Robert Moosbrugger

Book review: Dead Aid by Dambisa Moyo

robert moosbrugger — 2009-10-18T09:50:00Z

There is a new best-seller amongst people working in development. It's Dambisa Moyo's provocative "Dead Aid". The book can be found in all bookshops on major African airports or cities with an expatriate community working in development. "Dead Aid" is a critique of development aid that is poised to become a bestseller amongst frustrated UN, NGO and other people working in development in Africa like it was "Lords of Poverty" by Graham Hancock some years ago.
Dambisa Moyo is certainly not the first one to offer a critique of development aid. In fact, most of what Moyo writes has been said before by people like Peter Bauer, or more recently William Easterly. She is not even the first African to raise a critical voice on development aid. There are others like the Kenyan economist James Shikwati who are also outspoken about their rejection of western aid to Africa. The reason why her book has gained more attention than the books of other critics has probably to do with her personal background. Moyo is a highly successful academic and business women from Zambia with experience working for the World Bank and for Goldman Sachs. This personal background together with her clear-cut and merciless critique makes it easy to catch the attention of readers interested in development.

In essence Moyo's book is about aid effectiveness. This is certainly not a new subject and is being discussed by academics and aid practitioners since years. Especially with the advent of the Millennium Development Goals and the calls by aid advocates like Jeffrey Sachs, Bono and Bob Geldoff to double development aid to Africa the question whether aid actually works has been at the forefront of discussions. Moyo's contribution to the discussion of aid effectiveness is a simple one. She denies outright that the official development aid of about 1 Trillion US Dollars that was given to Africa since the end of the World War II has achieved anything. But that's not all. The twist in Moyo's argument is that development aid is not only not the solution to Africa's development problems, but that development aid is actually the real problem. According to Moyo it is the official development aid that has corrupted African politicians and taken away the self-initiative of Africans. Moyo's policy recommendation is therefore a radical shock-therapy for Africa. She suggests that all official development aid should be stopped within an agreed timeframe of five years.

Now, how good is the empirical basis of Moyo's argument? She claims that the African countries receiving large amounts of development aid have also had the worst growth rates and that conversely those that received little, like say Botswana, had the best growth rates. This observation is well true. Her argument in essence is that development aid causes bad economic performance. However, it is not surprising that Western donors would select countries with low development indicators to receive development aid and not the ones with relatively good ones. There is therefore not necessarily a causal link between receiving development aid and showing bad performance on economic growth as Moyo claims. Rather the link is that donors consciously choose countries with bad economic performance as they are in more need to receive aid.
Another claim that Moyo makes is that despite the 1 Trillion US$ Dollar spent on development aid in Africa poverty levels in many countries have not significantly declined and in some countries poverty is actually increasing. On the whole this observation again is true. However, if from the 1 Trillion US$ Dollar we deduct all the money that was spent to prop up corrupt governments during the cold war times, like Mobutu's Zaire, and all the money that actually stayed in the West through tied aid and interests paid on soft loans the actual figure in US$ that was spent on poverty reduction would be a lot less than the 1 Trillion US$ Dollar. Nevertheless, Moyo is right that the results are not impressive and the aid industry should seriously look into how to combat corruption and increase aid effectiveness in Africa.

One element that Moyo points out that needs serious attention is the so called micro-macro paradox. Moyo brings the example of an African mosquito net producer that goes out of business because western donors donate mosquito nets for free. This is not the best example as western donors could and often do buy Mosquito nets locally. A better example for the micro-macro paradox would be for example a water project in a dry region. On the micro level the water project might improve the living conditions of say pastoralists in a dry area as they have easier access to water. However, this easier access might also lead to an increase in cattle herds that is beyond what the dry environment with scarce grazing opportunities can sustain. So in the end the well intentioned water project might on the macro level lead to a destruction of the environment on which the larger community depends and thus in the long rung increase poverty instead of reducing it. Moyo is right that the micro-marco paradox needs much more attention. However, she is wrong not to mention the undeniable benefits that a myriad of development projects have brought to many individuals in Africa.

Moyo's book adds to long list of uni-causal explanations why Africa is lagging behind with its development indicators. After the blame has been put on the slave trade, colonialism, imperialism, capitalism, globalization, bad governance, geography and unfavourable climate conditions, Dambisa Moyo now lays all the blame on development aid. As some people, like say Jeffrey Sachs, Bono and Bob Geldof, maybe overestimate the power of development aid to do good and to bring sustainable change, Moyo certainly overestimates the power of development aid to do bad.

In her book Moyo doesn't stop with the analysis of what went wrong in Africa, but she dedicates half the book to what she sees as the solution to all the woes and ills of Africa. Her policy recommendations are essentially packed in what she calls the "Capital Solution". This capital solution entails a greater openness of African states to financial markets. In her view the money flows of financial markets should as soon as possible replace the aid flows. Certainly Africa needs better integration into international financial and commodity markets and most of all Africa needs more entrepreneurs. But whether all the good things for Africa will come from open capital markets is at least questionable given the recent financial crisis that originated in the very same institutions that Moyo thinks will save Africa. Moyo's policy recommendations for Africa are clearly influenced by her experience and the world view gained whilst working for Goldman Sachs.
The other policy recommendation of Moyo, namely to stop all development aid to Africa within five years could entail serious humanitarian and political risks. What would happen to the hungry in Africa? Is it really realistic that after decades of neglect governments would suddenly wake up and feed the hungry? And what would be the chances that there will be more failed states in Africa to be added to the list of Somalia, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Chad and D.R. Congo?
To sum up provocative solutions like the ones presented in "Dead Aid" are good to make headlines and sell a book. To serve as real policy recommendations they are however rather to simplistic. Nevertheless, the book is well worth reading and has taken the discussion of aid effectiveness to a larger audience than the usual academics and aid practitioners.

Sunrise

robert moosbrugger — 2009-05-04T14:51:00Z

Sunrise over the river Nile, Bujagali Falls, Uganda

Guns, germs and steel and Collapse by Jared Diamond

robert moosbrugger — 2009-04-06T06:24:00Z

Why did the development of societies proceed at different rates on different continents? And why did some societies collapse and disappear? Jared Diamond has written two fact-filled books in which he tries to answer these two questions. In his 1997 book Guns, germs and steel: A short history of everybody for the last 13,000 years Diamond searches for explanations for the differing rates of development of human societies on different continents over the last 13,000 years. In Collapse: How societies choose to fail or survive, first published in 2005, Diamond looks at the opposite problem, and examines how past and present societies have collapsed and disappeared. In both books Jared Diamond uses a method of comparative history with insights from other sciences like ecology, evolutionary biology, geography, linguistics and genetics in order to search for ultimate explanations for the development and decline of past and present societies.

