Environment vs Economy

“What’s more important, the environment or the economy?”

As we lead up to the federal election, a survey to Aussie voters asked what was more important… There were a number of options, above are just two. To me, it highlights a gap not just in knowledge of the options we have at our disposal, but in optimism about how it all fits together.

The environment and the economy are heavily intertwined, they’re not mutually exclusive. If we look after the environment, the economy sorts itself out.

That’s not intended to be an overly optimistic or flippant statement:

• Climate is a multi-trillion dollar industry, and growing like mad.
• Project Drawdown lists at least 82 commercially viable solutions – that is, business ideas that are already making a hefty portion of those trillions of dollars – with details for replicating every one of them. Much of the climate problem has already been solved, the solutions just need to be scaled.
• The 17 SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) cover everything from education to equality to clean water to industry & infrastructure – the goals are a call to action aimed at countries, governments, organisations and philanthropists, but anyone can take them up… we hit the goal, we solve the issues.

There is no separating environment and economy. Come 2030 and beyond, the climate-first, solutions-oriented organisations who are regenerating the environment rather than taking from it, will dominate.