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Power cuts, oil prices up, food and water shortages,
environment under threat - what when ideas strike?
Following the news in
South Africa
can be an exhausting task at the best of times. At the current moment, if you
choose to ignore the usual political banter (which I make a point of doing);
the dominant story is that of the power cuts that are plaguing and
disorientating our stumbling city dwellers. Power cuts in general seem to have
a gremlin-like life of their own, poised to strike at the most strategic times
- as you are about to cook dinner, just before the DVD ends, or of course a
second before you manage to save that all important document. The rolling power
cuts of late however have transcended their usual frustrating status, and
climbed right up the continuum, exasperating home dwellers, costing businesses
production time and adding hours onto the driving time of already harassed
motorists.
The reason -
Eskom,
South
Africa's power supplier, does not have the
resources to supply the growing power demand of our economy. Reasons for this
fall into the "ignore and move on" category; what is interesting to
note however, is that amidst the desperate cries of the public, are discussions
about alternative power and a drive toward becoming independent of the
offerings of the establishment. Could it be that the physical and economic
hardships imposed on us as consumers, become the catalysts for the change in
mindset that we all know we need but haven't found to emotional fortitude to
embrace?
I am not simply
referring to the jump to alternative power, but rather the deep shift in the
psyche that can see no alternative but to move into a new paradigm for self
subsistence. Power is also not the only driving factor in this process of
change, but rather is a piece in a broader spectrum. Let us not forget the
recent hikes in the interest rate and the petrol price that have climbed on the "drain the consumer" bandwagon. The net effect has been an increase in the cost
of living including bond repayments and essential commodities such as wheat -
the inopportune staple diet of many people. I have not even touched on the
impending water crisis that will literally transform communities around
Southern Africa in times to come. These conditions are an
inhibiting factor to the Beast that compels us to acquire and consume.
Questions must be asked,
should I acquire and consume or would it be better to adapt and reutilize? It
seems that the only time these questions become a reality is when we as South
Africans are pushed into a tight box, deadlines are imposed, and power lines
are cut. The benefit of the "tight box" is the acquisition of a new
pair of eyes. The eyes that see opportunity, the mind that invents and the
attitude that is willing to cast off reliance on the establishment and take on
responsibility.
With this in mind, I am
not going to flood you with a list of suggestions for saving power, conserving
water or growing your own environmentally friendly eco-sustainable permaculture
vegetable patch. What I would like to draw your attention to is the mind set
that drives this process. It is a similar mindset that has driven a Bishop and
a business man to approach the courts and stop an arms shipment from reaching
Zimbabwe's
infamous government[i]. It is the mindset that says, "I no longer have any
other options but to find a creative answer that will build my future".
This mindset may reach you gradually, or in a flash of darkness as the lights
go out. Once the mindset is entrenched, the solutions become the byproduct, and
all that is required is to stand back and accept that sometimes big gifts come
in tight boxes.
[i] http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/topstories.aspx?ID=BD4A751555
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