In Guns, germs and steel Diamond takes the long view of human history and a global perspective in order to look for ultimate causes that shaped the development of peoples and societies. In one of the chapters, Diamond looks at the Spanish conquest of Native American societies and identifies several factors behind the conquest, like Spanish germs, horses, literacy, political organization, and technology. Those factors are proximate causes for the spanish conquest but Diamond is in search for the ultimate causes that led to the development of those factors in Spain but not in Peru. Diamond identifies as ultimate cause for the build-up of societies the rise and spread of food production, i.e. the shift away from hunting and gathering to agriculture and herding allowing for complex political and military organisation. The rise in agriculture in turn was linked to the natural environment in which peoples evolved and the availability of wild seeds and animals for domestication. In a nutshell, Diamond attributes the different historical development of societies to the different environments in which they evolved and the possibilities for exchange and learning they had with neighboring societies.
The comparative method employed by Diamond proves especially fruitful when he looks at the development of Polynesian societies which spread into the Pacific on islands with greatly differing environments. Within a few thousand years, the development on those islands differed markedly, with some societies remaining hunter-gatherer tribes and others developing into proto-empires. The different development of those island societies serves Diamond as a model to understand the more complex historical dynamics on a world scale.

In Collapse Diamond proposes a five-point framework of factors that lead to the collapse of societies: environmental damage, climate change, hostile neighbours, friendly trade partners (or the lack of it) and a society's responses to its environmental problems. In the course of the book Diamond gives examples of collapses of past and present societies and analyses the role played by one or several factors of his five-point framework.
One interesting case study, that of Easter Island, is presented by Diamond as an example for a pure ecological collapse of a society, due to total deforestation leading to war and resulting in a massive population die-off.
Another case study which is discussed at length is the collapse of the medieval Norse population in Greenland. This well documented case serves Diamond to show how all the five factors of his framework were at work to cause the collapse of a society. Furthermore, this case study is interesting as it also demonstrates the influence of culture in the downfall of a society. The Norse society in Greenland which aspired to a medieval European economy and lifestyle vanished whereas the Inuit with a very different lifestyle survived in the same environment.
In the last part of the book Diamond tries to draw practical lessons from his historical analysis for the environmental challenges faced by today's societies. The difference between past and present societies is of course, that whereas past societies have lived partly in isolation and their decline was thus a local or regional phenomenon, today's societies live in a globalized world facing global environmental challenges, with the prospect of a global decline. Despite the enormous environmental challenges faced by today's societies, Diamond displays a cautious optimism in his book and believes that if we learn from the mistakes made in the past we might succeed in solving today's challenges.

Diamond's quest for the ultimate causes of human history is a fascinating intellectual journey and he manages to convincingly explain the broad patterns of human history. Both books are full of insights and interesting historic details. Diamond clearly identifies environmental factors as major drivers behind human history but he does not fall in the trap of environmental determinism. Nevertheless, sometimes Diamond's analysis is a bit too narrowly focused on environmental factors at the expense of the role of culture, political institutions and individuals in shaping human history. For example the discussion of modern Rwanda in Collapse identifies environmental factors and population pressure as the ultimate cause the 1994 genocide. However, colonialism, political injustices and ethnic hatred that has developed over decades in Rwanda, might suffice to explain the 1994 genocide and might be the ultimate and not just proximate cause for the Rwandan collapse.
If you read only one of the two books, then Guns, germs and steel is to be recommended. The pace of the book is faster, the insights more numerous and the structure of the book is more coherent than in Collapse.

Rodeln in Afrika

robert moosbrugger — 2009-02-15T14:51:00Z

Ein junger Bursche vergnügt sich mit einem auseinander geschnittenen Plastikkanister als Rodeluntersatz. Aufgenommen in Sipi, nahe Mount Elgon in Uganda.

