Where Should We Look?

This week felt like an exercise in choosing an intentional worldview, especially pertaining to humanity and its capacity for improvement. We watched “Don’t Look Up,” listened to a lecture from Dr. David Pellow, and read “Braiding Sweetgrass” by Robin Wall Kimmerer. Each of these covered a portion of the vast spectrum of hope for humanity ranging from satirical nihilism, to critical realism, to optimism rooted in indigenous storytelling.

Beginning with “Don’t Look Up,” a satirical film about the end of the world, we explore the end of the spectrum that feels hopeless. The movie tells a story about a catastrophic comet strike, predicted with enough time to be potentially prevented with the use of peer-reviewed science and resources from global powers. They nearly go through with prevention, but, here, as they often do, the interests of a few incredibly wealthy people outweigh the interests and well-being of every other human. It seems for a while as though the billionaire’s plan may work to save the majority of humanity, and we believe that maybe it would be in the best interest of even the rich few to save the Earth. Of course, when we see that the billionaires of Earth have sealed themselves in cryogenic pods and shipped themselves to the next habitable planet, it becomes clear that they were never going to be the ones to pay the price for their choices, they had always been gambling with the lives of others. This is an incredibly pessimistic take on humanity, not dissimilar to the nihilism and apathy that those interested in combating climate issues experience at times. The certainty that those in power will not act in the best interest of anyone other than themselves because they are confident in their own odds for survival, is extremely discouraging, and this movie certainly served to remind me of the paralysis that accompanies hopelessness.

Moving in a more realistic direction but keeping a few themes in common Dr. Pellow spoke about the struggle for climate justice and environmental health particularly in the context of our carceral system. He explained that settler colonialism is at the core of the US prison system, as they perpetuate campaigns of conquest and extermination along with human enslavement and captivity. They are intentionally toxic and meant to punish humans, and they force those who are the least responsible for climate issues to bear their burden. This is most clearly demonstrated by the involvement of prison labor in responding to climate disasters like flooding, wildfires, and oil spills. Despite contributing very little to climate change as primarily members of marginalized groups, prisoners are made to put themselves at risk to clean up problems for which corporate billionaires are largely responsible.This inequality in responsibility and consequence is very much reminiscent of the imbalances present in “Don’t Look Up;” however, Pellow has more hope for recovery. He spoke about resistance and building a movement from the grassroots level in order to eventually reach abolition of institutionalized violence against humans but also all other living beings.

This focus on the wellness of beings, human or otherwise, leads into our most positive outlook for the week in “Braiding Sweetgrass.” Kimmerer begins by telling us the story of Skywoman who fell from her world and was able to survive and eventually thrive through a respectful and reciprocal relationship with the animals of Earth. In this story all the land was brought about by the animals' generosity and Skywoman’s gratitude, and that she brought with her from Skyworld the seeds for all the plants she tended. Kemmerer explains that she tended the land with the knowledge that her grandchildren would one day live their as well, which reflects a common definition for sustainability as outlined in the Brundtland report as “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” Kemmerer defines being indigenous to a place similarly, stating that it, “means living as if your children’s future mattered, to take care of the land as if our lives, both material and spiritual, depended on it.”

While I understand and have often felt the hopelessness and discord conveyed by “Don’t Look Up,” I think it’s important to choose to see the potential for good in all of us. As difficult as it can be to remember, we know indigenous interactions and knowledge of the Earth have the capacity to heal, and we know that grassroots mobilization and resistance does make a difference. I would very much like to believe that we as a species can follow Kimmerer’s call to action:

“From the very beginning of the world, the other species

were a lifeboat for the people. Now, we must be theirs.”