This chapter goes into the depth about the current crisis of sustainability caused by globalization. It discusses in detail the three pillars of sustainability in crisis– the social, economic, and environment. The first pillar discussed is about the social crises. In the modern Western culture, the people have become accustomed with the ideal of individualization which has consequently removed us from a social life. Though the use of technology has seemingly brought the world closer together, it has made us lose our capacity for actual dialogue. The chapter explains this as “the listening and sharing that enable mutual understanding.” We as a culture are only concerned with our personal views, and we only associate with others that share the same view. The chapter’s suggestion to help solve the issue is seeking “posthuman politics.” The next pillar addressed was the economic crises. Many theorists point the reason of the economic crisis to capitalism. There is a growing economic divide between the rich and poor. Though this is not the first that the world has realized this, as the chapter mentioned, Henry George in 1879 was also concerned about the growing division. The last pillar discussed in the chapter is the environmental crisis. The growth of the world has left the earth behind. Human-made climate change is ultimately lead, as many experts believe, to the sixth extinction. The chapter gives examples of exactly how humans are causing the environmental damage. Humans know what is causing most of the destruction, but we continue doing those actions in hope that a later generation can figure how to undo the damage. Once the chapter summarizes the three pillars, it discusses the crisis of governance, as the governments and governance theories should be held accountable for the downfall of the pillars. As the chapter says today’s governance is less organizational hierarchy and control within the institution, there is more competition in society. As the chapter suggests, the people feel that economic elites have the biggest impact on the making of policy. When compared to the average citizens, they feel as if they have little or no influence on policy at all. This will continuingly a problem as democracy expands. The process of representation increases tensions between the people and the representative state. And this leads to the question of governance. It seems that the world would better communicate when the boundaries became more open. However, nations seen to become more competitive.
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