Väter und Söhne von Iwan Turgenjew

robert moosbrugger — 2009-02-15T13:54:00Z

Väter und Söhne ist Iwan Turgenjews berühmtester Roman. Die Handlung des Romans ist zur Mitte des 19. Jahrhundert im ländlichen Russland angesiedelt. Zwei befreundete Studenten kehren nach Jahren in Sankt Petersburg zu einem Besuch bei ihren Eltern auf dem Lande zurück. Jewgeni Basarow, der ältere der beiden Freunde ist ein angehender Landarzt. Er sieht sich selber als brillanten Naturwissenschaftler und überzeugten Nihilisten. Arkadi Kirssanow ist ihm als Freund treu ergeben und teilt seine nihilisten Ansichten ohne sie recht zu verstehen.
Arkadis Vater, Nikolai Kirssanow, empfängt die beiden Freunde auf die herzlichste Weise auf seinem Landgut. Er interessiert sich für die Ansichten der jungen Leute und versucht sich selber als liberal und fortschrittlich ihnen gegenüber zu präsentieren. Doch schon bald kommt es zu ersten Spannungen. Arkadis Onkel Pawel Kirssanow, der gemeinsam mit seinem Vater auf dem Landgut lebt, ist von aristokratischer Seinsweise, und spürt sofort eine tiefe Abneigung gegenüber dem Alles-Verneiner Basarow. Es entfalten sich mehrere Wortgefechte zwischen Pawel Kirssanow und Basarow. In einem dieser Wortgefechte äußert sich Basarow mit dem Satz: In der heutigen Zeit ist es am sinnvollsten, zu verneinen. Seine naturwissenschaftliche, materialistische Ansicht drückt er in dem Satz, Ein tüchtiger Chemiker ist zwanzigmal mehr wert als der beste Poet, aus.
Nach einiger Zeit beginnen sich die Freunde auf dem Landgut der Kirsanows zu langweilen. Sie nehmen eine Einladung in eine nahegelegene Stadt an und lernen dort die attraktive Witwe Anna Sergejewna Odinzowa und deren schüchterne Schwester Katja kennen. Anna Odinzowa ist von den radikalen Ansichten Basarows fasziniert. Basarow seinerseits verliebt sich in Anna Odinzowa und gesteht ihr seine Gefühle. Diese Gefühle werden jedoch von Anna Odinzowa nicht erwidert und Basarow stürzt daraufhin in eine Krise, da seine romantischen Gefühle für eine Frau seinen nihilistischen und materialistischen Ansichten widersprechen.
Nach einem kurzen Aufenthalt bei Basarows Eltern kehren die beiden Freunde wieder zurück zum Landgut der Kirssanows. Doch die Freundschaft zwischen Basarow und Arkadi hat erste Risse bekommen. Arkadis romantische Gefühle für Katja, Anna Odinzowas Schwester, erweisen sich bald als stärker, als seine von Basarow übernommenen nihilistischen Ansichten. Der Konflikt zwischen Basarow und Arkadis Onkel Pawel spitzt sich nun schnell zu. Aus einem nichtigen Anlass fordert Pawel Kirssanow den Nihilsten Basarow zu einem Duell im Morgengrauen. Das Duell verläuft glücklich, ohne großes Blutvergießen. Basarow sieht sich allerdings gezwungen das Landgut der Kirssanows zu verlassen und fährt zu seinen in der Nähe lebenden Eltern.
Arkadi ist sich in der Zwischenzeit seiner Liebe zu Katja klar geworden und macht ihr einen erfolgreichen Heiratsantrag, der der Beginn eines konventionellen Lebens für ihn ist und das Ende seiner nihilistischen Ansichten darstellt. Basarow seinerseits stürzt sich in die Arbeit, um Anna Odinzowa zu vergessen. Er unterstützt seinen Vater bei der Bekämpfung einer Typhus Epidemie. Doch schon bald ereilt ihn ein tragisches Ende in der Form einer Infektionserkrankung.
Am Ende des Buches erweist sich der Nihilismus für die beiden jungen Protagonisten somit als nicht gangbare Lebensphilosophie. Der kühle, wissenschaftliche Blick aufs Leben gelingt den beiden nur in der Theorie. Im praktischen Leben versagt der Nihilismus vor der Liebe und dem Schicksal.
Turgenjews Roman beschreibt einen Generationskonflikt. Einen Konflikt zwischen der idealistisch geprägten Generation der Eltern und der materialistisch, nihilistisch denkenden Jugend. Basarow und Pawel Kirssanow verkörpern die Extrempositionen der beiden Generationen. Schlussendlich sind sowohl Basarow und Pawel Kirssanow eines erfüllten und glücklichen Lebens unfähig. Die einfacheren Charaktere des Buches, wie Arkadi und sein Vater Nikolai, finden hingegen zu einem friedlichen Leben.
Turgenjews Roman ist ein großes Meisterwerk des russischen Realismus. Die Personen und die Handlung bestechen durch eine tiefe Anziehungskraft. Die Sprache ist klar und schnörkellos. Die Atmosphäre des Buches ist intensiv und getragen von berührenden und poetischen Szenen, wie derjenigen am Schluss des Romans, als Basarows alte und gebrechliche Eltern täglich am Grabe ihres geliebten Sohnes erscheinen. Zu empfehlen ist die Übersetzung von Harry Burck im Aufbau Taschenbuch Verlag.

Der Idiot von Fjodor M. Dostojewskij

robert moosbrugger — 2008-11-23T14:12:00Z

Ende November, bei Tauwetter, gegen neun Uhr morgens, nähert sich ein Zug der Petersburg-Warschauer-Eisenbahnlinie mit Volldampf Petersburg. So beginnt Dostojewskijs Roman Der Idiot. In diesem Zug in einem Waggon dritter Klasse kommt es gleich zu Beginn der Geschichte zu einer schicksalshaften Begegnung. Der verarmte und kränkliche Fürst Lew Myschkin kehrt nach einem lange Kuraufenthalt in der Schweiz zurück in seine Heimat. Im Zug macht er die zufällige Bekanntschaft mit Parfjon Rogoschin, einem raubeinigen Lebemann, dem sein kürzlich verstorbener Vater eine größere Erbschaft hinterlassen hat. Rogoschin erzählt Fürst Myschkin von seiner leidenschaftlichen Liebe zu Nastassja Filippowna, einer gefallenen russischen Schönheit. Im ersten Kapitel führt Dostojewskij somit gleich die drei Hauptfiguren ein, deren Geschichten sich im Laufe des Romans immer verhängnisvoller miteinander verstricken bis es auf den letzten Seiten des Buches zu einer großen Tragödie kommt.
Fürst Lew Myschkin ist der Protagonist des Romans. Er ist gutmütig, großherzig, vertrauensvoll und stets bereit jede Untat gegen ihn zu vergeben. Er ist die literarische Personifizierung eines Menschen der nur das Gute für seine Mitmenschen will. Aus Mitleid verliebt sich Fürst Myschkin in Nastassia Filippowna. Dies bringt ihn unweigerlich auf Konfrontationskurs mit seinem Antagonisten Rogoschin und einer Vielzahl anderer Personen. Nastassja Fillippowna aber ist eine höchst wankelmütige Person, die sich für keinen der beiden Kontrahenten entscheiden kann. Immer wieder stimmt Nastassja der Hochzeit mit einem der beiden zu, um dann im letzten Moment wieder davonzulaufen. Mehr und mehr Personen drängen sich in das Leben des Fürsten mit teilweise sehr eigennützigen Absichten. In seiner Naivität wird der Fürst immer wieder hintergangen, ausgenützt und ausgelacht. Fürst Myschkin verliert mehr und mehr die Kontrolle über sein eigenes Leben und ist unfähig die sich ankündigende Tragödie zu verhindern. Schlussendlich endet der Fürst wieder als Idiot in einer schweizer Heilanstalt.
Wie in allen großen Romanen Dostojewskijs gibt es auch in Der Idiot eine Vielzahl an schillernden Charakteren. Dostojewskij gelingt es meisterhaft seine Figuren vor allem durch ihre Redeweise psychologisch stringent und plastisch darzustellen. In ihrer Exzentrizität sind Dostojewskijs Figuren liebenswert und manche, wie der lebensmüde Ippolit oder der kriecherische Beamte Lebedjew höchst amüsant. In vielen mitreißenden Dialogen behandelt Dostojewskij die großen Themen seiner Zeit wie Nihilismus, Sozialismus, technologischer Fortschritt, Todesstrafe und russische Orthodoxie. Zu empfehlen ist die Übersetzung von Swetlana Geier.

