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Greetings ... may I offer the following for discussion: Mother Pelican: A Journal of Sustainable Human Development Volume 7, Number 10, October 2011 http://www.pelicanweb.org/solisustv07n10page1.html Summary It is proposed that gender balance - deeply internalized, not merely a matter of numbers - will be a source of "new energy" to overcome the masculinist culture of violence and domination. Gender balance can help individuals and nations to start considering both self-interest and the common good. "We have a special responsibility to the ecosystem of this planet. In making sure that other species survive we will be ensuring the survival of our own." Wangari Maathai, Kenya (+ 26 September 2011) Gender balance at all levels of responsibility and authority can pave the way for a sensible transition from consumerism to sustainability. It can make possible the exploration of new initiatives such as transferring tax burdens from earned income to financial speculation, natural resource usage, and environmental degradation; declaring some form of debt jubilee and/or creating debt-free money by central and regional banks; enhancing distributive justice via a democratically set level of universal guaranteed personal income; balancing globalization with financial and monetary localization via local currencies and/or exchange trading systems; adopting business practices such as the triple bottom line; working out the economic and technological issues that must be resolved in order to migrate from fossil fuels to clean energy; consolidating democracy by firm adherence to the wise principles of solidarity, subsidiarity, and sustainability; and giving top priority to sustainable human development rather than unsustainable resource exploitation and wealth accumulation. So there is no lack of reasonable ideas about ways to manage the transition, but political will is utterly lacking; and political will cannot possibly emerge as long as masculinist patriarchy remains normative. The transition from consumerism to sustainability has already started, even though it remains invisible for many. But attaining gender balance in human affairs, and the process toward energy balance and ecological sustainability, will reinforce each other in many significant and mutually beneficial ways. Gender balance is the catalyst that will brake the current impasse and get the process going. Since the "patriarchs" will seldom pour the catalyst down from the top, it must gently percolate upwards from the grassroots: individual citizens, families, groups, and local communities. You may also want to take a look at the outline with links to articles and supplements: http://www.pelicanweb.org/solisustv07n10page1.html Luis T. Gutiérrez Editor, Mother Pelican Journal The Pelican Web of Solidarity and Sustainability http://pelicanweb.org [log in to unmask]