View Source | April 16, 2014
In the April 2014 issue of Sustainability: The Journal of Record, Senior Sustainability Scientist and School of Sustainability Professor of Practice George Basile and co-author Scott McNall expound on the necessity for a new sustainability narrative in their second installment on the subject.
In their article, “How to Create a New Narrative for Sustainability That Will Work: And Why It Matters, Part 2,” McNall and Basile draw from social movement theory to illustrate how humans make decisions. They demonstrate that successful movements of the past share several key characteristics, such as a well-defined grievance and a solution that can be achieved. Though the sustainability movement possesses these characteristics, it must do a better job of of aligning its goals with those of its members.
As McNall and Basile conclude, "[The sustainability movement] must be about common values and common needs; it must be framed so that we understand that it is our responsibility to act now! A sustainability narrative will embrace the idea that the problems we face are practical ones, solvable through leadership and innovation at the local as well as the global level."