Pre-Ted Talk Update

As I dug deeper into the topic of ecosocialism I became more aware of the conditions that spurred the idea into a movement. The ideology, at least I thought, was never very difficult to understand. Anyone can deduce, just from reading the word, that ecosocialism calls for Marxist economic planning and environmental justice. But this simple ideology seeks to remedy some pretty complex, multi-faceted issues that are deeply rooted in historical practices. In our first-world we often take production for granted and by extension the peoples' lives that are affected in the process. From unregulated gold mining in Ghana to the oil pipelines being built in North America, the insatiable appetite of global capitalism perpetually makes living capital of human beings and our animal friends, destroying homes and livelihoods and endangering their lives along the way. What I have learned is that this struggle is a massive and complicated one that is not limited to the protection of nature in the first world. Its aim is to make the Earth a safer and wealthier place for all of the workers of the world. The economics of ecosocialism have taught me that wealth is not necessarily measured in money, especially not when concentrated in the hands of a chosen few. Real wealth is constituted by the collective abundance of use-values of a population.

Personally, I have taken much satisfaction from researching this ideology. But in the course of my research, I learned much about the dire circumstances that the residents of planet Earth will soon face and are already beginning to see. Now, when I look around me, I am far more aware of the consequences of global capitalism and the treadmill of production. In all honesty, I can not help feeling a bit guilty for all of the destruction that has been done in the name of the free market as it is, after all, a man-made construct. We consume, endlessly and hardly stop to think of the consequences.

After learning so much about this topic I do not think I shall ever sit idly by while the injustices of capitalism continue to ravage landscapes and cause upheaval in the basic functions and metabolisms of the Earth. Not, at least I think, with a clear conscience. I consider it a personal and civil duty now to promote the environmental justice in what little ways in can in my own life and to immerse myself in the ecosocialist struggle. There are three words I often hear repeated among Marxists which I think shall guide my future actions in defense of the environment and in defiance of the free market. They are: educate, agitate, organize.

I think I am a so-called "mini-master" of ecosocialism because I have spent much time studying the ideology and being exposed to it real-life experiences. After so much time spent on research and reading, I feel as if I am fluent in a new language. When I have conversations with other participants in the struggle, I can sense that we are communicating on the same level. In addition I now possess the knowledge to accomplish the tasks of education, agitation and organization, at least on an intermediate level.