Die Bekenntnisse von Augustinus

robert moosbrugger — 2008-04-10T13:17:00Z

Augustinus lebte im Ausklang der Antike. Er wurde 354 im heutigen Algerien geboren, verbrachte einen Großteil seines Lebens in Khartago, Rom und Mailand und starb 430 in Hippo in Nordafrika. Auf der Höhe seines Lebens, um 397/98 schrieb Augustinus seine Bekenntnisse. Dieses Buch, das als eine der ersten Autobiographien der Weltgeschichte gilt, war äusserst wirkmächtig für die Entwicklung der abendländischen Philosophie und des Christentums.
Augustinus unterteilt seine Bekenntnisse in 13 Bücher oder Kapitel. In den Büchern 1 bis 10 berichtet Augustinus von seinem äußeren und inneren Werdegang hin zum glaubenden Christen. Augustinus berichtet in diesen Büchern schonungslos von seinen Verfehlungen und Eitelkeiten. Zentral ist hier das großartig beschriebene Erweckungserlebnis, das Augustinus im achten Kapitel beschreibt. Augustinus erzählt uns, wie er im Alter von 32 Jahren zerknirscht und traurig im Garten sitzt und auf einmal die Stimme eines Kindes vernimmt, die sagt: Nimm es, lies es!. Augustinus greift zu der vor sich liegenden Bibel und öffnet sie an einer zufälligen Stelle. Was er dort liest lässt allen seinen Kummer und Zweifel verschwinden und Augustinus findet dadurch endgültig zum Glauben.
Im elften bis dreizehnten Buch gibt uns Augustinus seine Interpretation der biblischen Schöpfungsgeschichte. Im elften Buch befindet sich auch seine philosophisch interessante Analyse der Zeit. Augustinus erklärt uns hier, dass der Zeiten drei sind, nämlich: Gegenwart von Vergangenem, Gegenwart von Gegenwärtigem und Gegenwart von Künftigen. Zentral bei dieser Analyse ist, dass Augustinus die Zeit als Leistung des menschlichen Bewusstseins auffasst.
Obwohl zu einer längst vergangen Epoche der Menschheitsgeschichte geschrieben, sind Augustinus und seine Bekenntnisse immer noch aktuell und lesenswert. Karl Jaspers, in seinem Buch Die großen Philosophen führt Augustinus gemeinsam mit Plato und Kant als fortzeugenden Gründer des Philosophierens an. Was an Augustinus anspricht ist seine Art des suchenden Philosophierens. Philosophie für Augustinus ist nicht nur eine intellektuelle Beschäftigung, sondern sie erfasst den ganzen Menschen in seinem sehnsuchtsvollen Streben nach Wahrheit, Liebe und Gott.

Die Brüder Karamasow von F.M. Dostojewskij

robert moosbrugger — 2008-03-09T16:00:00Z

Der Roman erzählt die Geschichte von drei Brüdern und dem Mord an deren Vater. Die Handlung ist im späteren 19. Jahrhundert zu Dostojewskijs Lebzeiten angesiedelt. Den örtlichen Rahmen bildet ein kleines Städtchen in der russischen Provinz. In dem groß angelegten Roman verbindet Dostojewskij ein Vielzahl von Handlungsstränge und lässt über vierzig handelnde Personen auftreten. Die Hauptakteure sind der Vater Fjodor Pawlowitsch Karamasow und seine drei Söhne Mitja, Iwan und Aljoscha.

Nach vielen Jahren treffen die Brüder Karamasow wieder auf dem väterlichen Gutshof zusammen. Schon bald beginnen sich Spannungen aufzubauen und eine unheilvolle Katastrophe zeichnet sich ab. Fjodor Pawlowitsch erscheint den Söhnen als miserabeler, lasterhafter und törichter alter Mann, der die Bezeichnung Vater kaum verdient. Mitja, der älteste der drei Söhne (28 Jahre) liegt im heftigen Streit mit seinem Vater wegen eines nicht ausbezahlten Erbteils. Ausserdem haben sich der verheiratete Mitja und Fjodor Pawlowitsch beide in Gruschenka, eine junge und äußerst attraktive Frau verliebt. Mitja ist ein impulsiver Lebemensch der aus seinem Zorn gegenüber seinem Vater kein Geheimnis macht und ihm öffentlich mit Mord droht. Iwan, der zweitälteste Sohn (24 Jahre), ist ein intellektueller europäischer Prägung der auf dem Wege ist ein bedeutender Publizist zu werden. Er ist seit Jahren unglücklich in Mitjas Ehefrau Katerina Iwanowna verliebt. Mitjas kopflose Liebe zu Gruschenka bietet für Iwan nun die Aussicht auf Erfüllung seiner Liebe zu Mitjas Ehefrau Katerian Iwanowna. Aljosha, der jüngste der drei Söhne (20 Jahre) hat sich für ein Leben als Mönch entschieden. Seine Persönlichkeit ist stark geprägt von dem heiligmäßigen Klostermönch Sossima, dem er sich bis zu dessen Tod anschließt. Aljosha sieht, dass sich ein großes Unheil in der Familie abzeichnet und versucht dieses zu verhindern. Doch es gelingt ihm nicht und die Katastrophe tritt ein. Der Vater wird erschlagen und ausgeraubt. Es beginnt nun die Suche nach dem Täter und die Erkundung der moralischen Verantwortlichkeiten der einzelnen Figuren.

Die Brüder Karamasow ist ein zutiefst religiöser und moralischer Kriminalroman mit erstaunlichen psychologischen Charakterisierungen. Dostojewskijs Figuren in diesem Roman verkörpern verschiedene Ideen und Weltanschauungen und führen uns diese in ihren Handlungen und Gesprächen vor. Vor allem die drei Brüder symbolisieren drei höchst unterschiedliche Lebensentwürfe. Mitja ist der impulsive Lebemensch. Er ist unvernünftig und verschwenderisch und kann brutal und liebevoll zugleich sein. Iwan ist die Verkörperung des vernunftbestimmten Intellektuellen europäischer Prägung. Er steht dem russischen Nihilismus nahe und kennt aufgrund seines Atheismus keine moralischen Grenzen. Aljoscha ist die anziehendste Figur im Roman. Er verkörpert den religiösen Menschen. Er ist ein Menschenfreund von höchster Moral, der Gott und die Welt innig liebt. Dostojewskij nennt ihn im Vorwort zum Roman seinen Helden.

Dostojewskij war ein begnadeter Menschenkenner. Trotz der Vielzahl an Figuren sind alle plastisch und psychologisch stringent dargestellt. Einzig die Figur des Erzählers ist nicht ganz durchgängig. Dostojewskij bezeichnet sich im Vorwort selbst als der Biograph der Geschichte. Die Perspektive und der Stil in dem er sich als Erzähler immer wieder in die Handlung einbringt sind dann aber von wechselnder Art und Intensität. Vor allem im zwölften Buch tritt der Erzähler für meinen Geschmack zu stark in den Vordergrund und bricht mit dem vorhergehenden Fluss des Romans.

