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At the root of the multi-layered biospheric crisis lies capitalism. It is a system of production that has as Prime Directive, the accumulation of larger and larger amounts of money that drives it inexorably toward human and planetary degradation. Added to this comes competition between nation states which provokes inter-imperial conflict. This workshop will examine this statement, alongside the origins of ‘market oriented’ environmentalism which cannot supply an effective answer to the crisis. There is an urgent need to look beyond the limits of capitalist thinking in elaborating climate solutions. This is not to say we cannot win real reforms within the system. Indeed, they are extremely necessary: both to slow down the rate of upheaval and to give people confidence that we can fight and we can win. History is replete with examples and we should learn their lessons. However, since Copenhagen two things are clear: first, the US government is unable to formulate or deliver real solutions and second, there is no united Southern Bloc that will fight for an alternative development pathway. South Africa, headed by a political party once the repository of so much hope, has become fully integrated into capitalist neoliberal orthodoxy. China, India and Brazil fight for their own right to capitalist expansion and right to pollute at the expense of their people. What are the structural, historical and political impediments that forced these decisions? What are the historical origins of capitalism as a system and what role did the ruling ideas and institutions of the time play in preparing the ground for its ascendency? In what ways has the economic and ideological development of capitalism warped our relationship to nature? What are the limits to what can be won within the system? Come to an open discussion and analysis which seeks to articulate some answers and plot a course toward a brighter, more ecologically and socially just future.
