Environmental communication project. The End of the World or the End of Capitalism?

The End of the World or the end of Capitalism?
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The End of the World or the End of Capitalism?
Introduction
The debate on whether or not the production activities are responsible for the global crisis evokes different reactions, opinions, or ideologies from different members of society. Naomi Klein, a renowned author, and environmentalist calls for a rapid approach towards addressing the global crisis through a collective process cutting across the social, political, and economic divide of global society. In her book, This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs The Climate, Naomi Klein calls for a holistic approach seeking to redefine the capitalist economic ideologies towards embracing new principles of economic development that are friendly to the environment. The past warnings by the environmental scientists, she recognizes, have done little to effect the desired climatic changes and thus demanding more drastic steps towards curbing the crisis. Naomi shares the sentiments of majority of environmentalists around the world in wondering why it is so difficult for the world to come together in forming a united front towards addressing the impending risks posed by climate change. The unregulated use of natural resources such as burning of fossil fuels for energy creation threatens to bring the world to an end. Naomi Klein summarizes her arguments by claiming that, “we are left with a stark choice: allow climate disruption to change everything about our world or change pretty much everything about our economy to avoid that fate. But we need to be very clear: because of our decades of collective denial, no gradual, incremental options are now available to us CITATION Kle14 \l 1033 (Klein, 2014).” Naomi’s point of view, however, faces stiff opposition from politicians and other beneficiaries of capitalism who refuse to believe that the earth's ability to sustain life as a whole is diminishing at an alarming rate. Such individuals believe that sustainable economic growth and development of human beings is dependent on the continuous exploitation of Mother Nature’s self-sustaining provisions. For the proponents of capitalism and as per Frederic Jameson and Slavoj Zizek’s famous phrase, “It is easier to imagine the end of the world than to imagine the end of capitalism” CITATION Ziz10 \l 1033 (Zizek, 2010). The parallel schools of thought and arguments raise the research question and a dilemma for society in deciding the way forward, is it towards the end of the world or the end to capitalism? Provided herein are the arguments for economic revolution towards safe production activities and the counterarguments of the earth’s self-sustenance against the same as presented in Naomi Klein’s book.
Methodology
In the effort to answer or address the research question, the study makes use of a literature review of Naomi Klein’s book This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs The Climate to highlight some of the arguments for global preservation against the immediate threats of climate change. The research methodology further seeks to outline the counter-arguments or the challenges facing the preservation efforts from Frederic Jameson and Slavoj Zizek’s perspective that it is easier for human beings to imagine the end of the world than to imagine the end of capitalism. The argumentative approach arising from the literature review of Naomi Klein’s text further plays a significant role in determining the most effective course of action against the global crisis of climate change.
Literature Review
Humanity’s stubbornness in the face of the impending danger of climate change is a worrisome course that sets Naomi Klein on a comprehensive quest to unveil the political and economic ideologies that limit environment preservation efforts. Naomi Klein’s This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. The Climate showcases the urgency of the need for the global society to form an effective rapid strategy or rather take drastic interventional measures against climate change CITATION Kle14 \l 1033 (Klein, 2014). There is need for society to revisit its economic principles and ideologies that hold the world at ransom while the world continues to suffer the adverse effects of climate change. Naomi Klein's arguments build on the premise that capitalism thrives on the wide range of liberties enshrined in the provisions of the free-market economy leading to globalization of unregulated economic activities. Beneficiaries of capitalism, politicians and entrepreneurs alike, form a majority of the right-wing thinkers who undermine the threat of climate change by claiming that it is a political ploy to limit the said economic liberties of capitalism CITATION Kle14 \l 1033 (Klein, 2014). Klein goes on to remind the detractors of sustainable economic development through scientific proof that the earth suffers from the increasing rate of greenhouse gas emissions that not only affect humanity but the natural habitat or ecosystem as a whole. The proposed global interventional measures towards the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions through international agreements and collaborative efforts at developing and encouraging the use of renewable energy sources have all fell short of achieving the desired outcome. Leaders and their nations find themselves in endless debates over the right course of action while various regions and countries are suffering the wrath of Mother Nature. However, Naomi Klein recognizes and appreciates the cultural approach taken by indigenous communities in fighting for the preservation of their habitats that are reaping positive outcomes.
The political and economic ideologies of capitalism, on the other hand, thrive on the maximum exploitation of the earth’s resources for profitability. The current era of globalization is characteristic of a competitive global economy, which demands increased productivity for economic growth and development. The thought of adopting sustainable ...