{"id":11428,"date":"2020-03-27T09:14:08","date_gmt":"2020-03-27T08:14:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/?p=11428"},"modified":"2020-04-21T08:43:06","modified_gmt":"2020-04-21T06:43:06","slug":"shaking-the-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/en\/2020\/03\/27\/shaking-the-system\/","title":{"rendered":"Shaking the System"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Introduction to a co-created System Change series<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article is the start of a series of contributions to make sense of the crises that we are facing, to explore facts, opinions and groundbreaking ideas and together develop a path towards a better future. Do you want to contribute? Send an email to info@code-rood.org<\/a> <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It feels as if the world is continually in crisis\u2013now more so than ever.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have undoubtedly hit a definitive moment in our history. We are living in strange times where, for many of us, the world is at a standstill. Over the past few weeks, many of us have lost our jobs, and economies are grinding to a halt. Any initial warning signs could not have prepared us for what has just happened, and we are all waiting to see what will happen next. Nonetheless, this cataclysmic event did not emerge out of thin air.  Experts have been warning about the chance of a severe global pandemic for a long time, resulting from our unethical handling of animals, our constant international aerial transportation, our destruction of finely balanced ecosystems, dramatic social inequality, weakened healthcare systems, and so on and so forth. We must acknowledge that any global crisis cannot simply be reduced to a single originary cause. <\/strong>This current crisis is unique, however, because it can serve as an important turning point. How we emerge on the other side is going to affect our world and impact our lives in ways that may be unknown, with long-term implications that may permanently shape how we work, how we consume, and how we treat the natural world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That is, they are only\nunknown if we allow them to be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The system is broken and cannot be fixed. We need a new system. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our system has been\nbroken for centuries, from imperial rule to our current neoliberal capitalist\nera. It is a system that is fundamentally built on unsteady ground. Neoliberal capitalism binds\nus through an intricate system of structural violence and oppression that\nprevents its participants from thinking that things could be otherwise.<\/strong> It\u2019s a system that\ninevitably finds itself on the brink of economic collapse and crisis,\nregenerating itself by continually exploiting natural resources and human\nlabour. The majority unequivocally participates in such a system, allured by\nthe prospect of wealth and prosperity, despite the fact that upward social\nmobility is inherently stacked against their odds. Many bear witness to the\ndestruction of vibrant ecosystems and indigenous lands, and internalize these\nactions as essential means for a better, more convenient life. This is the\nfallacy of our system. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Indigenous peoples have been fighting colonial environmental destruction for centuries. Western environmentalists have only been sounding the alarm since the 1940s, with writers like Aldo Leopold providing a philosophical framework or, to use his words, a \u201cland ethic\u201d that claims, \u201cA thing is right when it preserves the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community\u201d<\/a>. Twenty years later, Rachel Carson noted and widely shared her findings about the ecological costs of negligent, destructive, anthropocentric human activity in Silent Spring<\/em>, igniting the environmental movement<\/a>. Sixty years after that, and we still find ourselves grappling with the same issues. The sirens blare and yet business carries on as usual.<\/strong> Without taking action to address the way our system is structured, we will continue to find ourselves in even worse positions time and time again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Global solidarity: By the people, for the people<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We need to collectively\ntake this opportunity to pick up the pieces, and reconfigure our world in a way\nthat benefits us all. The system must be built by<\/em> the people and for<\/em> the people.<\/strong> Reminding ourselves of\nthis fact is essential for mobilizing change and shifting the power away from\ncentralized networks back into the hands of the public. We cannot allow others\nto rebuild the system for us anymore. We cannot allow governments to expedite\nlegislation that ensures that banks and fossil fuel companies remain the\nvictors of these crises, resuming their business as usual while the rest of the\npopulation falls to the wayside. We cannot allow dooming apocalyptic narratives\nto fester and hinder our ability to enact real change. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Though the coronavirus\nis still sending shockwaves across nations (and will continue to do so over the\nmonths to come), it is essential that we initiate the process of moving the\ndiscussion away from the virus and towards other issues that this crisis has exposed\nto us, most notably, humanity\u2019s impact on global climate, the fragility of our\nglobal economy and the state of our health care systems. COVID-19 has been\ndominating headlines, obscuring many of the other detrimental activities that\nare still moving forward. <\/strong>The Wet\u2019suwet\u2019en nation in\nwestern colonial Canada continues to fight against the construction of the\nCoastal Gaslink pipeline<\/a>. Bolsonaro continues\nto disregard scientific evidence, permitting the destruction of the Brazilian\nAmazon rainforest and putting the livelihood of\nindigenous communities at risk<\/a>. Shell continues to\nfind ways to remain afloat during this time, jeopardizing the health and safety\nof its workers by forcing them to quarantine on oil rigs in the\nmiddle of the North Sea during this pandemic<\/a>. It is crucial that we remain attentive to these things and not let the\nvirus fog our vision of the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Loud leaders, empty solutions. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

