This article is part of our special issue: "Buddhism, ecology and climate change"
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a group of scientists that advises the UN and whose findings are supported by the world's governments, reported in August 2021 the first part of its first review of the science of climate change since 2013. In this document, entitled "Climate Change 2021: Physical Basis," and issued three months before the climate summit in Glasgow (COP26), the IPCC reported that global warming is occurring at a faster rate than expected. Technological and analytical improvements in climate science that have taken place since the last report (in 2014) have led to the observation that unless we reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to zero over the next few decades, projections herald disastrous consequences for life on Earth.
With global warming now 1.1°C above pre-industrial temperatures, caused by the emission of GHGs in quantities unprecedented in three million years-already undoubtedly coming from the burning of fossil fuels, exacerbated by overpopulation, deforestation and large-scale agriculture-we are seeing an alarming increase in extreme weather events: record high and low temperatures; global changes in precipitation patterns that have led to droughts and floods; devastating forest fires; increased frequency and intensity of typhoons; accelerated loss of Arctic ice and glaciers; and the slowing of the Atlantic Ocean conveyor belt. These disastrous effects will persist for hundreds or even thousands of years.
A dystopian future
For the scientific and political communities, this news is alarming, as are the projections derived from it. In previous reports, the IPCC has already warned of the risks of inaction. Unless we reduce current emissions, rising temperatures will reach 2ºC, in which case climate models anticipate deadly heat waves, desertification, even more powerful hurricanes and rising sea levels that will affect the world's coastal communities and island nations. These conditions threaten the stable production and distribution of food and access to drinking water, which will lead to economic crises and forced migrations, with millions of environmental refugees, which may trigger political, social and even military conflicts. All this will contribute to a vicious circle that will exacerbate these effects on the entire planet. Thus, the catastrophic consequences of climate change paint a dystopian future that will affect everyone. The hope of a happy life for our descendants is disappearing with each Amazon fire. If we do not take radical action now, it will be much more difficult to combat these effects in the future.
We tend to project these catastrophic events in a distant time horizon, but some of the consequences of our actions have already happened, or are happening right now, such as the 30% increase in the acidity of the oceans, with its pernicious effect on marine life, the great increase in the number of fires, or the extinction of thousands of species. The loss of biodiversity is such that our era is referred to as the first extinction of a species: Homo sapiens (the irony will not escape anyone's notice). The survival of all species is at stake!
The 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP26)
Much was expected of the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), which took place between October 31 and November 12, 2021 in the city of Glasgow, Scotland. This forum provided a unique opportunity for the future of humanity and the survival of millions of species with which we share the planet. Some agreements were reached (e.g., reducing methane emissions, reversing deforestation, the commitment of 40 countries to phase out coal). But the general opinion is that these are not enough. Now that this intergovernmental meeting and the big headlines have passed, and the dust has settled, the twin crises of climate and ecology continue, and it is up to each of us to act, starting with getting to the root of the problem.
Who is to blame?
In an exercise in simplicity, we tend to isolate and emphasize some particular causes of the crisis. But the origin of the crisis is complex and affects us all. Our civilization and a world population of 7.5 billion (and growing) is based on a socio-economic system based on oil, coal and consumption, and on a constant economic growth that leads to the commodification of nature and animals. We must reduce our dependence on non-renewable energies, avoid deforestation, reduce consumption and, ideally, adopt a vegetarian diet. But perhaps all this will not be enough. The origin of the crisis lies in a worldview that dates back to the beginnings of Western civilization and a particular way of understanding human nature.
The need to change
Urgent calls to reverse the current course do not work. Just look at how hard it is to change minute details of our own lives. Few believe that the temperature increase can be limited to between 1.5 and 2°C by 2100, as the Paris agreement stipulates, unless there are drastic changes at the planetary level, because it is increasingly clear that the problem is systemic. And the truth is that emissions continue to grow, and this is because the necessary changes are of such magnitude that it would be necessary to react collectively through a global transformation of our socioeconomic and cultural system. This is only possible through a shared change in the collective imaginary, a change of order in the inter-subjective consciousness based on a deep understanding of our own nature and our relationship with the Earth.
Buddhism and climate change
Swedish activist Greta Thunberg's resonant words, "our house is still burning and you are fanning the fire," evoke the parable about the burning house in The Fire Discourse(Adittapariyaya sutta 35.28 of the Samyutta Nikaya): "Everything is burning ... with the fire of greed, ... of aversion, ... of confusion; burning with birth, old age and death; with sorrows, lamentations and pains, with anguish and despair." This simile takes on a material dimension in the present context: the world is heating up, due to our behavior linked to the three fires.
Great contemporary Buddhist leaders have emphasized that Buddhism has much to contribute to the climate change dialogue. Voices such as His Holiness the Dalai Lama,* the recently deceased Master Thích Nhất Hạnh, or Bhikkhu Bodhi, to give examples from three Buddhist traditions, have analyzed the causes of the crisis and made calls for action. An example of Buddhist activism is the sheet "The time to act is now: a Buddhist declaration on climate change, "** ratified by numerous signatories. The Buddhist statement on climate change to world leaders urged participants to act with wisdom and compassion, and to reach an agreement to phase out fossil fuels and move towards a renewable energy system.
