There is a great need for the introduction of new values in our society, where bigger is not necessarily better, where slower can be faster, and where less can be more.
Gaylord NelsonRead
Reaching a general understanding that sustainability is the ultimate issue will finally bring us face-to-face with the political challenge of forging a sustainable society during the next few decades. It is a challenge we can meet if we have the leadership and the political will to do so.
Interpretation
Sustainability is crucial for the future, and achieving it requires strong leadership and commitment.
This quote emphasizes the importance of sustainability as a primary concern for society in the coming decades. It highlights that to address this critical issue, we need effective leadership and the determination to implement the necessary changes for building a sustainable society.
In practice
In a speech about environmental policy, a leader might quote this to emphasize the need for immediate action on sustainability.
There is a great need for the introduction of new values in our society, where bigger is not necessarily better, where slower can be faster, and where less can be more.
The most important environmental issue is one that is rarely mentioned, and that is the lack of a conservation ethic in our culture.
The ultimate test of a man's conscience may be his willingness to sacrifice something today for future generations whose words of thanks will not be heard.
Our goal is not just an environment of clean air and water and scenic beauty. The objective is an environment of decency, quality and mutual respect for all other human beings and all other living creatures.
You cannot save wonderful towns. You can only save wonderful towns by building new ones.
We are strangely biased, as individuals and media institutions, to focus on big sudden changes, whether good or bad - amazing breakthroughs, such as a new gadget that gets released, or catastrophic failures, like a plane crash.
A revolution is coming – a revolution which will be peaceful if we are wise enough; compassionate if we care enough; successful if we are fortunate enough – but a revolution which is coming whether we will it or not. We can affect its character; we cannot alter its inevitability.
By healing the internal issues that we can heal as a people, our children don't have to suffer the same agony and pain that we put each other through.
CO2 is the exhaling breath of our civilization, literally... Changing that pattern requires a scope, a scale, a speed of change that is beyond what we have done in the past.
Revolution is not something fixed in ideology, nor is it something fashioned to a particular decade. It is a perpetual process embedded in the human spirit.
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