Why We Need Socialism

In this Our Changing Climate climate change video essay, I look a how and why socialism, specifically ecosocialism, is crucial to mitigating climate change and building a just and equitable world. Specifically, I look at how capitalism can not exist in harmony with the natural world by investigating the concept of "metabolic rift." I then unpack what exactly ecosocialism is through the examples of various authors and activists. Ultimately, a planned, rational, anti-imperialist, anti-colonial, and deeply democratic mode of production is the only path forward for true harmony with the natural world. That economic formulation is ecosocialism.

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Some visuals courtesy of Getty Images
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Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
1:20 - The Metabolic Rift
4:28 - What is Ecosocialism?
8:29 - Visions of Ecosocialism
18:49 - Lessons from Cuba
24:15 - Towards Ecosocialism
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Check out other Climate YouTubers:

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#socialism #degrowth #climatechange

[OurChangingClimate]

🍂 Where do you fall politically? (And, if you're up for sharing, how do your politics inform the way you approach climate action?)

[lukedmoss]

"The goal of oppressors is to limit your imagination about what is possible without them so you might never imagine more for yourself and the world you live in." That quote by Ashley C Ford was the highlight for me. The problem I feel and see moving forward is just the massive scale at which change needs to happen. It's hard enough to align my own lifestyle with the values I profess, let alone bring about deep structural change to worldwide systems.

[satyasyasatyasya]

*The choice is literally just:*
1) Smaller economies focussed on peace, stability, health, happiness and planet healing.
2) Business as usual, GDP/growth at all costs. The costs being, human wellbeing, happiness, health, and the total ruination of the planet upon which we depend.

You'd think the choice is easy, but we are not governed by people willing to make the easy choices...

[gmodrules]

The reason Cuba uses Oxen instead of tractors is because they are literally under embargo and can't get access to replacement parts or petroleum. Its also why they still have cars from the 1950s still running.

They didn't do it because they thought it was better for the environment. Draught animal farming is more labor intensive and produces lower yields. They did it because it was either they used Oxen or they wouldn't have food period.

This isn't a desirable outcome. The PRC has huge swaths of land occupied by peasant farmers who use animals to pull plows. The government has spent the last 30 years trying to get modern farming equipment for the countryside, literally the opposite of what Cuba had to do.

[GregorMcIntosh]

The Scottish Government has said that they are aiming for a wellbeing economy, not based on GDP, but on human health and happiness.

[jpsilverplaylists]

I've recently been entirely disillusioned with capitalism and find it pretty much impossible to carry on participating in it, which is a bit of a problem being a self-employed contractor and finding it hard to reconcile that with still having to make a living :( I'm actually quite disgusted and repulsed by our society, and I live in South Africa so the inequality gap is even bigger here than in US or UK. And the worst of all is our alleged governing party is / was / claims to be a leftist pseudo-socialist organization, but is really just a monstrously corrupt gang that is 100% driven by an insatiable hunger for taking money

[benjaminsmus]

Imagining the level of individual participation in government necessary to make eco socialism a reality is difficult. Does anyone else feel that one of the main issues with our current system is the lack of the average person’s involvement in the political process?

[Otamagaming]

who would've thought that profit over all else includes overlooking our own survival.
Edit: neoliberal coping is actually hilarious, please don't give these people any attention, since that's clearly what they want. who else besides trolls would click on a video about socialism from a channel that exposes how capitalism and it's rhetoric, lies, etc. kills our planet?

[MasayaShida]

from 1975 to 1979, communist Cambodia emitted close to zero industrial carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, and like you suggested would be a good thing in the video, everyone lived on farm lands instead of feeding the city. of course, everyone was equally poor and millions had nothing to eat thanks to the centrally planned economy and redistribution of wealth. As a Cambodian i am very skeptical of any grand solution that places socialism as the main driving force. I understand capitalism as it currently is does not take care of people well, but please do not repeat the mistakes of the 20th century by going back to soviet style socialism.

[telbayshore]

It is very apparent that barely anyone in the comments section has picked up a single book

[lars_larsen]

Huh, algorithmically aided socialist planning to fight climate change and make the world a better place you say?
What a coincidence, I'm currently in a computer science and software engineering programme at uni because I want to learn what I need to try making very nearly exactly such a thing.

[werbnaright]

There's something ironic about putting an educational video about the environmental destruction of the Soviet Union behind a paywall when its intended purpose is to teach the masses about how we can avoid similar mistakes in the future.

