I was speaking to a friend last night at Transition Fareham’s Green Drinks. This is a fathering of like-minded people who want to make our local town more sustainable. My friend Fiona has started writing articles for a local magazine and we were wondering if we could shoehorn Transition Fareham into the article. One idea was writing an article about the 10 ways you, as an individual, could change the world. I like this idea, so I have decided to start a list of my own. Perhaps you could add to it. How can you, as an individual, (positively) change the world?

 

 

  1. Become a local politician or involved heavily in local politics. One of the most profound ways that an individual can change the world is by being a politician. Power can bring about change with an efficient use of energy and time. However, this is also how dictators bring about malignant change. On the bright side, there are politicians in the UK like Caroline Lucas, our first Green member of parliament, who are striving for change. The problem is that they are few are far between and swim against the tide of conformity.

 

  1. Join a group. This might be one which holds persuasive sway either through lobbying or ideological influence, or through direct action group.. This is what I have done in becoming Chairman of Transition Fareham: trying to make a difference on a local scale. There are many local groups who provide ample opportunity to enact change. The hope would be that local movements take off and become national, and even then international.

 

  1. Creating a website and blog. This is what I have tried to do with this site in a more philosophical and religious way. By providing information, links and thought-provoking dialogue, people have the opportunity to be persuaded. It is far moiré likely, unfortunately, that you end up preaching to the choir, but it has been noted that the internet has been one of the strongest tools for deconversions and changes in ideology for individuals who are that little bit more open-minded. I have also done this for Transition Fareham.

 

  1. Writing articles or becoming a journalist. The written media is a massive influence to many, and not always in a good way. For example, the Daily Mail misinforms bigots on a daily basis. That said, a benign journalist can do much good by advertising worthy causes and promoting change.

 

  1. Writing books. Again, this is something I have done myself. If you have something to say, and people to say it too, then the medium of book-writing is a wonderful piece of ammunition. Getting published is never easy, but books are certainly a forceful method to promote ideologies and change.

 

Well there you go. That’s five simple ways to change the world. What suggestions do you have? How can you help to change the world?