Die Brüder Karamasow ist ein Buch von großartiger moralischer und künstlerischer Einheit, das seinen Platz in der Weltliteratur hat. Es ist ein Buch, das mitreisst und dessen Figuren einem sofort ans Herz wachsen. Zu empfehlen ist die Übersetzung von Swetlana Geier.

Der Sonntag

robert moosbrugger — 2008-02-03T12:59:00Z

Der Sonntag

Am Morgen

Der Sonne Strahlen mich
warm durchdringen,

Mich heißend,

So diesen Tag zu
verbringen.

Mit Erinnerungen und
Gedanken

Aus vergangenen Zeiten,

Den Sinn der Gegenwart
herzuleiten,

Und für die Zukunft
zu erahnen

Meines Schicksals Bahnen.

Den Tag dann so verbracht,

Bin ich bereit

Mich hinzulegen,

Zum Eingang in die Nacht.

In praise of Nick Drake, José Gonzáles, and Iron & Wine

robert moosbrugger — 2007-12-09T16:47:00Z

Nick Drake died in 1974. Long forgotten and now rediscovered by a wider public, his music is of a timeless quality. His gentle voice and soft guitar play have nothing of the typical 70s touch that can be found in the likes of Simon and Garfunkel or Cat Stevens (except maybe Bryter Layter, which I wouldn't count to his best works). Nick Drake's tunes are a stripped down direct expression of profound emotions in the best way that art can achieve. Today, José Gonzáles and Iron&Wine are coming close to playing music in the finest tradition of Nick Drake. All three must be praised for their music, which is unpretentious, elegant and simple. This simply is music for our times.

The Story of Stuff

robert moosbrugger — 2007-12-07T22:00:00Z

The Story of Stuff ist ein 20-minütiger animierter Lehrfilm den man sich unter www.storyofstuff.com anschauen kann und anschauen soll. Der Film handelt auf unterhaltsame und gut verständliche Weise von dem sehr komplexen Thema des globalen Warenproduktionssystems. Die Stärke des Films liegt darin, in kurzer Zeit die wichtigsten problematischen Aspekte des globalen Warensystems von der Ressourcenausbeutung über Produktion, Distribution, Konsum bis zur schlussendlichen Entsorgung zu beleuchten. In der Kürze liegt allerdings auch die Schwäche des Films, nämlich die Überbetonung gelenkter und kontrollierter systemischer Kräfte.So zum Beispiel wenn die Verstädterung in der dritten Welt vereinfacht mit dem System der globalen Warenproduktion erklärt wird. Obwohl hier wahrscheinlich demografische und eine Reihe von soziologischen Faktoren mehr Erklärungskraft hätten. Unter "Recommended Reading" gibt es auf der Webseite auch eine umfangreiche und gut sortierte Leseliste zu allen im Film behandelten Themen. Prädikat: sehr sehenswert.

Sind Afrikas Entwicklungsprobleme mit Geld zu lösen?

robert moosbrugger — 2007-11-13T20:03:00Z

Die amerikanische John Templeton Foundation bittet jeden Monat führende Wissenschaftler und Experten die großen Fragen des Lebens (Life's big questions) mit kurzen Essays zu beantworten. Diesen Monat stellt die Templeton Foundation die Frage: Sind Afrikas Entwicklungsprobleme mit Geld zu lösen? (Will money solve Africa's Development Problems?). Acht renommierte Wissenschaftler und Entwicklungsexperten geben in kurzen Essays eine Antwort auf diese Frage. Obwohl die Autoren die Frage unterschiedlich beantworten, stimmen alle darin überein, dass Afrika vor allem Marktlösungen und mehr Unternehmertum braucht und nicht Entwicklungshilfegeld. Der Grundton der acht Essays ist von neo-liberaler Prägung und gibt individuellen und privaten Lösungsansätzen den Vorzug vor kollektiven oder staatlichen Lösungsansätzen von Entwicklungsproblemen.

Die Frage, ob Afrikas Entwicklungsprobleme mit Geld zu lösen sind, kann nicht einfach mit Ja oder Nein beantwortet werden und ist in dieser Allgemeinheit eigentlich eine sinnlose Frage. Die Frage ist aber symptomatisch für eine in letzter Zeit aufgeflammten Debatte über die Effektivität von Entwicklungshilfe. Die Debatte wird vor allem zwischen den beiden Entwicklungsökonomen Jeffrey Sachs und William Easterly geführt und ist deshalb auch als Easterly-Sachs Debatte bekannt.(1) Sachs tritt dabei für eine Verdoppelung der Entwicklungshilfe für Afrika ein und fordert einen internationalen big push zur Erreichung der Millenniumsentwicklungsziele. Für William Easterly dagegen ist Entwicklungshilfe nicht geeignet die Probleme Afrikas zu lösen, welche er hauptsächlich in korrupten Regierungen sieht, die die Entwicklung einer freien Marktwirtschaft behindern.

Um die Frage, ob Afrikas Entwicklungsprobleme mit Geld zu lösen sind, sinnvoll zu beantworten, müssen zuerst die Entwicklungsprobleme benannt werden. Im folgenden werde ich kurz die meines Erachtens vier wichtigsten Entwicklungsprobleme Afrikas beschreiben und analysieren inwiefern sie mit Geld zu lösen sind. Dabei ist natürlich klar, dass afrikanische Länder sehr unterschiedliche Probleme haben und es keine Einheitslösungen für die Entwicklungsprobleme des Kontinents geben kann.

Das bei weitem gravierendste Entwicklungsproblem in Afrika sind Krige und bewaffnete Konflikte. Von 1945-1997 sind in Subsahara Afrika 52 Kriege geführt worden, fast alle, mit Ausnahme von 4, nach 1960.(2) Dieses Problem ist mit Geld nicht zu lösen. In der Tat kann Entwicklungshilfegeld sogar negative Folgen haben und Konflikte verlängern. Dies vor allem dann, wenn Regierungen Entwicklungshilfegelder zweckentfremden für den Waffenkauf. Oder wenn Entwicklungshilfegelder es der Regierung erlauben, die eigenen spärlichen Ressourcen für kriegerische Zwecke zu verwenden, während Entwicklungshilfegelder für die sonstigen Staatsaufgaben verwendet werden.