During these uncertain\ntimes, questioning those who arrogantly seem to know what\u2019s best for all people\nis absolutely critical. Some of the world\u2019s top public health officials,\nimmunologists, and virologists still retain a healthy dose of skepticism and\nadmit that even they do not know precisely how this will all unfold. We are\nseeing that\nthe poorest leaders among us make any attempt to shift the onus away from\nthemselves and the system that they helm, and instead point the finger at other\nbodies for somehow being corrupt or failing in their duties<\/strong><\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With this approach, a failure in a nation\u2019s healthcare system is not the fault of its fragile structure and lack of medical resources, but the fault of a virus that was \u2018simply uncontainable\u2019. When this same rhetoric is applied to the climate crisis, a failure in a national response plan to the climate crisis is not the fault of big oil continuing to extract fossil fuels, but rather the \u2018insurmountable force\u2019 that is climate change. This kind of blame game does nothing more than re-assert the status quo, and fails to address any semblance of a root cause. It encourages passivity and hopelessness. In the process, it leaves marginalized groups in the line of fire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Isolation does not equal standstill<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Using this time to\nreflect on both the personal and the planetary, and act in accordance, is\nessential. Finding ways to reject\nlegislation that continues to put power back into the hands of exploitive\nforces ought to be our priority in the months to come<\/a>. As we continue our efforts to tackle climate change, we need to employ\nthe same kinds of anticipatory measures that\nhave been successfully applied for COVID-19 in nations like South Korea<\/a>. We have to be ahead of the curve and prepared for our obstacles before<\/em> they occur. Being pre-emptive, not\nreactionary, is our only viable chance.<\/strong> Reacting to crises on a global scale with unified\napproaches that are founded in scientific empirical data is the only way we can\nensure the safety of our population and of our planet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While there are global\nefforts that are indeed learning more about the virus every day, we, as the\ngeneral public, have hit a barrier in terms of what we know about the virus.\nOne thing we know for certain is that staying home, isolating, and physically\ndistancing ourselves from each other will provide us the essential time we need\nto solve this public health crisis. It will allow nations to accumulate the\nnecessary testing kits and medical resources to begin more combative measures.\nWe have to be prepared for not weeks, but months of social distancing, isolation\nand quarantine, and it is essential that we use this time to stay politically\nengaged and vocalize our needs and desires for change.<\/strong> Rather than reject this\nfact, we need to embrace it. It is ultimately up to us to decide how we will\nshape the future. The virus will undeniably have a major effect on the years to\ncome, but there is no benefit in us circulating the same doubts, concerns, and\npotential misinformation over the coming months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Collective growth, collective action.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If we can learn\nanything from this slightly surreal moment of isolation and quarantine, it is\nthat any socio-economic structure depends on the participation of labourers,\nthose who make our food, stock our shelves, maintain public spaces. Without a\ncollective labour force, the economy stands still. Nothing can prosper, no\nprofits can be generated. This period of isolation is a strong reminder of how\nimportant each of our social contributions are and how powerful collective\naction can be. Collective\naction requires us to learn from the experiences of one other, to understand\nknowledge not as a centralized object of power, but as something that belongs\nto us all, encompassing everything from a vernacular knowledge of the land to\nscientific expertise. We must continue to utilize the scientific method,\nrecognize the value of empirical study, and see expertise as an indelible\nwealth of knowledge that we can use to better our world.<\/strong> We have to trust health\ncare professionals during this time much like we have to trust climatologists\nand environmentalists when talking about climate change. We ought to remind\nourselves that\nwe possess\nthe necessary tools and resources we need to destabilize our system and\nreconstruct it in such a way that serves us all equitably, with measures that <\/strong>sustain our global economy<\/strong><\/a>, improve the wellbeing of humanity, and prioritize the health of the\nplanet<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Our call for submissions<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Much more can be said\nabout these issues, and there are far more nuances that have been overlooked in\nthese initial remarks. That is why, starting today, we are inviting our community to participate in a series that focuses on the systemic\nchanges that are necessary to prevent and overcome current and future crises\nand injustices.<\/strong> We invite our followers to\ncontribute through articles, research papers, works of art or any kind of\ninformed creative expression! The key is to highlight the intersectional issues\nthat inevitably arise when tackling something as intricate as unified,\ncollectively-driven system change. We hope to see a diversity of voices in this\nseries who can help guide our readers to other valuable resources,\nprofessionals, and experts. Our goal is to learn and grow as a movement and\ncontinue to develop visions, strategies and tactics together during these\ndigital times. It\u2019s time to write history! Let\u2019s go!  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019d like to make a contribution, you can send an email to <\/strong>info@code-rood.org<\/strong><\/a> in which you briefly explain your idea as a starting point for discussing practical next steps.<\/strong> You can also read our guidelines<\/a> here!<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"excerpt","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":11409,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","filesize_raw":"","_price":"","_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"0","_ticket_start_date":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":false,"_tribe_ticket_use_global_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_global_stock_level":"","_global_stock_mode":"","_global_stock_cap":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_going_count":"","_tribe_ticket_not_going_count":"","_tribe_tickets_list":[],"_tribe_ticket_has_attendee_info_fields":false},"categories":[298,313],"tags":[],"acf":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/47568774572_f695d1425a_o.jpg","featured_image_src_square":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/47568774572_f695d1425a_o.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"1f903ab9af86cb2bc5637785076b5ec71be5a1aa","author_link":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/en\/author\/1f903ab9af86cb2bc5637785076b5ec71be5a1aa\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11428"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11428"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11428\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11580,"href":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11428\/revisions\/11580"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11409"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11428"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11428"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/code-rood.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11428"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}