Times Record "Sustain Maine" op-ed series
SLOWING DOWN THE WORK-AND-CONSUME TREADMILL
28 June 2002
David Vail
Sustainable development, according to the United Nations, "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." The United States flunks the first test: "meeting the needs of the present." More Americans are poor today than three decades ago, even though production per person has nearly doubled. Our mix of free markets and government policies fails to spread opportunities widely or share prosperity equitably.
In our materialistic culture, meeting people's needs is a moving target. Businesses ceaselessly introduce new commodities while their advertising blitz creates new wants and dissatisfaction with current living standards. Though the average new home has doubled in size since 1950 and there are twice as many personal vehicles per driver, a smaller fraction of Americans today claim to be happy or very happy with their lives. For most, Adam Smith's "getting and spending" is an endless competition to keep up with the Joneses. A recent PBS video aptly called it "affluenza."
"We're number one!" in per capita income, but a majority of American adults report stressful lives, with work demands leaving too little time and energy for personal development, families, communities -- and all their stuff. Average work hours actually increased in the 1990s and Americans now log more hours than workers in any other industrial nation. Our "gadget utopia" fails the sustainablility test, even without taking account of mass consumption's environmental costs or our generation's shaky legacy to the future.
Despite plenty of evidence that more is often not better, our captains of industry and political power brokers chant the economic growth mantra. It's no wonder. Corporate managers are exorbitantly rewarded for expanding sales, market share, and profits. Major party election candidates know "it's the economy, stupid!" and promise their fiscal alchemy will bring faster growth. In fact, reaching full employment does require growth if workers' productivity rises but there are no policies or labor contracts to translate higher productivity into shorter hours and more time to get a life.
A sustainable society, in my view, would strike a different balance between work and leisure and also between private and collective consumption. Such a rebalancing implies curtailing the power of markets and corporations and reforming the priorities of political parties -- no minor feat. But politics is not my focus here. I want instead to report what my family has learned from frequent research visits to Sweden, where we've experienced everyday life that captures a more sustainable balance.
Swedish worker-citizens long ago let politicians and trade union representatives know they were willing to sacrifice some income growth for more free time and work flexibility. Over the decades, collective bargaining (over 80% belong to unions) and legislation set national standards unheard of in America: five-weeks of annual paid vacation; paid leave for physical and emotional debility; and paid parental leave for both fathers and mothers. (It's been hard to get research out of my colleague Tobias because his first priority this year is his two kids.) These universal entitlements are backed by a livable minimum wage (roughly $10/hour) with health and pension benefits. A big issue in this year's election campaign is cutting back the standard workweek to 36 hours.
Sweden has also made enormous investments in public goods -- attractive town centers, urban green space, wilderness, bike/hike/ski trails, museums, heritage sites, arts events, and non-commercial television, not to mention ubiquitous cafes. These amenities enable Swedes of all income levels to make the most of their ample non-work time, compensating for Swedes' fewer private possessions than middle-class American households.
These collectively enjoyed goods are backed by an ancient right of public access to undeveloped private land, reminiscent of the way Maine's North Woods used to be. For the non-Volvo owner, access to cultural activities and nature is facilitated by equally impressive public transportation, weaving road, rail and water conveyances into a comprehensive, inexpensive, and well-run network. In America, it is the rare progressive community, such as Portland, Oregon, that offers all its citizens comparably rich amenities and convenient transportation.
Sweden is not utopia and Swedes are not otherworldly saints. Lots of Swedes are into SUVs, designer clothes, rock concerts, and ski gear. Generous state-supported sick leave has become enormously expensive. And the Social Democratic government remains preoccupied with productivity growth, full employment, and international competitiveness. However, the transition to sustainability is not about reaching utopia but shifting balances. Sweden's evolving balance slows down the work-and-consume treadmill and smoothes the path to an environmentally sustainable future.
Back home in Maine, it's clear we have an advantage over much of America: a tradition of seeking sufficiency, not grasping ceaselessly for more. But, we have not made much progress with the livable wages, employment benefits, and worker rights that would help more Mainers escape the work-and-consume treadmill. Still, there is exciting progress on the sustainability front. The state and many communities are investing more in local cultural life, accessible public lands, and public transportation. For all its complexity, sustainable development comes down to simple principles; for instance, every Mainer, present and future, should have the free time and free access to enjoy the quiet beauty of Maine's woods.
David Vail teaches economics at Bowdoin College and is a founding board member of the Maine Center for Economic Policy.