Das zweite große Entwicklungsproblem ist Hunger. Dieses Problem ist vor allem auf die geringe Produktivität der afrikanischen Landwirtschaft zurückzuführen. Von 1960 bis 1995 ist die pro-Kopf Nahrungsmittelproduktion stetig gesunken, da die durchschnittliche Produktionsteigerung nicht mit dem Bevölkerungswachstum mithalten konnte.(3) Was Afrika braucht ist eine grüne Revolution in der Landwirtschaft wie sie in den 60er und 70er Jahren in Asien, vor allem in Indien und China stattgefunden hat. Grundlage für die grüne Revolution waren verbesserte Anbaumethoden, besseres Saatgut und der Einsatz von Düngemittel. Diese wurden in Indien und China den Bauern vom Staat mit Unterstützung von Entwicklungshilfegeldern zur Verfügung gestellt. Die grüne Revolution in der Landwirtschaft in Indien und China lieferte die Grundlage für das heutige rasante Wirtschaftswachstum in diesen Ländern. Richtig eingesetzt kann Entwicklungshilfegeld auch in der afrikanischen Landwirtschaft zu einer grünen Revolution führen. Ein pures Vertrauen auf Marktkräfte wird hingegen für eine rasche Produktivitätssteigerung nicht ausreichen, da ein Großteil der afrikanischen Bauern keine ausreichenden Überschüsse produziert, die sie dann für den Kauf von produktivitätssteigernden Inputs verwenden könnten.

Das dritte große Entwicklungsproblem in Afrika ist das Fehlen von produktiven Arbeitsplätzen für Männer und Frauen. Klar ist, dass Entwicklungshilfegeld nicht dazu geeignet ist direkt Arbeitsplätze zu schaffen. Hier braucht es vor allem privatwirtschaftliche Investitionen und eine positive Integration Afrikas in den Weltmarkt. Allerdings haben viele afrikanische Länder mit Infrastrukturproblemen und mangelndem Know-how zu kämpfen, die den internationalen und regionalen Handel hemmen. Hier wiederum kann richtig eingesetztes Entwicklungshilfegeld vieles bewegen und die geeigneten Rahmenbedingungen für Investitionen schaffen.

Das vierte große Entwicklungsproblem sind schwache, ineffektive und korrupte staatliche Strukturen. Unter dem Titel von "good governance" verwenden internationale Entwicklungsorganisationen jährlich Millionen für Projekte und Programme zur Korruptionsbekämpfung und Stärkung von staatlichen Strukturen in Afrika. Was Entwicklungshilfegelder hier aber wirklich bewirken können ist bis jetzt noch nicht zu sagen.

Zusammenfassend ist klar, dass gut eingesetzte Entwicklungshilfegelder sehr wohl einen wichtigen Beitrag zur Lösung der Entwicklungsprobleme in Afrika leisten können. In der Easterly-Sachs Debatte hat für mich somit Jeffrey Sachs die besseren Argumente.

Fußnoten:
(1)siehe http://www.nyu.edu/fas/institute/dri/Easterly/File/ElMundoArticle_052607.pdf
(2)siehe http://www.sozialwiss.uni-hamburg.de/publish/Ipw/Akuf/archiv_afrika.htm
(3)siehe http://www.grida.no/geo2000/english/0053.htm

Kenyan Flowers, Ethical Trade and the Question of Sustainable Development

robert moosbrugger — 2007-11-04T12:30:00Z

Sustainable development can not be meaningfully discussed today without considering the effects of economic globalisation, for which there is an increasing call to be regulated by a stronger ethical framework. Many sub-Saharan African countries face enormous challenges to make globalisation work for them and to achieve sustainable development. One recent success story in African agriculture is the Kenyan cut flower industry, which in many ways is representative for economic globalisation. Kenyan flower farms have also been at the forefront of embracing ethical trade. These characteristics make the Kenyan cut flower industry an ideal case study to explore the relationship between economic globalisation, ethical trade and the prospects for sustainable development. This paper discusses the Kenyan cut flower industry along the lines of social, environmental and economic aspects and considers the effects of ethical trading on sustainability. Overall, the discussion suggests that the industry makes a considerable contribution towards sustainable development in Kenya and that ethical trading has played a positive role in this favourable assessment. However, some important systemic features of the global cut flower value chain limit the potential of the cut flower industry and of ethical trading initiatives to instigate a more inclusive virtuous circle of sustainable development in Kenya.

To read the full paper click here: Kenyan-Flowers (pdf, 589 KB)

Emergency on Planet Earth

robert moosbrugger — 2007-11-02T19:26:00Z

Vor ein paar Jahren hat Acid Jazz Master Jamiroquai eine CD namens Emergency on Planet Earth herausgebracht. Die wissenschaftliche Grundlage für diese CD liefert nun das Umweltprogramm der Vereinten Nationen (UNEP) mit zwei bedeutenden Studien zum Zustand des Planeten Erde. Die eine Studie heißt GEO4 environment for development und die andere Global Environment Outlook Yearbook 2007. Beide Studien könnten problemlos den Titel Emergency on Planet Earth tragen. Die Studien stehen online auf UNEP's Webseite zum Download zur Verfügung.

Limits to Sustainable Development: or, why there is a need to revisit the link between...

robert moosbrugger — 2007-03-25T19:11:00Z

Throughout the 1990s sustainable development was adopted by many governments and development institutions around the world as a new paradigm for development. The rapid adoption of sustainable development in development discourse was due to the growing realisation that ending world poverty and stopping environmental degradation needed an integrated approach. But how effective is the new development paradigm in achieving the twin goals of poverty reduction and environmental protection? The continuously slow progress in world poverty reduction and the steady stream of bleak environmental reports would suggest that sustainable development is not the magic formula that it was hoped to be and that it will soon be replaced by another development fad. However, sustainable development continues to possess a strongly inspiring note for many and realising its promise remains as relevant as ever. This paper therefore tries to examine some of the limits that sustainable development is currently facing with view to regaining its potential for reconciling economy and ecology.

Sustainable development today has many competing meanings and often looks very different from the perspective of the North or from the South (Najam 2005). However, for the purpose of this paper I shall limit the discussion of sustainable development to its mainstream meaning as embodied in the Brundtland report (World Commission on Environment and Development 1987) and several other United Nations documents. The difference between sustainable development and other development paradigms - its unique selling point so to say - is of course, that it claims to deliver poverty reduction and environmental protection. I shall therefore focus especially on the ecological aspects of sustainable development and leave aside the discussion of issues related to poverty reduction.

