The divisions in this country have been
bought into sharp focus since the recent referendum. Some people in the winning
side are behaving as if they have been given a mandate to take us back to the
days of the black shirts.
There is less goodwill towards people who
have settled here despite their contribution to the economy. Has compassion for
the third world poor diminished too?
And yet the advances in science and
technology means that much more can be done to help.
Apparently, the Earth is hit by 430
quintillion Joules of energy from the Sun every single hour: That’s enough to
meet the World’s energy needs for a year. Furthermore solar energy has never been
cheaper at thirty cents per watt. Installations of solar panels are growing
exponentially and battery technology has improved dramatically too.
That is why countries like China and India
are investing so heavily as are companies like Tesla, Apple and Google. Low-level
technology such as spray-on can transform windows and glass in buildings into
solar panels. In Britain, schemes already exist to
convert pedestrian footfalls into energy to light up buildings.
Sustainable energy that doesn’t need huge
infrastructures and national grids can transform poor people’s lives. Better standards of living in their own
Countries can mean fewer migrants, less carbon emissions and global warming.
Schumacher was right when he wrote about
how low level technology could help the disadvantaged in his book: ‘Small Is
Beautiful’ forty years ago.
Ultimately, Helping the poor in the third
world, helps us too.
