Earth Charter Podcast: Turning Conscience Into Action

Quick Overview

Ms. von Weizsäcker expresses how she has enjoyed listening and learning through her participation in many negotiations and drafting processes such as the biodiversity convention, biosafety protocol, the Earth Charter, and more. Her elaboration on the meaning and importance of the Precautionary Principle, the Polluter Pays Principle and the Environment Democracy Principle is full of insights and clarity. She reflects on the power dynamics in some negotiations and also in the causes and on the consequences of environmental degradation. On the interactions among different actors to move forward in the implementation of these principles, she uses an example in the COVID context. She outlines some of the deep challenges that every organization faces, including finding the right level of engagement and responsibility, building consensus, and listening to the voices of the unheard. Towards the end, she encourages people to travel to the unknown with all the navigating tools and to act on the best available knowledge, as the world cannot afford to wait.

Quick Overview

In this episode, Professor Mackey reviews the aspiration when the Earth Charter was being drafted and launched, and how such aspiration has been achieved especially with the widespread recognition and commitment. He elaborates on certain principles and shared some stories from behind the scenes of the Earth Charter drafting process. Relating to the current challenges of biodiversity loss, the decline of the democratic process, and climate change, he argues that the Earth Charter provides an ethical guide for people to reflect and react. While SDGs define the noble ends, the Earth Charter not only outlines consistent means but also illustrates the interactions among those ends. Professor Mackey’s example of applying the Earth Charter in his work is an inspiration for more action to incorporate these ethical principles into real life.

Quick Overview

Born in the 1930s, Dr. Engel first experienced hope for a democratic society during his secondary education, until he realized the values taught were not necessarily carried out. His interest to explore the field of ethics emerged out of his reaction to the social injustice and environmental deterioration he saw as a young man. He takes an integrated, covenantal approach to ethics, combining both justice and virtue. Regarding the role of ethics in education, he shares some of his experience as a professor of ethics and prompts us to ask a profound question: “To what do we remain faithful to the end?” Dr. Engel shares some thoughts on the content and drafting process of the IUCN’s Caring for the Earth: A Strategy for Sustainable Living, and the Earth Charter, as he played an instrumental role in the development of both.

Quick Overview

Dr. Tucker recalls the extraordinary time when the Earth Charter was drafted and how exciting it was when the Earth Charter principles and the specifics of world religions were synergizing. She observes that the consultation and drafting process identified some of the common values across cultures and religions, despite the differences, including different cultural expressions of ethics. For her, the Earth Charter document represents one of the most integrated visions for the way forward, breaking disciplinary silos and bringing together the dimensions of cosmology, ecology, justice, democracy, and peace. Dr. Tucker reflects on the notion of the “Earth Community,” and she cites present-day examples to demonstrate how “interdependence” leads to “responsibility.” Reflecting on Pope Francis’ two latest encyclicals, as clear and wonderful contributions to our current times, Dr. Tucker concludes that they can be seen as continuity with and further development of the Earth Charter.

Quick Overview

In this episode, Dr. Khosla brings with him the same passion he has put into the work in the field. According to his analysis, the causes of humanity’s biggest challenges can be traced to our consumption patterns, production systems and value system to science and technology, as well as neoliberal and neoclassical economic systems. To lead the change towards sustainability in the current world, civil society must act as one to exert impacts on business and government. While the three “mine-sets” – an original and refreshing summary – remain commonplace in the past three decades, UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) stand as a remarkable achievement despite necessary compromises, and the Earth Charter provides a shining example of a constructive document which is a precise, thorough product of the input and scrutiny of a vast public.

Quick Overview

Dr. Hazel Henderson comments on current affairs and shares encouraging updates on how the general public has continued to agree that money-based indicators, such as GDP, are not a good measure of progress; instead, we need to use real-world data on health, education, and the environment. When elaborating on her concepts, Dr. Henderson tells a heart-warming story about how the layer cake metaphor was created, and how it has helped advance relevant research and practice. She shares that Ethical Markets was developed based on the belief that a market should be based on trust, transparency, and accountability. On ethics, Dr. Hazel Henderson emphasizes that the golden rule has been very carefully spelled out in the Earth Charter for the modern age we live in, and this is one of the reasons why she has been such a passionate ambassador of the Earth Charter.