[Guys_Love_Each_Other]

00:04 Capitalism is driving ecological collapse
02:55 Capitalism disrupts the natural regenerative cycle, leading to ecological imbalance
05:52 Ecosocialism advocates for an economy prioritizing well-being of all people and the planet.
08:53 We need vibrant visions and debates about the future world under socialism.
11:43 Gosplant: Algorithmic planning tool for ecological society
14:26 Eco-socialism aspires to global egalitarian redistribution and respectful management of human interaction with nature.
18:04 Ecosocialism and the example of Cuba's organic farming
20:50 Cuba's socialist agricultural revolution transformed the country.
23:40 Cuba's socialist organization represents ecosocialist degrowth in action
26:21 Advocacy for sustainable transportation and harm-reduction strategies
28:48 Support Our Changing Climate through Nebula



Capitalism is driving ecological collapse
- Soil degradation is a result of capitalism's pursuit of profit and capital accumulation, leading to ecological collapse.
- The relentless transformation of nature into marketable goods disrupts the natural cycle of production and reproduction, resulting in the degradation of soil health and ecological imbalance.

Capitalism disrupts the natural regenerative cycle, leading to ecological imbalance
- Under capitalism, peasant farming is replaced by wage-labor system, disrupting the return of soil nutrients
- Ecosocialism is proposed as an alternative that prioritizes humanity and nature over profits

Ecosocialism advocates for an economy prioritizing well-being of all people and the planet.
- It calls for a worker and peasant-led revolution to rip ownership of production away from the elite and put decision-making power into the hands of the masses.
- Ecosocialism specifically emphasizes a democratically planned economy based on social and ecological constraints.

We need vibrant visions and debates about the future world under socialism.
- Half-Earth Socialism calls for a socialist planned economy that focuses on land preservation, minimizing emissions, and a good life for all.
- Socialist planning is crucial in the context of climate change to understand what actions are necessary at all levels.

Gosplant: Algorithmic planning tool for ecological society
- Gosplant uses linear programming algorithms to create broad plans for cutting emissions, rewilding land, and maintaining a good life.
- The plans created by Gosplant are disseminated, debated, and transformed at global, national, and local levels, being subject to constant motion, transparency, accessibility, and debate.

Eco-socialism aspires to global egalitarian redistribution and respectful management of human interaction with nature.
- It advocates for public ownership of the means of production and decommodification of social life globally.
- It seeks to mend the metabolic rift of capitalism by embracing replenishment over extraction and heal the broken relationship with the land.

Ecosocialism and the example of Cuba's organic farming
- Ecosocialist manifestos emphasize communal stewardship, ecological production, and anti-imperialism as key throughlines.
- Contemporary example of ecosocialism in action: Cuba's transition to organic farming during the Special Period after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Cuba's socialist agricultural revolution transformed the country.
- Isolated from trading partners, Cuba adapted with initiatives like farmer to farmer knowledge sharing and urban farming.
- By emphasizing sustainable and permaculture-oriented systems and prioritizing food access, Cuba successfully built an ecosocialist agriculture.

Cuba's socialist organization represents ecosocialist degrowth in action
- Cuba deepens connection between people and land through agroecological and urban farming cooperatives, increasing literacy, food access, and minimizing fossil fuel use
- Ecosocialism requires the long collective struggle of the working class and peasants taking control of production, possibly involving revolution and starting in countries like India and the Philippines

Advocacy for sustainable transportation and harm-reduction strategies
- Advocacy for safe, accessible, and electrified public transit, and extensive bike infrastructure.
- Examples of harm-reduction strategies such as blocking pipelines, defunding the military and police, and advocating for a four-day work week.

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[brbr]

Urban gardening might look nice on paper, but in reality plants grown in polluted environment such as cities, with their heavy traffic and industry, accumulate the pollutants in their own organs, either directly from the air through their leaves, or indirectly from the soil, which then accumulates in our own bodies through our food. Raised beds does not eliminate this problem. (Unfortunately we also suffer from this same pollution by the very act of breathing)

[xirensixseo]

its honestly not even that hard to perform the actions needed to achieve sustainability, whats monumentally hard is getting the people that need to agree, to agree to plans..

[jocondiz]

You are so goated for making this video, good job!!!
I will share these with friends and families, keep it up. We'll be waiting for more!

[summondadrummin]

Economics is another word for Exchange and how we go about exchanging is really really basic and important to understand. What gets measured gets managed and what gets managed gets done. Using numbers to give us feedback about what we put into and take out of the economy is a very powerful feedback process,

[sstarklite]

Have you said that Marx said the workers are slaves? We need to tell the world that the wage system is also slavery, because capitalists say that if we get paid we’re not slaves, but that means if we get paid one CENT in our lifetime “we’re not slaves” which is insane. They also think it’s right to give all the money to a few people, which is insane. Great video! Thanks.

[omen]

Please share citations or sources more clearly, maybe with timestamps etc on your notion site. This would allow for better and more clear communication based on your videos. Thanks for your awesome work.

[crowlsyong]

I really appreciate that you are speaking about these issues- socialism, post-capitalist ideas, and how they relate to the biosphere and our personal lives. Thank you.