Will we make it? This question is on our collective minds. We worry. We get anxious. We don’t like to think about it.
But what if everything turned out OK? What would the world look like, sound like, smell like, and feel like if we created a joyful and healthy future?
I’ve thought about this question for years. Chapter 14 of my book Advocating for the Environment describes a future where everything does turn out OK.
I hoped it would stimulate some interesting conversations with readers about possible futures. But so far, no one has commented on it. And I’ve wondered why.
Author Rob Hopkins in his book From What Is to What If provides a clue. Hopkins describes what he calls “the decline of imagination” in our culture. With packed schedules, social media addiction, teach to the test education, and an intensely competitive society, it’s easy to see how collectively, our imagination has declined.
For when do we make time and space in our busy lives just to wonder? For some, stress, trauma, depression, violence, racism, war or poverty creates a closed loop where people can barely imagine getting through the day.
Ironically, we are in a time where imagining a positive future is crucial to our survival as a species. The climate crisis, the toxics crisis, and habitat collapse are looming existential threats. We have to imagine solutions if we are going to solve these problems. In fact, every innovation, and every positive development starts as an idea. We first have to imagine what is possible, and then we can work to bring those solutions to fruition.
But we won’t find hope or solutions on the news. We aren’t likely to find them on social media, or in our dinner conversations either. As a culture, we do not encourage dreaming of solutions or positive futures. If we dare to dream, we might be called “unrealistic” or “Pollyanna”.
But the good news is, we still have access to our imaginations. Our imaginations are deep within us and just need to be reawakened. And based on the many public presentations I’ve given over the past year, I’d say that people are yearning to find hope and imagine solutions.
To access your imagination all you need to do is ask a simple question: “What if…?” And then allow the time and space for the answers to take form.
I remember the moment in the summer of 2019 when I asked myself, “What if I turned my college advocacy course into a book?” At the time it seemed like an amusing little daydream. But that small question started my current journey of writing, speaking and teaching with audiences across the country.
So I encourage you to try an experiment: Take a few deep breaths, relax, and ask yourself “What If….?”
What if you cleaned the garage, attic or basement? What if you started a garden? What if you made a new friend? What if you worked every day doing something you love? What if you spoke up publicly about an issue you care about? What if you did something to help your community move to a sustainable future?
Asking the “What If?” question takes us out of the current problem focus, and opens to door to all kinds of possibilities. A universe of wonderful ideas is always present within us. And it’s just waiting for you to open the door by asking this question.
To learn more:
Hopkins, Rob; From What Is to What If: Unleashing the Power of the Imagination to Create the Future We Want