A safe world for our precious children

In a recent New York Times essay about the legacy of Ken Saro-Wiwa, Saro-Wiwa's son spoke about the tension between doing "what's best" for our children in the short term versus doing what's best for them (and the next six generations) in the long term.

“All of us have a choice, to make our children safe in the world or to make the world safe for our children, and there are implications to that,” Mr. Wiwa said, referring to others he has met who share his situation, like Nelson Mandela's daughter Zindzi and Nkosinathi Biko, the son of the South African activist Steve Biko. “Our fathers chose a different path.”

Wiwa, of course, was speaking about the choices these famous parents made to fight violence, injustice and oppression and replace it with peace and equality, which their children and many millions of others might enjoy though their parents did not. In the short term, the price of doing so was unimaginably high: Biko was tortured and murdered by the South African security police, Mandela spent almost 30 years in horrendous prisons on unethical charges, and Saro-Wiwa, of course, was put to death by the Nigerian government on trumped up murder charges. Their efforts, especially those of Biko and Mandella, have already borne fruit, helping, for instance, to begin the transformation of South African society.

They and their children made sacrifices, of course. Dead or in jail, these men could not be the fathers they may have wanted, but they obviously believed the price was worth it, if only to make the world a better place for their sons and daughters and those that would come after them. It was an investment, in other words, in the future, even if it meant sacrifices, even the ultimate sacrifice, in the short term.

This is a question I struggle with almost every day. I have been a writer and a conservationist most of my adult life, challenging and resisting the dominant narrative of greed, self-interest and unlimited economic growth that is destroying our environment and marginalizing people everywhere. While I am fortunate and grateful to live in a country that does not imprison or kill outspoken critics of the status quo, choosing such a path does come with a price.

When I finished my master's degree in environmental studies, the first thing my father said was, "Now you can get a job working for an oil and gas company," helping them "green" their business practices. I had toyed with the idea. Wouldn't it be nice to make more money than you spend every month? Wouldn't it be nice to be able to visit my daughter, who lives 3,680 kilometres away, more than once or twice a year? Wouldn't it be nice to know your employer is contributing to your pension in a bank somewhere?

I just couldn't do it. The social and environmental problems we face today are every bit as serious and unconscionable as those faced by the Bikos and Mandelas and Saro-Wiwas of the world. In our failing democracies in the West, especially in Alberta, which eco-philosopher Joanna Macy recently called "the belly of the beast," it is our duty to challenge the status quo, even if it means we cannot holiday in Hawaii with our children or send them to private school. What good is a private school education if our children are forced to live in a world of environmental degradation and political instability?

There are a number of ways we can help transform our unsustainable society into a sustainable one based on respect and responsibility. We can choose not to work for or support the corporations and political parties that are at the root of so many of our problems. This, it seems to me, is the least we can do. Don't work for Shell, for instance, which is in court in New York this month for its role in Ken Saro-Wiwa's death. Don't work for the forestry companies that are imperilling Alberta's grizzly bear and caribou populations. Don't work for the oil companies that are turning the tar sands -- an area the size of Florida -- into a toxic wasteland that is in many ways very similar to the Niger Delta Saro-Wiwa gave his life for. And don't work for (never mind vote for) the Tory government that allows such unsustainable and irresponsible activities to happen in the first place.

What would happen if we all simply said no, we're not going to work for corporations or governments that do not promote the best interests of our planet and ALL the people (and plants and animals) that call it home? It would be revolutionary. Yes, it would require some (perceived) sacrifices for us and our children in the short term, but our actions would quickly result in changes that would benefit all living things everywhere, far into the future.

Instead, we could choose work that enriches us not in the monetary sense, but in the meaningful sense. Use your skills and expertise to challenge these giants of unsustainability and irresponsibility. Work or volunteer for a non-profit organization working for environmental health or human rights. Or for a company that is promoting the use of alternative energy rather than the coal and oil and gas that are killing our planet.

The biggest benefit of speaking out against greed and unsustainability and working toward equality and sustainability is that we teach our children not only how to do it, but how important it is to do.

Ken Saro-Wiwa's son wrote a memoir about his experiences and is now writing a novel, but he has also felt compelled to carry on his father’s environmental and human rights work. He warns that the ecological and human devastation in the Niger delta, one of the world’s largest wetlands, is worse than ever. And so he keeps fighting.

Is this not what all parents should be teaching their children?