He who lives by pollution dies by pollution.
I was reading an account of Martin Luther King during the Montgomery Bus Boycott and noticed how a few things he said, often quoting or paraphrasing Jesus, applied to today.
The big one was “He who lives by the sword dies by the sword,” which doesn’t seem a stretch to say those who live by pollution die by pollution. Despite everyone saying their flying does so much good it’s worth the harms, more polluting doesn’t reduce polluting. That rationalization applies to all flying by everyone, since no one flies to make the world worse.
“Love thy neighbor as thyself” applies too, maybe adding, “even if the neighbor lives far away or in Cancer Alley or a Sacrifice Zone.”
“Love thine enemy” would serve us well in our tribal times where liberals and conservatives attack each other more than solve problems.
I’ll start with a few for now. I’ll add other quotes from King or the Bible that apply to sustainability and we would do well to restore.
EDIT: More quotes we would do well to live by instead of what we’re doing:
Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You
Read my weekly newsletter
On initiative, leadership, the environment, and burpees