Introduction
ECO REVOLUTION is the mass environmental movement started by Eco-Needs foundation. Eco-Needs Foundation is an organization of young people striving for environmental conservation and ECO-REVOLUTION. A revolution entailing all round ecological development which includes economic, social , cultural and moral, health and technology development, conservation of water and other natural resources, Educational development and above all the developments of the natural Ecology. Globally more than 20,000 members carry forward our movement. In our vision environmental conservation is not just planting saplings and creating wild life sanctuaries,which is just part of it,but our main emphasis is on the goal of all the living being happy , for that “ECO-REVOLUTION” is necessary.
ECO-REVOLUTION is the beginning of a new path towards a complete ecological reform for the “Happiness of all Living Beings”
Eco-Needs Foundation wants to create mass awareness about the environment amongst the people for creation of complete ecological and moral aware society. Therefore our foundation organizes the mass environmental programs that involve all kinds of people. Our foundation provides the platform for sharing global environmental problems and finding their solutions without considering boundaries of Nations, States, Regions, Religions and Languages. After the great successful International conference on sustainable Environment “Eco Revolution-2011″held in India. Hon’ble Ven. Athuraliya Rathana Thero of Sadaham Sevana (NGO),Srilanka leads to spread Eco Revolution movement.As per vision of Sadaham Sevana for protection of the global environment from destructive development practices based on greed, ego and selfishness and thereby leave a legacy of a safe and sustainable world for the future generation which will safe guard the lives of man and beast and plants…this the path traced by Lord Buddha to emancipate the world from all sorrows caused due to materialist approach.
International conference on Environment and Humanities ECO REVOLUTION -2012 Jointly organized by Sadaham Sevana, Srilanka & Eco Needs Foundation, India in collaboration with Ministry of Power and Energy Srilanka, Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources Srilanka, is an attempt to put step towards ECO-REVOLUTION. We cordially invite all to become the part of this historical movement of ECO REVOLUTION.
Purpose of Conference
Since the industrial revolution the human population has increased from 1 billion to 6.5 billion; a 650% increase in 150 years. Further the needs of the people have diversified and increased rapidly during this period. As an example the average per capita consumption of energy has increased by 800%. When compared with the pre-industrial era human consumption the multiplier effect of this trend is a 52 fold increase. This drastic increase happened within the last 150 years.
It is important to note that “average” global levels are reached amidst a massive consumption disparity. At present the consumption level of a rich person is about 20 times that of a poor. About 80% of the current global population live in countries that fall into this ‘poor’ category. The current global economic development model is to improve the consumption level of the poor while the rich further increase their levels or, in simpler turns “business as usual”.
Against this background, the question begging to be asked is simply this: “What happens if all the ‘poor’ people on this earth become ‘rich’? “ The answer is obvious: In that case, mother earth would find it impossible to sustain the massive jump in consumption levels. This business as usually scenario will give rise to exponential growth in consumption over the next 2-3 decades and will, contrary to that which is intended, lead not satisfaction but frustration for all human beings with “wants” spiralling out of control resulting in depression and other serious mental health disorders that give rise to highly negative activities including terrorism.
In this context, resources depletion and environmental degradation are two core challenges facing modern human civilization. Due to scarcity of resources the world fossil oil and gas production and consumption will definitely reach its peak before the end of the 2010′s if it has not happened already. Carbon emissions peak needs to be reached during the same period if human beings are to limit global warming to 2 degrees centigrade. If not, climate change will reach catastrophic proportions by the mid 2030′s. A full 50% of forests on earth have already gone. Crop diversity has reduced by 75%. Annually 2 million hectares of cropland gets degraded beyond use. Desertification on earth is happening at an alarming rate. The message of ‘Mother Earth’ to her loving sons and daughters is clear:”You kids are killing me and when I die, you will too”. The implication of this statement: “regardless of what those who make planet changing decisions think, it is not possible for the developing world to follow in the footsteps of the developed world. There simply aren’t sufficient resources left. The rich have already used up the quotas of the poor.
All these signals imply that human civilization has reached the end of the fossil fuel era. Consumerism based modern development models can no longer be tolerated and hence shifting away from the modern development paradigm is no longer a possible option but a critical necessity. Alternative development pathways should be envisioned, pilots tested, demonstrated and mainstreamed. While changes cannot be made overnight, there is a historical responsibility on the rich due to their over-exploitation of resources and nature. Hence the rich are indebted to poor on many fronts, and, most importantly and specifically, in environmental terms. In order to repay this huge debt, the developed world has to support the developing world to set up sustainable development infrastructure in their countries. This is not an option for the developed world. Rather, it is a foundation for repaying the debt they owe. On their part, the developing world needs to identify a new path for spiritual development which leads to frugality and life satisfaction as a core component of sustainable, future-proof effort.
The purpose of this international conference is to have a constructive dialogue on sustainable development pathways for developing countries with special attention on the following subject areas: Economics, Aesthetics, Buddhism, Energy, Industry, and Agriculture.