SUGGESTIONS FOR THOSE WHO WOULD LIKE TO DO SOMETHING
Social Advancement is needed to keep pace with technological advancement. We should be taking care of people and their basic needs everywhere on Planet Earth, in order to make the world safer, happier, kinder, and therefore better for all of us.
Social Engineering: Using Engineering-type problem solving and design resources to thoroughly redesign modern life wherever it is lacking. The goal of this redesign would be to make every place that we go, and every activity that we do, friendlier, healthier, happier, more aesthetically pleasing, etc.
The Art of Living: I like to think about what the world would be like if we elevated the value of quality of life over quantity (longevity, wealth, and possessions for example). The value of culture (as a glue that holds society together even as many dynamic processes tend to pull it apart) should not be underestimated in this context. The idea that cultural exchange can lead to peaceful coexistence is not a new one. If we truly lived in a peaceful world, it would no doubt be more secure than a violent one where different bands of humans continued to kill and devastate for dubious reasons.The current situation can be compared to having a number of different gangs of pirates all living on the same boat, with some on one side (or both sides) of the boat trying to blow a hole in the other side (to paraphrase Buckminster Fuller).
Making Peace with our Lawns: I was told in the 1990s that Americans put more chemicals into their lawns than the third world used in their agriculture. If we transferred half of the energy and expense of the lawns in America into gardens, native species and ecological landscaping (ecoscaping - restoration with aesthetics as a primary objective), think about how much would change and how quickly.
Eat Local: please grow (and/or purchase) more locally grown food, organically grown if possible. This may be one of the most important changes we can make in the short term, to better the environment. Also note that by increasing local food resources, we can directly increase FOOD SECURITY in the place that we live.