November 2001 | News of the Earth
The Earth Charter, 9/11, and a Way Forward
by Dave Aftandilian
"We stand at a critical moment in Earth’s history, a time when humanity must choose its future. As the world becomes increasingly interdependent and fragile, the future at once holds great peril and great promise. To move forward we must recognize that in the midst of a magnificent diversity of cultures and life forms we are one human family and one Earth community with a common destiny. We must join together to bring forth a sustainable global society founded on respect for nature, universal human rights, economic justice, and a culture of peace. Towards this end, it is imperative that we, the peoples of Earth, declare our responsibility to one another, to the greater community of life, and to future generations."
— from the Preamble of the Earth Charter
On Saturday, September 29, Americans gathered simultaneously in twelve cities across the country, including Chicago, to launch the Earth Charter Initiative via a live satellite hook-up. The most immediate goal of the initiative is to convince the United Nations General Assembly to endorse the Earth Charter in June 2002, the tenth anniversary of the Rio Earth Summit. But a more important longer-term objective is the creation of a new global ethic for sustainable development that allows for both the realization of the full potential of humanity and the protection of the environment.
The road to the Earth Charter started with the creation of the United Nations (U.N.) in 1945. At the time of its founding, the U.N. emphasized peace, human rights, and equitable socioeconomic development as the crucial ingredients for world security. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the U.N. General Assembly in 1948, grew out of these early priorities, and is an important precursor to the Earth Charter. By the time of the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment in 1972, ecological security had emerged as a fourth major concern of the U.N., reflected in the adoption of the World Charter for Nature by the General Assembly a decade later.
Work on the Earth Charter proper began after the U.N. World Commission on Environment and Development in 1987 called for "a new charter...needed to maintain livelihoods and life on our shared planet and to guide state behavior in the transition to sustainable development." Although organizers had hoped to see a strong Earth Charter adopted at the 1992 U.N. Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro, the resulting Rio Declaration on Environment and Development "falls short of the aspirations that many groups have had for the Earth Charter.... Its anthropocentric emphasis is a step back from the more balanced approach of the World Charter for Nature.... [I]t does not affirm the intrinsic value of all life forms and articulate clearly a principle of respect for nature," according to the Earth Charter’s Web site.
In 1994, the Earth Charter drafting process was revitalized by Maurice Strong, secretary general of the Rio Earth Summit; Mikhail Gorbachev, chair of Green Cross International; and the Dutch government. Professor Steven Rockefeller of the United States chaired the international drafting committee, which received input from thousands of people from fifty-six countries. The final draft of the Earth Charter was approved in March 2000.
The Earth Charter
What is the Earth Charter? First and foremost, it is a declaration of interdependence — an acknowledgment that the fates of humans from all cultures are tied not just to each other, but also to the larger environment of which we are all a part. Therefore, to preserve the environment, we must protect human rights, and vice versa. As Steven Rockefeller puts it, "We cannot care for people in a world with collapsing ecosystems. And we cannot care for Earth in a world with widespread poverty, injustice, and violent conflict."
Second, the Earth Charter builds on this vision of the interconnectedness of all life and all human problems and aspirations to "provide a conception of sustainable development and set forth fundamental guidelines for achieving it," according to the organization’s Web site. And what is that conception? "The goal of sustainable development is full human development and ecological protection." How do we get there from here? "[H]olistic thinking and collaborative, integrated problem solving.... [Sustainable development] is about freedom, justice, participation, and peace as well as environmental protection and economic well-being."
Third, and perhaps most importantly, the Earth Charter provides a strong global ethical foundation and standard on which personal, national, and international philosophies and values systems may be built and against which all human laws and actions may be measured. Education, cross-cultural and interfaith dialogue, professional codes of conduct, government planning — all can benefit from study and discussion of and meaningful comparison with the Earth Charter.
The heart of the Earth Charter is a set of four fundamental principles of respect and care for the entire community of life. Twelve other main principles lay out in more detail how the first four principles might be achieved. For each of these main principles, two or more supporting principles further elaborate or clarify. Some of the most compelling language and ideals in the Earth Charter seem to lie in these supporting principles, which highlight some of the specific issues that individuals and groups raised during the decade-long worldwide drafting process for the charter.
Principles
The first four principles are: (1) Respect Earth and life in all its diversity. (2) Care for the community of life with understanding, compassion, and love. (3) Build democratic societies that are just, participatory, sustainable, and peaceful. (4) Secure Earth’s bounty and beauty for present and future generations.
To show you what I mean about the supporting principles being some of the best parts of the charter, here’s one listed under the first principle: "Recognize that all beings are interdependent and every form of life has value regardless of its worth to human beings." Or this one, listed under the second principle: "Accept that with the right to own, manage, and use natural resources comes the duty to prevent environmental harm and to protect the rights of people."
The rest of the principles are organized into three sections — ecological integrity; social and economic justice; and democracy, nonviolence, and peace — each with four fundamental principles. There isn’t room to list all of the principles here, but here are a few examples:
(6b) Place the burden of proof on those who argue that a proposed activity will not cause significant harm, and make the responsible parties liable for environmental harm. (7d) Internalize the full environmental and social costs of goods and services in the selling price, and enable consumers to identify products that meet the highest social and environmental standards. (9) Eradicate poverty as an ethical, social, and environmental imperative. (10b) Promote the equitable distribution of wealth within nations and among nations. (15) Treat all living beings with respect and consideration. (16) Promote a culture of tolerance, nonviolence, and peace.