This paper thus sets out to examine the limits of mainstream sustainable development from a strictly ecological perspective. In order to do so, the paper will look at three different areas that constitute important limits to sustainable development. I begin by examining the meaning of sustainable development and will point out some of the conceptual weaknesses associated with it. I then look into how sustainable development is shaped and limited by a broader agenda of global governance. This will be followed by a short account of how the dynamics of contemporary capitalism are limiting the effective implementation of sustainable development. I then conclude with some thoughts about the changes needed for sustainable development to regain its critical ecological edge.

Limit I: Conceptual Weaknesses of Sustainable Development
In the 1960s it was increasingly realized that there were strong linkages between industrialisation and environmental degradation. This awareness resulted in the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm in 1972 which is often taken as the key event in the emergence of sustainable development (Adams 2001). The term sustainable development, however, was only starting to be used in the 1980s. The IUCN (1991) claims that it has first given currency to the term sustainable development in its World Conservation Strategy published in 1980 (see IUCN 1980). The Brundtland report titled Our Common Future, published by the World Commission on Environment and Development (1987), then popularized the term sustainable development and quickly turned it into an international catch-phrase. This report also provided the now dominant definition of sustainable development as development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (World Commission on Environment and Development 1987, p. 43). Although the report was important in stimulating discussion and putting sustainability at the centre of international attention, it also had considerable weaknesses.

Though the Brundtland Reports definition of sustainable development as inter-generational justices is elegant in its simplicity, it is clearly insufficient. First, inter-generational justice is a weak concept for political operationalisation as future generations do not have a voice in current processes of political decision making. Second, and more importantly, the Brundtland definition of sustainable development as inter-generational justices leaves inter-regional justice unmentioned. This might lead to the paradox situation where one region is able to protect its own environment, and thus to fulfil the obligation for inter-generational justice within its own boundaries, by overexploiting the resources of other regions. Any meaningful definition of sustainable development will not be complete without refereeing to inter-regional justice of resource use.

The Brundtland report identified poverty as one of the main cause of environmental degradation in the Third World. This is a remarkable confusion of cause and effect. Indigenous communities, for example in the Amazonian rain forest, are poor by any standard of income poverty. And many such communities have managed for centuries to live with nature without causing environmental destruction. Following the Brundtland reports analysis of cause and effect we would, however, have to conclude that such communities are negatively impacting the environment because they are poor. A conceptually sounder approach to understand the causes of environmental problems is to look at it strictly from a consumption angle (Princen 2001). From such a perspective it is consumption above a sustainable rate that is the cause of environmental decline. And growth in consumption is the product of population growth and growth in consumption per person. The causal link made between poverty and the environment in the Brundtland report is potentially misleading. Reducing poverty is beneficial for the environment in areas where the poor are forced to overuse the ecosystem simply to survive. However, as the poor climb up the consumption ladder the link between poverty reduction and environmental protection will probably be a negative one. The perceived link between poverty reduction and the protection of the environment is often due to the impression that richer regions are better able to preserve their environment. But this is often only the case because richer communities possess the ability to externalize the impact of their consumption to poorer communities.

On the operational level the Brundtland report identified economic growth and trade as the main means to achieve sustainable development. The report states: it is essential that global growth be revitalized. In practical terms this means more rapid economic growth in both industrial and developing countries, freer market access for the products of developing countries, (World Commission on Environment and Development 1987, p.89). The report however fails to convincingly demonstrate the positive link between rapid economic growth and environmental protection. One is tempted to think that the incorporation of economic growth as operational objective for sustainable development is more the result of ideological beliefs than sound analysis. Lélé (1991), in a critical review of sustainable development, notes that economic growth may be the fallout of sustainable development but that it can not be regarded as its prime mover. What is clear is that the incorporation of economic growth as operational objective of sustainable development has taken away the critical ecological edge of the concept of sustainable development. Sustainable development will in the end need to move away from growth-economics and find ways of improving quality of life without constantly increasing consumption. Daly (1996) therefore argues that sustainable development necessarily means to abandon economic growth, first in the North and eventually in the South, and to move towards models of steady-state economy.

The above discussion suggests that sustainable development in its mainstream definition is lacking in conceptual clarity and that in many respects it resembles more a statement of faith than a sound policy framework. Some argue that it is precisely this conceptual vagueness that has allowed for the rapid adoption of sustainable development as dominant development paradigm (Lélé 1991; Adams 2001). As a result of this conceptual weakness sustainable development today buttresses capitalist globalization rather than challenging it.

Limit II: Global Governance and Sustainable Development
Sustainable development does not exist independently of other areas of global governance. In the following I shall examine two areas that are of particular importance for the shaping of sustainable development. First, I will look at the integration or indeed subordination of sustainable development under the broader global agenda of trade liberalization. And second, I will describe how the currently fragmented system of global environmental governance limits the successful protection of the global commons.

Trade liberalization and the promotion of export-oriented growth strategies are at the heart of the neoliberal global governance agenda as pursued by the World Bank, the IMF and the WTO. And mainstream sustainable development thinking has accommodated itself comfortably with this broader policy agenda. As mentioned above, the intellectual subordination of sustainable development to the imperatives of economic growth and free trade was already accomplished by the Brundtland report. The belief in the benefits of economic growth and free trade for the environment was further cemented by the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, held in Rio in 1992 and the World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Johannesburg in 2002. Agenda 21, the main policy document adopted by the 1992 Rio summit, for example explicitly calls for the promotion of sustainable development through trade (see United Nations Division for Sustainable Development 2004).

However, there are several good reasons to be doubtful about the assumed positive nexus between trade and the environment. First, trade and export-led growth strategies often lead to mono-cultural agricultural production. And numerous studies show the environmentally detrimental effect of monocultural agricultural production (see Adams 1990, p.170; Murray 1998). Second, trade facilitates over-consumption in rich regions and the export of environmental damage to poorer regions. The historian Donald Hughes (2005) sees the import of cheap resources and the export of environmental damage as a key feature of developed countries trade policy in the twentieth century. Current trade patterns contain a massive resource transfer between the South and the North. The negative ecological impact of this resource transfer is best captured by the concept of shadow ecology. Dauvergne (1997) uses this concept to demonstrate the devastating impact of Japan on the tropical forests of Southeast Asia brought about by timber trade. The detrimental environmental impact of the current trade regime is likely to be magnified in the future as the North-South resource exploitation is complemented by South-South exploitation between Africa and resource hungry China (Servant 2005).

