chandran nair's
THE SUSTAINABLE STATE
reviewed by
SUSAN FROETSCHEL
______________________________________________________________________
Susan
Froetschel is editor of YaleGlobal Online and the author
of five novels including Fear of Beauty and Allure
of Deceit, both set in Afghanistan.
THE EARTH IS SQUIRMING
ON ITS AXIS: THE FREE MARKET ISN'T WORKING
The world
risks catastrophe by failing to practice sustainability. Only
determined governments can come to the rescue, contends Chandran
Nair in The
Sustainable State.
Sustainability
goes beyond the environmental consciousness and boasting common
among businesses and even youth. Sustainable living requires sacrifice
and revisions of society’s definitions for prosperity and
even freedom. The world cannot afford China, India and other developing
nations to pursue the West’s ruinous development path. Instead,
emerging economies must devise systems that ensure survival and
emphasize collective welfare over individual rights.
Nair’s
message is blunt: The West does not provide leadership on
sustainability, and true sustainability requires corporations
to sell less.
Companies
project leadership on environmental issues only to avoid regulations
and consumer backlash. Hence, corporations and shareholders sell
unnecessary goods, benefiting from inaction and public gullibility
for slogans and corporate responsibility programs. He hopes to
convince elites of emerging economies and young citizens everywhere
to consider the impact of climate change for their countries,
to lead on making their own preparations and not wait for the
West.
Advanced
economies balk at giving up fossil fuels, large homes, SUVs and
all the comforts of a disposable culture – lulled by assurances
that technology will someday handle rising temperatures and seas
even while rejecting the scientific findings of climate researchers.
Public common goods like energy and water are underpriced and
overused. He notes that market “pricing does not work when
oil costs more than water,” adding “the persistence
of external costs and underpriced resources, and the subsequent
growth of vested interests and overconsumption shows that unmanaged
and unregulated markets lead to flawed outcomes and prevent societies
from creating a more sustainable economy.” Assessing the
true external costs of burning coal or selling bottled water would
put some companies out of business.
A combination
of global, national and local governments can shape sustainable
growth with environmental protection, education, improved energy
access, poverty reduction and other strong social policies rather
than the tax cuts, deregulation and debt passed on to future generations.
Governments emphasize sustainable growth by doing more with scarce
resources, assessing all external costs, endorsing labor-intensive
activities and protecting communities as a priority.
Business
solutions are no viable replacement for government action, and
Nair anticipates being labeled as alarmist and extremist for supporting
the “visible hand of state” rather than “invisible
hand of the market.” He maintains that the national state
offers the best combination of authority, accountability, scale
and capacity building to manage operations in sustainable ways
and preserve resources for future generations. Self-regulation
is not an option, and consumption taxes can restore balance.
Regardless
of form of governance, Nair points out that trust builds a strong
state while oppressive authority is a sign of weakness. Mechanisms
for a strong state include a free press and channels that communicate
public opinion to government, robust debate on policies, multiple
sources of expertise for long-term planning, goals that unite
society, competent institutions and the rule of law. Assessing
a handful of places on these features, Nair points out that nondemocratic
China has made greater progress in improving the lives of citizens
over democratic states like India. He praises China’s ability
to identify challenges and develop a culture of competence for
meeting long-term goals while expressing concern about democracy,
caught in a downward spiral, with obstinate opposition and partisan
gridlock that reduce accountability for the party in power.
Consistent
management by strong democratic leaders can rally societies to
achieve lofty social objectives even during the worst of economic
times. For an example, Nair turns to Frank D. Roosevelt, the US
president during the 1930s Great Depression who tackled bank safety,
labour standards, social security and more. Administrations who
lead on social adjustment benefit from accountability, an informed
public, a long term in office, less media consolidation and less
money in politics. The book details modern-day sustainability
challenges and efforts, including land reform, urbanization and
rural underdevelopment, traffic and pollution controls, leapfrogging
technologies and never-ending expectations for a better life in
Indonesia, Malaysia and China. Modernization, automation, digitalization
and open borders for trade ensure that old development paths are
obsolete. “The lesson we should draw from past examples
of state strength is that consistent state intervention and management
in the economy can achieve social and economic objectives,”
Nair writes. “By contrast, countries that hoped the free
market would achieve these goals have largely seen disappointing
results.”
Regardless
of governance, developing countries are less capable of withstanding
governance mistakes than advanced economies. Nair offers three
objectives for sustainability: protect public common goods, define
moderate prosperity and structure the economy to plan an infrastructure
that accounts for market externalities. Countries can also reserve
a portion of profits from resource extraction for future generations
via foundations, permanent funds or other saving accounts.
Nair,
a biochemical engineer by training, emphasizes that non-Western
is not anti-Western, yet a role reversal may be due. Developing
nations should no longer feel pressured to catch up with advanced
nations, and wealthier nations could slow their frenetic pace,
becoming more vibrant while learning to live with less. Societies
need examples, and the book could do more to challenge today’s
limited visions of sustainable development. For example, Nair
explains: “Comfortable refers to a lifestyle that does not
have the basic drudgery of everyday life, and that provides people
with adequate comfort and free time to pursue their own ideas
and hobbies, while providing enough opportunities for their families.”
Such sentences trigger reader curiosity about his ideas for an
appropriate living wage, the ideal square footage for homes, weekly
limits on energy or water for any one individual or family –
as well as details on enforcement mechanisms for corruption, inequality
and greed. The world is entering an era of constrained resources,
as its population went from 1 billion in 1800, 3 billion in 1960,
to 7.7 billon today and many people already adjust to less income
and certainty. Societies can shape institutions that encourage
order, cooperation and but that requires an understanding of standards
for what he calls “moderate prosperity.” Nair suggests
that nations can establish their own philosophies, yet globalization
is about discovering and implementing best practices.
Politics,
science, even the arts and literature could help determine standards
for avoiding overuse of resources by a minority of the world’s
people, distinguishing needs versus desires and imagining new
forms of citizenship – making these philosophies of conservation
more palatable. A tough task awaits governments, convincing a
skeptical public that simplicity is more rewarding than prosperity
that destroys our world and home. Nair’s timely book is
a valuable service towards persuading a cynical public.
Reprinted with permission from YaleGlobal Online
www.yaleglobal.yale.edu
