End Hunger and Homelessness and improve our Return on Environment

For ROI to improve, the critical shift to Return on Environment must happen now

By Jason Safford, Author THINK GREEN: The Future is Awesome

Humanity has not done well in its stewardship of our planet. We talk big yet take little action. Many get mocked for pursuit of better choices. Any success has always been at the footstool of profit. Our values for our world do not seem to weigh more than the money we can make from it. Too many people go hungry every day. More people live homeless than ever before. And we pretend these are problems with no solution. Yet we have all the resources and capability to end both hunger and homelessness today. This very moment. We need to make this our priority.

For decades the ongoing debate about our environment has moved the needle little. Now the polar caps have melted. Weather events are more destructive. The costs of cleanup have skyrocketed. Yet still we persist to ignore our problem. And the current global pandemic does not appear to have shifted concern.

We talk of being 90-percent renewable power in another two decades. Yet our carbon emissions continue to rise. Our mental health suffers more. Food and water shortages increase. Wages remain stagnant while the cost of living rises. Everyone has an argument. We point the finger at each other.

My experience is full of these challenges. For the past two decades I have worked in renewable energy, real estate and clean technology. Too often, desire for results gets tempered by cost and profit. Even in the wake of the pandemic we miss opportunities to improve our outlook. Environmental risk never precedes financial risk. Our end result is a better return on investment, but a poor return on environment. We fail to produce an outcome that is exceptional. Our people and planet continue to lose protection in the pursuit of profit. There has to be a better way.

More than a century ago there was warning of our current problems. President Theodore Roosevelt stated, “We are prone to speak of the resources of this country as inexhaustible; this is not so.” He continued, “the time has come to inquire seriously what will happen when our forests are gone, when the coal, the iron, the oil, and the gas are exhausted, when the soils have still further impoverished and washed into the streams, polluting the rivers, denuding the fields and obstructing navigation.” Yet even now, we only earmark this priority with feigned urgency.

Our wars with other nations have exhausted us. Our politics discourage us. Our digital economy distracts us. We appear rudderless at sea with our future destination for life on this planet. So instead we have begun to look to populate others. It appears more attractive to run away to other worlds than to fight and save our own. And still we avoid the question, “how will we take care of each other?” Afterall, we will always be our brother’s keeper.

Here in the United States, we are about to spend $2 Trillion Dollars. This is one decade after spending $1 Trillion dollars. Our problems are far worse now. But the sentiment is similar. If we improve existing roads, bridges, and networks, everything will run better. The economy will improve. We will pay it back in the future somehow. But what if this belief is wrong. Why are we not looking deeper into the problem? Our mirror shows us we are throwing money at the problem and sticking our head in the sand.

The goal should be to create abundance here on Earth. Using our natural resources to help us achieve this for all mankind. This is how Capitalism provides for all. We must recognize how to steward our resources in more valuable ways to improve our quality of life.

Mark Twain said it best, “Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.” We can create sustainable economics by recognizing our impact. Identify and remove our biggest challenges and our pathway to plenty flows undeterred.

Our challenge with hunger is food distribution. We have the power to create abundant food resources everywhere, but we determine the cost is too high. So we allow too many to suffer at our growing expense. These food resources can be easily built at cheaper costs. They can be self-contained with limitless power, water and environmental controls. This will manage any demand no matter how large it grows. The CBD/Hemp industry has proven this Agri-Tech model. It is viable for every aspect of food production world-wide.

The goal is to build local food production in cities throughout the country. We end any future risk of food shortage. Further, more jobs and businesses result through smaller, well managed operations. Huge conglomerates have proven reckless. They are careless and unfit for the task of food safety and security. If instead, facilities go up at a cost per citizen throughout all 50 states, food would be in endless supply. Provide $10 Billion Dollars for production facilities in each state. This will grow more food in one year then past 50 years combined. For less than $1,400 per citizen we can have this reality now. On a global scale it reduces to half this cost per citizen.

Homelessness is a challenge of land management. We have the power to provide quality shelter for everyone now. Again, we determine the cost is not viable. Yet, we spend billions in taxpayer dollars to offer temporary shelter and solutions. These have only increased the problem. To what end do we not see this as destructive behavior to ourselves and our fellow humans? Again, this problem is solvable. But it requires a shift in our economic thinking.

Housing is currently a product of labor results and prosperity. We determine our housing based on our ability to earn and afford the palace we desire. Our concerns for our neighbors become less and less visible as we dive deeper in the digital economy. We have technology and gadgets to protect and provide for us. This means it is easier than ever to provide high quality housing at lower and lower cost. Technology has also provided new models of efficiency. Construction costs reduce. Production accelerates to speed up delivery. Now quality is more available than ever to provide for abundant housing. Yet we remain discouraged with the idea that housing is affordable.

The problem is land management. We do not divide land and resources to benefit our population. We force the weakest and most disadvantaged to struggle the most. It is hardest for them to find a pathway forward to exist on this planet. We create limits and restrictions to their access to goods and services. We restrict valuable resources that would make their lives easier. Again, we point fingers. Blame each other. Look to our current system of Capitalism to solve the problem. We continue to burn money with our heads in the sand.

The global pandemic has proven much of our economy can work from home. A digital connection is the critical pathway to work in the 21st Century. Education and training are still lacking, but access to playing field is more level than ever. Available housing is now more important than ever. Urban planning that offers security to food, energy, and internet is critical today. Rural and suburban lands laying dormant can become new digital cities. This is at a cost that falls beneath the poverty line for most residents. Repurposing large commercial and industrial sites is also necessary. Turning buildings into models of Arcology is also extremely affordable. These are buildings where people can live, work, and play without having to leave the complex . The models already exist. They are simply justified to wealthy residents for profit.

Now is the time to begin a new direction, creating more Exceptional cities. Through sensors and controls we create the environment we want. Combining clean technology and renewable energy we provide the power and resources cheaper. Better environments mean better food and water. Better food and water means better productivity. Better productivity means better work, living and play.

We must move past our current stalemate with each other over material gains. We must let go of our selfish desires for power. Our planet needs us to become the stewards our design intended for us to be on the Earth. And we need to accept this change now. Together, we can align people and planet together for profit and purpose. We can end hunger and homelessness and uplift our planet and people. Let’s create world with prosperity overflowing. Our investment needs to create a better return on the environment.