to what we are doing to it right now.

And to any Aussies reading this, remember the Moving Pictures anthem of the 1980’s (or if you’re younger than that, maybe Australian Idol’s Shannon Noll), and think about reciprocity and good old planet earth and that just maybe it is time to have a think about it all and how we can improve the current system of ours.

Brothers and Sisters, on behalf of the earth, let us sing:

"What About me, it isn't fair

I've had enough now I want my share

Can't you see? I wanna live!

But you just take more than you give..."

Helpful links:

http://phosphorusfutures.net/

http://www.livinggreener.gov.au/waste/recycling/reduce-reuse-recycle

http://www.resourcesmart.vic.gov.au/for_households_1944.html

http://www.cleanup.org.au/au/LivingGreener/composting.html

http://www.cleanup.org.au/au/LiveGreener/

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[i] Fehr, Ernst; and Simon Gächter (Summer 2000). "Fairness and Retaliation: The Economics of Reciprocity". Journal of Economic Perspectives 14 (3): 159–181