Motivation for Sustainability

Diagram from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow's_hierarchy_of_needs

So, what does a picture of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs have to do with a sustainable living blog? As it turns out, quite a lot.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory attempts to explain human motivation psychology. Maslow's theory suggests that people must meet the most basic level of needs (found at the bottom level of the pyramid) before they will focus motivation on the secondary or higher level needs (higher levels of the pyramid). As an example, most people will ensure they have food water and shelter before they worry about their own security, and before they reach out to become part of the community, they will likely focus on immediate security needs. This continues until, hopefully, a person reaches the top level of the pyramid.

While Maslow’s  model may not be perfect, it explains a lot. The ability to care about sustainable living requires that people be somewhere above the bottom two rungs of the pyramid. If a person is starving, why would he care if his actions are destroying the environment? All he is concerned with is meeting his most basic needs of having enough food and water for himself and his family. If he has not met his basic security needs, I’m sure we won’t find him setting up a compost pile or starting a recycling program. He has better things about which to worry.

I guess what I am saying is until we can get people to a particular level of basic needs, safety and security, we are never going to get everybody rowing in the same direction toward a sustainable future. In addition to getting people to a point where they care about sustainable living, there is also a HUGE education requirement. People need to know and understand the effects of their lifestyle upon the environment, and have alternatives that are not so burdensome that they are overlooked.

It’s a huge undertaking. I’m not sure how we get to a sustainable future from here. Until we come up with a plan, I’ll keep plugging along here.