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ECOCIDE
the conditions of human existence were fundamentally reshaped. Among
its many positive effects, including increased productivity, prosperity and
access to health services, the technological explosion led to a fossil fuel¬
based economy and the environmental problems of our time. We are
experiencing the effects of climate change and global warming daily, even
in the so-called “developed” areas of the world. In recent years, unpredictable
weather, periods of drought and subsequent flooding have all been
attributed to climate change.’
Over time, industrialised settlements attracted more and more people,
but these cities often lacked the requisite facilities to host the flood of
newcomers. The following description by Hobsbawn provides a perceptive
description of urbanised areas.
“And what cities! ... smoke hung over them and filth impregnated them,
the elementary public services — water supply, sanitation, street-cleaning,
open spaces, and so on — could not keep pace with the mass migration of men
into the cities, thus producing, especially after 1830, epidemics of cholera,
typhoid and an appalling constant toll of the two great groups of nineteenth
century urban killers — air pollution and water pollution or respiratory and
intestinal disease.”*
“Forced” into an urbanised environment, man has lost his connection with
nature and has systematically and extensively modified the environment
around him. Recent years have shown that humanity’s current way of life
is unsustainable and that a radical change in the cycle of production and
consumption is needed. Through sustainable communities and green
democratic values, we can rediscover the potential of the natural way of
life and make our urbanised communities more liveable and inclusive for
future generations. We have to find our way back to the original roots of
living and tear ourselves from expectations, needs and the comforts of the
21st century. We have to learn from those who still consider themselves
as an integral part of nature that surrounds them.
One of the most sensitive issues of environmental conservation efforts
correlates with overpopulation. The finite nature of natural resources is a
particular problem in the context of a continuously growing population.
In 2024, more than 8 billion people inhabited the Earth, and some
estimates suggest that by 2100, the African continent alone will be home
> Rafferty, John P.: The Rise of the Machines: Pros and Cons of the Industrial Revolution.
Britannica. Available at: https://www.britannica.com/story/the-rise-of-the-machines¬
pros-and-cons-of-the-industrial-revolution.
* Hobsbawm, Eric: Bandits. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1989, p. 86.
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