Analysis of the causes from a Buddhist perspective
The Venerable Lama Lobzang, Secretary General of the International Buddhist Confederation, stated that "Humanity must act on the root causes of this crisis, which is driven by greed, thoughtlessness and lack of concern for the consequences of our actions."*** Several authors have analyzed the causes of the crisis from the perspective of the four noble truths. Bhikkhu Bodhi, in "The Four Noble Truths of the Climate Crisis" , aptly exposes what is happening. And Elias Capriles in "The Four Noble Truths of Ecology" explains the crisis as a manifestation of the essential ignorance of our time, and observes the possibility of regeneration from wisdom.
The ecological crisis has been human-induced, and is rooted in an erroneous vision of reality that seems to be endemic to our species, and is based on a vehement craving or desire for pleasure and an essential ignorance of our true nature. This inopia has been increasing in modernity to the point of causing the degree of suffering of which the ecological crisis is a consequence. External pollution is thus a reflection of internal pollution.
Ecology, Buddhism and wisdom
For His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the gravity of the climate crisis must move us to compassionate action: "More and more people understand that the survival of humanity is at stake. It is not enough to meditate or pray for change. There has to be action." **** The venerable Bhikkhu Bodhi likewise concludes his "The Ecological Truth of the Cessation of Suffering," by calling for action. But this action must come from a pattern of life consistent with wisdom.
The Westernsense of self and the Buddhist teaching of no-self
There is a growing recognition that the ultimate cause of the climate crisis and, indeed, of all the essential problems of our time, is spiritual in nature, and centers on the Western human being's conception of himself, and of his relationship to reality since modernity *****. It is a vision of the person as an individual separated from nature and from other human beings, which exacerbates the egoic functions in the human constitution and provokes a powerful anguish. This dull malaise, so prevalent in our culture, generates a need for satisfaction that drives consumption, and the exploitation of the natural environment and people in our relationships. As Barbosa rightly says, "there is no hope of solving the environmental crisis without a profound revision of this way of thinking" ***** In the face of this, Buddhism promotes deconstructive practices of the "I" and the cultivation of compassion, so that human beings can discover their authentic nature.
Special issue "Buddhism, ecology and climate change".
In the special issue "Buddhism, Ecology and Climate Change" we offer a Buddhist perspective on the various ecological problems that beset us. We will discuss how the dharma teachings can contribute to solving or mitigating the climate emergency. We will provide a view of ecology from the various Buddhist traditions. We will consider a new way of understanding existence. And we will hear the voices of Buddhist women who bring their wisdom to help us learn to live more responsibly towards the Earth and all the species with which we share the planet.
* https://www.rae.es/dpd/dal%C3%A1i%20lama
* The Time to Act is Now: A Buddhist Declaration on Climate Change
***https://www.naturalpress.ca/dalai-lama-pide-tomar-acciónes-por-cambio-climatico/
****Montse Castellà Olivé, "Emerging Paradigms and Spiritual Traditions."
*****Barbosa Cepeda, Carlos. "Ecología, buddismo y filosofía" Revista Horizonte Independiente. Ed. Nicolás Orozco M., 07 Feb. 2021. Accessed 20 Feb. 2022.
Bibliography
Badiner, Allen, Dharma Gaia: A Harvest of Essays in Buddhism and Ecology. Berkeley: Parallax, 1990.
Kaza, Stephanie, and Kenneth Kraft, eds. Dharma Rain: Sources of Buddhist Environmentalism. Boston and London: Shambhala, 2000.
Loy, D. R. Ecodharma: Buddhist Teachings for the Ecological Crisis. Wisdom Publications, 2019.
Sandell, Klas, ed. Buddhist Perspectives on the Ecocrisis. Buddhist Publication Society: Sri Lanka, 1987
de Silva, L. The Buddhist attitude towards nature. Access to Insight (Legacy Edition), retrieved from http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/desilva/attitude.html 2013
Related articles published in Buddhistdoor in English
Special issue: "Buddhism, ecology and climate change".
"Buddhism and climate crisis".
"An Ecosophical Interpretation of the Buddhist Experience of Ganying."
"Paṭiccasamuppāda: from karmic shackle to ecological interconnectedness."
"DHARMA-GAIA research group: Buddhism, women and climate emergency."
"Global systemic crisis and Buddhism: towards a paradigm shift."
"The awakening of snows, flowers and trees."
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Daniel Millet Gil holds a degree in Law from the Autonomous University of Barcelona, a Master's degree in Buddhist Studies (with distinction) from the Centre for Buddhist Studies, University of Hong Kong, and a PhD (with distinction) in Buddhist Studies from the Centre for Buddhist Studies, University of Hong Kong. He received the Tung Lin Kok Yuen Award for Excellence in Buddhist Studies (2018-2019). He earned his Ph.D. in Buddhist Studies with a comparative study between St. Teresa of Avila's The Inner Castle and Buddhaghosa' s The Way of Purification. He is a regular contributor and executive editor of the web platform Buddhistdoor en Español. He is also the founding president of the Dharma-Gaia Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to the teaching and dissemination of Buddhism in Spanish-speaking countries. He has published numerous titles in academic and divulgative magazines that can be consulted at: https://hku-hk.academia.edu/DanielMillet
