BOOK REVIEW

The Biology of Civilisation. Understanding Human Culture as a Force in Nature
by Stephen Boyden, UNSW Press 2004

I read Stephen Boyden’s book whilst in the Alto Ticino, the Italian speaking region of Switzerland, the sunny south facing slopes of the Alps. I finished the book on a summer morning when I walked high in the meadows and realised I might be experiencing Western civilisation’s most sustainable system, one that was unchanged over many centuries and was still economically viable. Stephen’s conclusion came into my mind

“Successful cultural reform leading to ecological sustainability and equity and peace among the peoples of the Earth will not come about unless and until the dominant culture comes to embrace, at its heart a basic understanding of, and reverence for, nature and the processes of life. This bio-understanding would lead to a new world view and a seminal shift in the priorities of the dominant culture, so that the health and wellbeing of living systems would assume top position in the hierarchy of priorities.”

These alpine meadows at 3000 to 5000 feet, are the slightly less steep regions of the mountainside cleared of forest many centuries ago to allow summer grazing. They are covered by snow in winter but provide the summer feed for cattle brought up from the valley below. The pastures are rich with innumerable species of flowers and grasses and blessed with numerous butterflies, insects and birds now absent from many of the intensively farmed areas of Europe. The nutritious grass, much of it on 45 degree slopes, is cut often by hand and dried for winter fodder. The only sign of mechanisation was the muck spreader for the dung collected from the winter barns.

This system is a significant part of the dairy industry in Switzerland. The cows and the grass production are subsidised as part of a comprehensive program to support and maintain rural communities. When oil prices rise progressively in the near future, mechanised farming and artificial fertiliser will become prohibitously expensive. But this Alpine ecological system which includes man, cow, sheep and goat will remain viable and strong. It is a proven sustainable system.

Indeed Switzerland has a great deal going for it in terms of environmental sustainability. Much of Swiss power comes from hydro schemes with massive dams enclosing the melt waters of the glaciers. Switzerland has the finest public transport system in the world with trains running on hydro-electricity. It spends $US 234 per capita pa. on rail compared to $US 2 in the USA! Every village no matter how remote, is serviced by the multipurpose post bus, however difficult the terrain. Local communities remain cohesive and strong.

Boyden explains how our culture-driven activities including the fetish for unlimited economic growth are having huge biological consequences. We all have the experience of talking to politicians and are frustrated by the usual response to criticism of growth “Do you want us all to go back and live in caves?” From now my response will be “Please could I plan your next overseas tour, for I would like you to see some aspects of a sustainable society, economically viable with strong communities with a sense of wellbeing”. If they ask ’Where” I will say “It’s not in the Andes, nor in an unstable developing country, it’s in the land of the Gnomes, the financial Gnomes of Zurich those financially prudent boffins whom you no doubt respect!

But alas on that same sunny morning in the verdant meadows I had heard a report on the BBC World Service indicating that air pollution in Europe was increasing. The pollution was not arising in Europe itself but was swirling around the northern hemisphere from polluting countries elsewhere. Acid rain was on the increase and damaging Swiss forests and pastures. Surely the Swiss must wish they could remain biologically and atmospherically isolated from the rest of the world but in this world our problems now affect all living things. There is no escape.

Now there are dozens of books labelled “doom and gloom” by the sceptics and the ‘don’t want to knowers’. These books are written and read mainly by the tiny minority who already understand the pressing perils to humanity. Where does Stephen Boyden’s book fit in? It has an historical, cultural and biological perspective that is unique. It should be read by everyone in Government because, as Boyden indicates, we cannot change our culture without leadership. But it won’t be read by the majority culture. But if you want to strike a blow for a sustainable future, I suggest you buy one, sign it and present it to your local Member.

If I had been able to read this book when I was a medical student, I would not have wasted half my life in ignorance of the most important world health issues and their cultural basis. I encourage every student in economics, in business studies and in environmental health to read it, but with the ideological takeover of the universities this seems unlikely.. It should be one of the first books read by the medical student in environmental health. Why? Because it paints the big picture of the constituents of human well being, the dire problems of civilisation in terms of our biological inheritance, food production, industrialisation, consumerism and warfare. All these have health implications that require our understanding and cultural change.