Another area of global governance which is of great importance for sustainable development is the protection of the global commons such as the climate or the oceans. Protecting the global commons is the classical task of global environmental governance (GEG). In the following I will quickly outline the current system of GEG and highlight its main weaknesses. GEG can be understood as the sum of organizations, policy instruments, financing mechanisms, rules, procedures and norms that regulate the processes of global environmental protection (Najam et al. 2006). GEG started to emerge in the late 1960s and has developed rapidly since then. Today the system of GEG is characterized by a broad range of international institutions that are involved in one form or another in the management of the global environment. The United Nations Environment Management Group (UNEMG) counts over forty different organisations as its members. Besides the large number of international institutions concerned with the environment, an ever increasing number of multilateral environmental agreements have been devised to regulate global environmental problems. The United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP 2001) estimates that currently over 500 such agreements are in effect. Many of these agreements have their own secretariats and funding mechanism, which adds to the institutional complexity of the current GEG system.

The complex architecture of the current institutional framework of GEG and the hitherto inability to reverse many of the negative environmental trends clearly suggests a need for reform. In the run-up to the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg in 2002 a vivid reform debate has started. One of the most promising ideas in the current debate is the suggestion to establish a World Environment Organization (WEO). Most proponents of this idea suggest building such an organization on the currently weak UNEP (see for example Charnovitz 2005). The purpose of a WEO would be to bring the myriad of environmental treaties and some of the existing international environmental institutions under one umbrella organization. This, so it is believed, would strengthen the coordination between existing initiatives and improve negotiation, decision making and implementation of future environmental policies. Furthermore, such a partial centralization of the currently fragmented system of GEG would strengthen the position of environmental concerns in other areas of global governance such as international trade and development.

Limit III: Contemporary Capitalism and Sustainable Development
For sustainable development to be more than a catchphrase fundamental changes in current consumption and production patterns will be necessary. This insight was recognized by the World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Johannesburg in 2002. The World Summit adopted the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation in which it is explicitly stated that: Fundamental changes in the way societies produce and consume are indispensable for achieving global sustainable development (United Nations Division for Sustainable Development 2004a, Chapter 3). The question is, of course, whether consumer capitalism - the globally dominant system of production and consumption is able to undergo such fundamental changes in its patterns of production and consumption. Or to put it another way, it is the question whether a greening of capitalism is possible or not. In the following I will first look at the likelihood of greening the production patterns of capitalism. And second, I will take a closer look at the likelihood of greening consumption patterns within capitalism.

Many authors believe that the greening of capitalism can be achieved by increasing the efficiency of resource use (for example Hawken et al. 2000 or Von Weizsäcker et al. 1995). Such an approach trusts on the capacity of capitalism to adapt to changing circumstances and on its ability for technological innovation. From such a perspective one could argue that all what it is needed is getting prices right. The rising cost of resources and environmental pollution will automatically provide the right incentives for capitalist production to adapt more efficient production technologies. Oosthoeck and Gills (2005) estimate that the global market for technologies promoting renewable energy and lower resource use is worth several hundred billion dollars. And indeed, many corporations have started to invest heavily in clean technologies. General Electric, for example has pledged to invest annually $ 1.5 billion in research and development of clean technologies (Bazilchuk 2005). The emerging greening of corporations would thus suggest that environmental protection is not at all antagonistic to capitalism but makes good business sense.

The ability of capitalism for innovation and adaptation shall not be disputed here. However, the above outlined technocentric solution to environmental problems caused by capitalist production leaves out other important features of contemporary capitalist production systems. Contemporary capitalism is characterised through production and marketing systems that seek to increase profits by promoting shorter and shorter product life cycles. Thus increases in production efficiency are easily offset by increases in output of production. Another important feature of contemporary capitalism is ever longer commodity chains. Longer commodity chains potentially offset the gains achieved through more efficient production by increasing the pollution brought about by transportation. Furthermore, commodity chains often span countries with different environmental standards and thus promote the export of environmentally harmful production activities to countries with lower environmental standards. It is therefore highly questionable if the emerging greening of capitalist production can guarantee the long-term ecological sustainability of capitalism (Vlachou 2004).

Assessing consumption patterns of contemporary consumer capitalism is a difficult task. The traditional analytical frameworks of neo-classical or Marxist economic analysis are overly concerned with analysing production and interpret consumption as the outcome of rational choices made by sovereign consumers. From such a perspective consumption can not be critically questioned. Princen (2001) suggests an analytical perspective that allows for the critical assessment of current consumption patterns from an ecological perspective. He proposes the concepts of overconsumption and misconsumption. Overconsumption occurs when a species undermines its own life-support system through excessive consumption. Misconsumption occurs when an individual consumes in a way that undermines his or her own wellbeing.

Overconsumption and misconsumption are only to some extent natural phenomena. Contemporary consumer capitalism systematically fuels unsustainable consumption patterns through advertising. Advertising and promotion costs constitute an increasing share of the total product cost. Nike for example has increased its advertising budget twentyfold in only ten years, reaching $ 500 million in 1997 (Klein 2000). And corporate advertising efforts are likely to continue to grow, as oversaturated consumers need to be convinced about the need to purchase more. Consumer attention for corporate advertising messages is therefore poised to become the scarcest resource of contemporary capitalism (Davenport and Beck 2001). The increasing exposure of consumers to corporate advertising therefore suggests the need to complement the concept of environmental pollution with that of mental pollution (Lasn 1999).

Arguably, excessive advertising and the resulting problems of overconsumption and misconsumption are mainly a phenomenon occurring in developed countries. But advertising fuelled consumption patterns have direct negative ecological impact in developing countries. Understanding the link between advertising and unsustainable resource use is therefore of critical importance. A change in consumption patterns, as suggested by the World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Johannesburg in 2002, will not happen without radically rethinking the role that advertising plays in contemporary capitalism.

Conclusion
The above discussion shows that sustainable development is seriously limited by conceptual ambiguity, by its close alignment with the global governance agenda of accelerated economic growth and free trade, and by an uncritical understanding of the dynamics of contemporary capitalism. In its current conception, sustainable development is potentially harmful in so far as it helps to obscure the real trade offs that exist between accelerated economic growth and environmental protection. The sustainable development mainstream misses much of the critical edge of green ideas and is thus not able to effectively challenge the ideological superstructure of consumer society.

For now, the concept of sustainable development is clearly geared towards the interests of those who want to maintain the current socio-economic system and not those who want to protect the eco-system. The struggle for sustainable development is therefore first of all a struggle over the meaning of sustainable development. The need to reconsider the link between economy and ecology is at the very heart of this struggle. Eventually sustainable development will only be a meaningful development paradigm if it critically engages with processes of commoditization of nature and social relations. Only such a critical engagement will open up the way for the larger systemic changes necessary to reconcile economy and ecology.

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