In 1971, Victory Papanek wrote Design for the Real World: Human Ecology and Social Change. Ever since, advocates of climate change and sustainable development, have been fighting for recognition. Ultimate round (?): Al Gore is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007.
Ironically, Green has become an added value to everything and anything. And Green sells. Nothing is more comfortable than the end of guilt. When Luxury faces the economic crisis, "values" are redefined while the “ordre moral” takes over. A bit of abstinence for a lot of indulgence is then the real deal. «We are moving into an era of the frivolous being unacceptable and the frugal being cool » comments Andy Bond, Asda chief executive. Hence, the eco-chic resorts for the look-at-me environmentalists; a Westbourne Park Road Oxfam for the guilt-free shoppers; and a ban on paper onboard the Emirates Airbus 380 for the premium greenies. The Wall Street Journal just launched a glossy magazine with the following tagline: "Luxury is not about how you spend- it's the way you live that counts".
Is Green not an option? Nothing is more convenient than a set of tailored wish-lists and readymade values. Simplification and life editing are indeed powerful trends.
Is Green the new Gray? When the world’s economy is burning hot and the global climate is cooling down, authenticity prevails.
Facing reality might need a touch of escapism though. And nothing is more comfortable than the past. Rear-view mirrorism, preservation and nostalgia also rule.
However, a Green New Deal, rather than a bucolic past, might have the permission to become the most exciting solution to our anxieties.
Power to the locals with the ban on Starbucks in Beijing’s Forbidden City. Power to the global with clean energy generators and new carbon-free devices. Mercedes Benz were the first producers of diesel powered automobiles more than 70 years ago. They have now developed BlueTech SUV diesels- efficient, quiet, elegant and emission-free.
What about the Greenwash? Is Green still a debate or has it become a norm? The director of the Musée du Vivant (the first museum dedicated to climate change and sustainable development) discussed in Le Monde this October the idea of a “Cultural Ecology” as a prerequisite to the green imperative- i.e. the preservation of values and cultures as a debate in an increasingly related and diversified world. Debate, stay cool.
Some trends are bigger than others.
Happy New Values!