That’s only a small sample, but it should give you an idea of the astounding breadth and depth of the Earth Charter. Within its sixteen principles are some of the most progressive social, environmental, economic, and religious values currently conceived on the planet — principles that just might save the world if we all work together to bring them from ideals to "reals." In fact, I found as I read through the charter that I supported every single principle in it, both fundamental and supporting. It felt as if the drafters of the Earth Charter had read my mind, or better yet my dreams for a more just, peaceful, ecologically balanced world filled with a wide diversity of different human groups, all united as citizens of the Earth.
Relevance to September 11 and After
What does all this have to do with the terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C.? Plenty. First of all, the attacks have reminded us that Americans are connected to the rest of the world and its peoples, whether we like it or not. We can no longer afford to ignore the plights of those who live in poverty and desperation in a world of increasing inequality, deprivation, and violence — conditions that make young people who have no hope easy targets for recruitment by fanatics like Osama bin Laden and his ilk. This is just one example of the complex interdependence of all life of which the Earth Charter speaks.
Drawing on the Earth Charter, how should we respond to this crisis, as a nation and as individuals? During the Earth Charter Summit in September, Steven Rockefeller said that "our only hope is to build a long-term culture of peace, which requires a worldwide partnership of all nations and all peoples. We cannot build peace using war and violence; other creative means, including a life-affirming ethic of care, are required to build peace. That is the relevance of the Earth Charter to September 11." He added that "the war on terror must include a war on poverty if it is to have any chance of success" (the Earth Charter calls for the eradication of poverty; see above).
We need to act out of caring and love, not a misguided desire for vengeance. Bombing innocent civilians in Afghanistan will not do anything but create yet more potential recruits for terrorists. With the help of people of goodwill around the world we should track down those responsible for these murders and bring them to justice. But we should also strive to bring justice to those billions of our fellow humans who sleep in the streets, who do not have enough to eat, and who lack adequate medical care, clean water, and educational opportunities. A global society founded on an ethic of caring and an equitable distribution of wealth has no room for terrorism — but so-called democratic regimes founded on greed, exploitation of people and nature, and militarism have room for as many acts of violence as there are oppressed peoples around the world.
A Way Forward
During the Earth Charter Summit, distinguished panelists offered a number of concrete ways in which we could apply the principles of the Earth Charter to the pursuit of a more just, peaceful, and sustainable way of life. John Anderson, for instance, former independent candidate for president and chair of the Center for Voting and Democracy, pointed out the clear connection between the principle of safeguarding human rights and the enforcement of the rule of law. International institutions and instruments of justice will be required for this, yet the U.S. Senate has so far refused to approve the International Criminal Court or to ratify the Convention on Rights for Women and Children. Until recently, the United States owed millions of dollars in past dues to the U.N. (part of which was paid off by Ted Turner). And the United States also withdrew from the World Conference Against Racism just a few months ago. As Anderson puts it, "if we want world peace through world law, to eliminate further threats of violence in the world, we must demonstrate an international view and responsibility that today is totally lacking." We — all of us — must impress this point upon our elected officials through our power to vote.
Marjory Kelly, cofounder of Business Ethics magazine and author of The Divine Right of Capital, noted that we must bring the principles of the Earth Charter into the public sphere. She said that democratic political structure is a great start, but we need to democratize our economy too. Today’s corporations still hold a monarchic system of values, serving the needs of the few — shareholders — instead of the needs of the many. To turn this around, we need to embed a new values system in corporate charters, privileging the eradication of poverty over the underpayment of employees to maximize profits, and the protection of the environment over externalization of costs like pollution. To start this process, Kelly proposes, for example, to publicize how many employees of a given corporation were on food stamps, thereby shaming the company into paying a living wage.
Vicki Rubin also focused on economics, but on the personal rather than public side. Founder of Sustainable Seattle and New American Dream, and coauthor of Your Money or Your Life, Rubin said that we all need to move toward a "culture of conservation and conversation," learning from each other what it takes to live the Earth Charter. Pointing out that we can’t ask others to live with less if we aren’t willing to reassess our own needs versus wants, she suggested that we all voluntarily cut out 20 percent of our current (over)consumption so that others in the world might have enough to live on. In getting rid of our wasteful consumption patterns, we would also be shedding our guilt, allowing us to work more productively with people living in poverty.
Numerous other suggestions were offered, such as using the Earth Charter to educate students, colleagues, and fellow members of communities of faith on issues of sustainability; urging organizations to which we belong and governments that represent us to endorse the Earth Charter, as the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the Parliament of the World’s Religions have done; and starting an Earth Charter study group to explore how to apply its principles in our homes, workplaces, and local communities.
But perhaps Joanne Olivera Lighter, CEO and president of the Allegany Franciscan Foundation, said it best in her introduction to the Earth Charter Summit: "By living these principles, we move them into the world." Let’s start a revolution for peace and justice for humanity and the Earth, one person at a time. As the conclusion of the Earth Charter puts it: "Let ours be a time remembered for the awakening of a new reverence for life, the firm resolve to achieve sustainability, the quickening of the struggle for justice and peace, and the joyful celebration of life."
Resources
Business Ethics magazine
Center for Voting and Democracy
Chicago Simplicity Circle: Voluntary Simplicity
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