Corporate Immune Systems?

In Paul Hawken's "Blessed Unrest," he dedicates a chapter discussing corporate involvement in environmental issues, social issues, and movements for change. Hawken makes a point to argue that globalization, industrialization, westernization, and even "internationalization" are things that are making it harder for us to protect our own important values as well as the environment. These are all happening in the interest of economics; according to Hawken, corporations argue that the best development is the kind that furthers business and economic standing. Because of this development and globalization, languages, cultures, and precious environmental resources are quickly being eliminated. Because these changes are occurring so rapidly, even businesses are sometimes struggling to keep up. According to Hawken, this "extermination of languages, cultures, forests, and fisheries is occurring worldwide in the interests of speeding up business, even while business itself is stressed by increasingly rapid change" (135). Businesses and corporations are aware of these rapid changes, and are sometimes struck by them, but more often than not, still turn a blind eye, continually at the cost of nature.

Hawken also talks about the roles of the World Bank, as well as how well a government listens to and respects its citizens. The World Bank brags about development and helping countries who need extra monetary support. What usually results however, is a "misery of unpayable debt,... dragging a country backward into an austerity that truncates formerly affordable education and healthcare" (132). All this in the name of development and aid? Hawken also makes a point that governments are supposed to abide to the wishes of its citizens. People have a voice, and "that voice comes from citizen organizations, although when it does, it is often ignored or patronized" (132). When will our government take our desires into account? When will they protect our jobs, our education, our healthcare, and our environment like we ask them too? Isn't that their role?

In Hawken's chapter, "Immunity", he describes the world as a living organism, basing his idea from the Gaia Hypothesis but developing it further. Humanity has its own immune system, this pulsing heartbeat that can get sick, need a blood transfusion, become fatigued, even die. But it also has the ability to heal itself. I appreciated this chapter because of the analogies Hawken makes. Our immune system can even be seen as a web of network and connections. Some say that the immune system "can best be understood as intelligence, a living, learning, self-regulation system -- almost another mind. Its function does not depend on its firepower but on the quality of its connectedness" (143).  We have the ability to connect, to stand up against these corporations and bring our immune system back to a healthy place. This connection will take strength, however, because the viruses attacking our system are more powerful than we give them credit for. Our human pulse is dwindling, sometimes fighting back other illnesses, but we have the ability to bring it back to health.