{"id":277,"date":"2012-09-10T09:28:32","date_gmt":"2012-09-10T14:28:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ecooptimism.com\/?p=277"},"modified":"2013-07-07T14:27:04","modified_gmt":"2013-07-07T19:27:04","slug":"optimism-possibility","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ecooptimism.com\/?p=277","title":{"rendered":"Optimism = Possibility"},"content":{"rendered":"

Can it be coincidence that, only two months after the launch of the EcoOptimism blog, Ode Magazine has changed its name to The Intelligent Optimist?<\/p>\n

Uh, yeah, it\u2019s coincidence. Much as I\u2019d love to think we\u2019ve already had that kind of influence, they\u2019ve been around a lot longer than we have, and co-founder Jurriaan Kamp writes about the name change here<\/a>. He relays a discussion about the renaming he had with Benjamin Zander, conductor of the Boston Philharmonic, in which Zander says \u201cI think of intelligent optimism as a discipline, the rigorous discipline to stay in the state of mind of possibility.\u201d<\/p>\n

As I write this, their new website is not yet fully launched and the \u201cabout\u201d section is labeled \u201cUnder Construction.\u201d That may be unintentionally appropriate given Zander\u2019s point about possibilities: \u201cThe disciplined intelligent optimist says, \u2018It\u2019s too early to judge,\u2019 and asks, \u2018What\u2019s next?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Possibility is always under construction.<\/p>\n

But we can check back with OdeWire\u2019s \u201cabout<\/a>\u201d page (OdeWire is their online component), which says \u201c\u2026OdeWire is always looking at the most authoritative news sources for stories that focus on solutions rather than problems, and on positive changes rather than negative ones.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not surprisingly, given the related names, there is a strong parallel between Ode\/The Intelligent Optimist\u2019s mission and ours.<\/p>\n

EcoOptimism seeks to show how we can come out the other side of our concurrent ECOlogical and ECOnomic crises (ECOoptimism, get it?) in a better place than we started; that not only will the planet be healthier, but we, as individuals, as families, as communities and as a species, can feel fulfilled and be more prosperous.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Our emphasis on optimism doesn\u2019t mean we are always optimistic. We see clouds as well as silver linings. (I\u2019ve never quite understood the phrase \u2018every cloud has a silver lining.\u2019 Wouldn\u2019t it mean that we see the silver outer lining rather than the storms awaiting us inside, meaning things look better than they are? But whatevs, as \u2018the kids\u2019 are saying these days.)<\/p>\n

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Regardless of occasional digressions from optimism (\u2018reality checks\u2019 some might call them), it strikes me that optimism is the only productive route. In terms of environmentalism, the alternative pessimistic route would be adaptation \u2013 acknowledging that the sky is indeed falling and we\u2019d better strengthen our roofs.<\/p>\n

But does EcoOptimism imply that we not pursue adaptation, or its more positive variation: resilience? Not at all. That would put it in the category of one of my nemeses: the false dilemma. (Note to self: create comic book villain named \u201cFalse Dilemma.\u201d) We can \u2013 and should \u2013 work on both prevention or mitigation and adaptation or resilience. The vastly preferable path, in terms of both cost and disruption (\u201cdisruption\u201d would be an optimistic\/euphemistic description of the potential perils), is prevention. But it may well be that we are past the point of prevention of some ecological disasters. For instance it may be that climate disruption has already been set in motion and, therefore, it would be foolhardy to ignore the steps necessary to lessen the impact. Perhaps there are responses available there, too that are in the vein of EcoOptimism \u2013 adaptations that also improve our economy and lives, only without the ecological benefits.<\/p>\n

The other appeal of EcoOptimism is its very nature. Fear is usually a great motivator, but it hasn\u2019t been working here, probably because the things to be afraid of are too abstract. We aren\u2019t directly experiencing them or have trouble ascribing seemingly isolated events to a larger picture that we\u2019d rather not see.<\/p>\n

Fear motivates in crises like war or epidemics or severe weather (as opposed to climate) where the danger can be felt or easily anticipated, or where we have experienced it before. Ecological disruption falls into none of those categories and that means we need a different motivator. If not fear, then the motivator needs to be desire, which is where the purpose of EcoOptimism comes in.<\/p>\n

Optimism is also a nearly genetic part of being a designer. (Non-designers are welcome; it\u2019s not an exclusive gene pool.) Designers look at a thing or a problem and immediately start imagining what could be. Pretty much by definition, that\u2019s optimism. It also means that, in the eyes and minds of designers, things are always \u201cunder construction.\u201d There are always possibilities.<\/p>\n

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