All those problems are systemic problems where the system enters a state of degeneratiom. Those “act big and fast” are not sustainable (not enough resources, time, effort, will — political or otherwise).
Those same degenerate processes can be reversed by taking advantage of the very second-order effects and feedback loops. Do things that will regenerate and restore the land. Regenerative agriculture has a much bigger impact than reducing carbon emissions. Even stuff like, modifying the “slash and burn” for clearing out to Amazon to “slash and char” taps into that feedback loop.
Buying local — or better yet, growing local, like in your backyard — isn’t just to develop resiliency for what is to come. There are specific practices local people can do to restore and regenerate the local ecosystem. They are highly specific to the local area.
Everytime you buy from outside the local area, you are contributing towards overharvesting, but you can’t see it because it doesn’t give you the feedback loop that locality does.
It is the same with potable water. We have very poor water management practices. As an example, Tucson sits on a plateau. It pumps water from the canals (sourced from the Colorado River; Arizona is at the bottom of water rights among four states). That water gets purified to drinking water standards all so that residents can flush their toilet and water their lawns. Meanwhile, the local aquifer has been depleting, and rainwater was not being captured in the soil.
Tucson is also the city that pioneered municipal codes for better water management because some residents pioneered greywater systems and curb cuts to capture monsoon rain.
But you want to see an example of communities fixing their potable water situation? How about this one: https://youtu.be/-8nqnOcoLqE
Those same degenerate processes can be reversed by taking advantage of the very second-order effects and feedback loops. Do things that will regenerate and restore the land. Regenerative agriculture has a much bigger impact than reducing carbon emissions. Even stuff like, modifying the “slash and burn” for clearing out to Amazon to “slash and char” taps into that feedback loop.
Buying local — or better yet, growing local, like in your backyard — isn’t just to develop resiliency for what is to come. There are specific practices local people can do to restore and regenerate the local ecosystem. They are highly specific to the local area.
Everytime you buy from outside the local area, you are contributing towards overharvesting, but you can’t see it because it doesn’t give you the feedback loop that locality does.
It is the same with potable water. We have very poor water management practices. As an example, Tucson sits on a plateau. It pumps water from the canals (sourced from the Colorado River; Arizona is at the bottom of water rights among four states). That water gets purified to drinking water standards all so that residents can flush their toilet and water their lawns. Meanwhile, the local aquifer has been depleting, and rainwater was not being captured in the soil.
Tucson is also the city that pioneered municipal codes for better water management because some residents pioneered greywater systems and curb cuts to capture monsoon rain.
But you want to see an example of communities fixing their potable water situation? How about this one: https://youtu.be/-8nqnOcoLqE
It does not require big actions.