Grow Sustainably
Humanity needs to figure out ways of doing more with less through elegant innovations, new ways of thinking, and new ways of living. In the short term, we need to feed billions more people with less erosion, less petrochemicals, less waste, and less water. In the short term, we need to educate many more people, especially girls and women. In the short term, we need to dramatically grow our economies with significantly less environmental destruction. Economic growth is the key to paying down our public and private debts. Economic growth is the key to reducing debilitating poverty. Environmental protection and restoration is the key to doing so sustainably.
Our Common Story helps to appropriately frame the economic and environmental challenges of the 21st century and is suggestive of the probable solutions. We live in a remarkable moment in the natural history of our planet and the cultural evolution of our species. If we can successfully negotiate the challenges of our times, then future generations will forever look back at us with gratitude. Failure is not an option. We cannot succeed, however, unless we understand why and how the combined revelations of modern science are Our Common Story.