Quick Overview

The Brundtland Report presented observations that were radical and new to most people at that time, and it called for the duty to protect future generation’s ability to make their choices. The intergenerational responsibility is thus key to Gro Harlem Brundtland’s vision of sustainability. As the world has moved on, Ms. Brundtland considers that even though the concept of sustainable development has evolved adding to the substance of the Report, it did not depart from its core message. Reflecting on the COVID-19 pandemic, she tells a couple of stories to illustrate the inspiring concepts of interconnectedness and “one health”. Towards the end of the conversation, she also explains how the Earth Charter is a successful pursuit after the Brundtland Report, and how the philosophical and ethical considerations in the Earth Charter have been incorporated in the Sustainable Development Goals in quite a fundamental way.

Reflections on Some Earth Charter Principles

Quick Overview

Every word in the Earth Charter has been carefully chosen upon extensive consultation and intensive deliberation. Professor Rockefeller shares a few stories behind some Earth Charter ideas and principles, such as “Earth” rather than “the Earth,” “the earth,” or “Nature,” and “equitable distribution of wealth” rather than “redistribution of wealth,” among others. He also relates the argument among different groups over the word “compassion,” and over the concept of “intrinsic value,” and how they eventually reached a consensus, sometimes just because of a flash of inspiration. Exceptionally, the case of reproductive health just demonstrates that the Earth Charter does not have to take a position on every single matter for a greater consensus to be built. He reflects on the concept of reverence for life, emphasized by Albert Schweitzer, and how it is weaved in the Earth Charter. He reflects on why the concepts of peace and nonviolence were part of the Earth Charter. Professor Rockefeller explains why the Earth Charter is really about the right relationships and how principle 16f summarizes it all.

1. Personal Life Stories and Experiences with Nature

Quick Overview

Professor Steven Rockefeller narrates how the family he grew up in fostered his interest in international affairs, religions, and conservation. He also gives an account of the impactful experiences he had with nature and his special interest in birds. He reflects on how helpful it was for his work with the drafting process of the Earth Charter, the fact that he spent over 30 years studying philosophy and world religion. Over the years, he increasingly realized that the spiritual life involves the quality of one’s relationship with oneself, with other persons, with the larger world of nature, and with the great mystery of the universe. He explains what faith means for him and reflects on his experience during the Earth Charter drafting process, which involved listening intently to people from various cultures and fields of knowledge and trying to understand different perspectives. He shares that he became involved in the Earth Charter Initiative due to his interest in ethics and spiritual values.

2. The Origins of the Earth Charter

Quick Overview                                                             

Professor Rockefeller talks about the origins of the Earth Charter; the World Charter for Nature and its focus on respect for nature; and the Brundtland Commission Report and its emphasis on the moral responsibility to future generations. He shares how IUCN’s second version of the World Conservation Strategy stands as a pioneer document addressing environmental ethics from an Earth perspective. The Earth Charter, according to Professor Rockefeller, presents an integrated social, economic, environmental, ethical, and spiritual vision concisely formulated for humanity.

3. Reflections on Some Earth Charter Principles

Quick Overview

Every word in the Earth Charter has been carefully chosen upon extensive consultation and intensive deliberation. Professor Rockefeller shares a few stories behind some Earth Charter ideas and principles, such as “Earth” rather than “the Earth,” “the earth,” or “Nature,” and “equitable distribution of wealth” rather than “redistribution of wealth,” among others. He also relates the argument among different groups over the word “compassion,” and over the concept of “intrinsic value,” and how they eventually reached a consensus, sometimes just because of a flash of inspiration. Exceptionally, the case of reproductive health just demonstrates that the Earth Charter does not have to take a position on every single matter for a greater consensus to be built. He reflects on the concept of reverence for life, emphasized by Albert Schweitzer, and how it is weaved in the Earth Charter. He reflects on why the concepts of peace and nonviolence were part of the Earth Charter. Professor Rockefeller explains why the Earth Charter is really about the right relationships and how principle 16f summarizes it all.