Letters

We are living in an extraordinary time when humans are finally becoming aware of the enormous impact our species is making on the rest of life on earth – including ourselves. We have created technologies that shape us culturally, physically and politically. We are at a point where the choices made now by individuals, civil society, and governments, will have a profound impact for generations to come. This is why the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act (passed in Wales in 2016) is so important, and needs to be known about and taken seriously by all those making decisions affecting almost every aspect of our lives. There is no room for delaying tactics or complacency. What we eat, how we dispose of our waste, the building materials we use, how we travel and communicate, educate, stay healthy, entertain ourselves, all of it matters. The system that has brought us where we are today has largely defined human wellbeing in economic terms, and has been rooted in inequality, both among ourselves, with hierarchies of dominance and unfair distribution of wealth and resources, and our relationships with the other beings on the earth, treated as so much collateral damage to the notion of economic progress and productivity. In a sense, it would not be unreasonable to say that the current models of society are based on war and conflict. Not just war against other humans, which is bad enough, but increasingly, war against other species and against the very land we inhabit. The use of pesticides; the casual way in which we exploit or eradicate other species, often merely for short term gain; the pillaging of mineral wealth, with its ensuing destruction of landscape, communities – both human and non – and beauty; the damming of rivers; the pollution of oceans and freshwater; and much more. In such a context, it is not so surprising that the bombing of innocent people and their homes is perceived as somehow part of the normal order of the world. But there is nothing normal about endless war, especially when it spawns whole industries that make profits for corporations, and those corporations answer to no laws except their own. All life on earth is part of a food chain and no creature survives without food. How we eat is intimately connected with our relationship to the rest of life on earth. It does not need to be a war - somehow we need to put love into the process. Even if you are meat-eating, it does not follow that you should not care about the provenance of your meat. And the same goes with any crops – is their cultivation improving soil structure, helping wild flowers and insects to flourish? Do the birds sing nearby? The basic question is: can we eat in a way that does not cause harm or contribute to the poor health of our planet’s ecosystems of which we are part? Granted, whatever you eat, the eaten doesn’t have much fun at the end, whether animal or vegetable. But it is possible to grow food in such a way that doesn’t mean cutting down ancient trees or pouring unwanted chemicals into the soil and water. It is possible for animals to graze off pasture, not imported feed that has been grown at the expense of forests and communities far from here. It is possible to plant trees and wildflower meadows alongside food crops and animal herds. It is also possible for everyone to eat good food. It is plain wrong that society is divided into those who can afford to eat decent food and those who end up eating badly for lack of income. Inequality is built into systems run for profit, and poor people are just another casualty of a world at war with itself and life. What would our countryside look like 8

if farming was done to provide good food for everyone, regardless of income or social status AND to improve the health of soil and ecosystems? Can we imagine a future where blatant inequality is unacceptable and forms no part of any society or community? When people say they love the countryside – what do they mean? Will loving it mean you protect it, fight for it with your life? Some embattled communities all over the world are having to do to so, faced with corporations who want to extract oil, water, coal or uranium from hitherto pristine landscapes. We need to know if our better quality of life, our ability to wake up each day to a comforting normality, depends on a worse one for others, and take action if we find it does. If we are to take our responsibilities seriously, then we need to stop waging war against ourselves, our communities, and our land and landscapes - all over the world. We have to imagine ourselves into the future – what do we want to leave behind for future generations? War-ravaged landscapes destroyed for short-term profit, crowded with the equivalent of concentration camps for animals, or flourishing landscapes that will support life, in all its richness and diversity, far into the future? The Wellbeing of Future Generations Act could – could - can - help us to make wise decisions.

Camilla Saunders

Earth just had hottest January since records began, data shows • Average global temperature 2.05F above 20th-century average. The record temperatures in January follow an exceptionally warm 2019, which has been ranked as the second hottest year for the planet’s surface since reliable measurements started. • The past five years and the past decade are the hottest in 150 years of record-keeping, an indication of the gathering pace of the climate crisis. • The average global land and ocean surface temperature last month was 2.05F (or 1.14C) above the 20th-century average. This measurement marginally surpassed the previous January record, set in 2016. • Last month was the hottest January on record over the world’s land and ocean surfaces, with average temperatures exceeding anything in the 141 years of data held by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. • The four warmest Januaries on record have occurred since 2016, while the 10 warmest Januaries have taken place since 2002. The world’s governments agreed in 2015 to keep the global temperature increase to well below 2C, compared with the pre-industrial era, in order to stave off disastrous flooding, food insecurity, heatwaves and mass displacement of people. However, planet-warming emissions from human activity are not showing any sign of decline, let alone the deep cuts needed to meet the 2C goal and address the climate crisis. • According to scientists, the world must halve its emissions by 2030 to stand any chance of avoiding disastrous climate breakdown. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/feb/13/ january-hottest-earth-record-climate-crisis

John Main via Royal Society of Biology