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Sustainable development a must

10/26/2009

Have you ever noticed the many fruit trees in Barbados that during their season are laden with fruit and falling to the ground? In the past many Barbadians made an effort to have fruit trees around their property as a source of food and shade. Our tastes have changed considerably. This is a clear signal that that the work Barbados has to do in terms of sustainable development as a personal choice and as a country mandate is great. It cannot be enough to engage in unbridled consumption with little thought of the future.

It has been several years now that Barbadians have been hearing the term sustainable development. Barbados was host to the United Nations conference on sustainable development for small island states in 1994. During that conference, it was acknowledged that the shortage of land and resources, the increase in imports of polluting and hazardous substances, made the management of waste a critical issue for all small island developing states. It was felt that the problem was a severe one even though the extent of the problem was poorly understood. Nevertheless, it was agreed that the disposal of wastes was a problem that needed to be addressed as a matter of urgency. It was further agreed that the actions taken by countries should include minimising and converting waste into a resource, limiting imports on non-biodegradable substances and changing community attitudes to the disposal and the use of waste.

Sustainable development is described as a pattern of resource use that aims to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that these needs can be met not only in the present, but also for future generations. Barbados’ most visible efforts have been the use of alternative energies and the introduction of limited recycling programmes. Except for the development of solar energy Barbados’ record is less than stellar, although when compared with other developing countries Barbados’ reasoned efforts might seem significant. The difficulty, however, is that in many other developing countries, individuals engage in sustainable activity out of necessity. Barbados, being a middle income developing country, has a greater challenge since recycling and other such activities are now a question of choice. Barbados does have a few companies that engage in the activity of recycling and some of them are able to earn significant amounts of foreign exchange through this activity. We have seen some schools engaged in the limited recycling of plastic bottles. The introduction of a recycling programme at the University of the West Indies must be highly commended, especially as it has the potential for shaping young minds.

If Barbadians could go back to planting more fruit trees and using its own fruit as a feature of sustainable development, this would be a small step in the right direction. At this time, limes are in season, but many of us deprive our children of the opportunity of benefiting from fresh lemonade. Instead we choose to give them flavoured water containing a high concentration of sugar. Some parents seem oblivious to the damage being done to their children so early in their life. At the same time, they contribute to the amount of plastics that we put into the soil. All of our efforts must not be for ourselves but must also be for the generations to come. We need to seriously conduct an assessment of ourselves and then engage in a deliberate cultural shift. It can be done.

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as of close 9/15/2009


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