Expert Interview - Hazel Henderson
10 QUESTIONS by Jennifer Leonard
10 ANSWERS by Hazel Henderson
Sustainability means much more sharing and cooperation, and less inequality.
What does sustainable design mean to you?
Designing human societies within ecological tolerances and principles. Sustainability means much more sharing and cooperation, and less inequality.
How does your work uniquely contribute to this effort?
For the past 30 years, I've been deconstructing economic theories and activism to correct economics and GDP; in addition, I've devised a set of Quality of Life Indicators with Calvert (also see www.beyond-gdp.eu).
When you imagine a "sustainable future" what do you see? How do you feel?
I see a future where decentralized communities are linked by communications and smaller-sized enterprises and downsized financial sectors. (See my articles on this at http://www.ethicalmarkets.com/)
What is your first impression of the CLEAR project?
I was not entirely clear about what its goal is other than sustainability.
Do any past case studies (successes or failures) come to mind that we might learn from?
Auroville in South India and a marvellous book on Eco-Villages by Hildur Jackson (Copenhagen).
Does scale matter? Are there distinctions when designing sustainable solutions for a village vs. a city, for example?
Yes! Too many to list!
If you were leading the design of a sustainable village, what would you prioritise, and why? Who would you want working with you?
The number one priority in collaborative design efforts is fostering cohesion among the group. I would want cooperators and sharers on my team (who are often women, in my experience).
Is it possible to replicate the design of one village across different contexts? If so, which design elements would remain consistent no matter what? What would need to change on a case-by-case basis?
Designing a village is site-specific. However, some elements could be constant, such as cohesive community, recycling, re-use of material goods, renewable energy sources, collective decision-making /participation, fairness, truthfulness.
Does culture play a part in the design of a sustainable village?
Yes, without a doubt. See above.
And finally, business models. Are there any you know of that could inform a more robust outcome for this initiative?
Check out cooperatives, e.g. Mondragon in Spain, as well as social enterprises, e.g. Grameen Bank in Bangladesh and elsewhere.
Hazel Henderson
Hazel Henderson is President of the independent multi-media company Ethical Markets Media in the US and Brazil (www.EthicalMarkets.com). She is author of Ethical Markets Growing The Green Economy (2006) and eight other books. InterPress Service syndicates her editorials to 200 newspapers in many countries. She has served on many advisory boards, including the US Office of Technology Assessment, the National Science Foundation, the National Academy of Engineering, the Worldwatch Institute and the Calvert Group of socially responsible mutual funds, with whom she pioneered the Calvert Henderson Quality-of-Life Indicators.
