Emotion = Action

12/19/2014 brain , climate change , crisis , election , emotions , immigration , politics , risks 0 Comments

Emotions are produced and experienced in the brain's limbic system (middle). Emotional impulses travel from the limbic system to the frontal cortex (front) where rational, logical thinking can take place. Neuroscientist have found that its the emotional part of our brain that moves us into action. Understandably, since we have evolved to respond to immediate threats that requires a quick response or single action. However, this is a major hindrance when it comes to solving problems such as climate change, that are complex, "invisible" and happen over long timescales. Environmental scientist have tried for decades to engage people in the climate change problem, but much indicate that they have not been very successful. On the other hand, many people probably understand the central problem of pollution but in this case there is no silver bullet and we have to cooperate on a global scale. That makes us feel like we have no agency. So we need leadership and good examples. 

In most action movies there is always someone who comes to the rescue. But in this case, it is not so. Poor leadership, too little civil society engagement, entrenched business interests and daily distractions keep us on the path of “business-as-usual”, despite our better judgement. We cannot wait any longer, we need to make our voices heard.

In Sweden, 3 out of 5 top worries among the public are related to environmental problems. Yet, last election no political party really talked about their vision of a more sustainable society or how to get there. We have to make some crucial decisions regarding: nuclear power, emergency response capacity, climate adaptation funding, transportation, flood protection, supply chain security and more. Planning for and adapting to changes takes time and replacing infrastructure or energy supply sources takes decades. If politicians are serious about reforming immigration policy they should focus on our climate dilemma, since if we fail to take action, there will be millions of climate refugees from poorer nations and perhaps even war and conflict. This fact is seldom talked about. We can only hope that the re-election engages people more than the last election, which was very dry and lacked clear topics.