It is something we take for granted because we have a big heart that wants to accommodate – more not less? And it extends across . . . many facets of our lives? For instance, the writer was ‘elected and behind’ the clan’s efforts in entrepreneurship. He and the wife pursued and injected loads of competitiveness and discipline into the enterprise – and after disengaging from the venture after 11 years, when the writer was relocated to their headquarters, the undertaking cruised along for 25 years.
It is a story of our instinct to accommodate? Once the writer and the wife were gone, discipline was taken for granted – because it’s not in our DNA? It was only a matter of time before its demise. In our interactions we are expected to compromise and accommodate, i.e., the personal trumping principle? And thus respecting the ‘Filipino way’, the writer opted not to interfere – we hate those ‘arrogant outsiders’ especially when they tell us what to do? And it is a national dilemma?
We talk about the role of education and of the church – but what to do? For example, we set lofty goals – ‘technocratic, moralistic’ and beyond – that must satisfy and address every conceivable aspect of the Filipino life? And as an ex-NEDA chief tells us, we’ve had consistency – accommodating more, not less – in our economic plans and programs over decades; they weren’t bad yet they didn’t deliver? Bottom line: we have to recognize how successful human endeavors are pursued, e.g., by the Asian tigers? Is the writer’s family example a microcosm of many of our undertakings – for profit or otherwise? Does our complex mindset set us up for even more daunting challenges – inefficiency and corruption, among others – and thus our global rankings in competitiveness and economic freedom are pitiful? And so poverty remains massive – which in and of itself takes our focus away from pursuing what is actionable and realistic?
Practically everywhere one looks, density is palpable – because we seek to accommodate? And it could be a fruit stand or a tire shop or a premier property development. We aggressively claim our right over every square inch of land or soil? Ignoring time and space is a slippery slope – it will only be a matter of time? From a concerned Filipino, RT@ninaterol: “We need better (and properly implemented) land use, zoning, building code, better urban planning”.
Urban living could have a positive impact on the environment when time and space is respected. Contemporary thinkers (e.g., Steven Johnson) and environmentalists have concluded that properly designed and efficiently functioning urban centers generate less greenhouse gases. As importantly, they are conducive to human collaboration that creates leading edge ideas. For example, it was in the jazz bars in Manhattan where Japanese sound engineers challenged themselves to develop the surround-sound technology. Even in the number of inventions and patents, the urban centers – where many premier institutions are domiciled, and where people could readily congregate and collaborate – produce more innovative ideas. And given this reality, Manhattan has started attracting Silicon Valley startups and venture capitalists despite its high-cost-of-living.
Environmentalists have compared the per capita impact on the environment of urban versus suburban living in the New York metro area, and concluded that suburban living takes a lot on the environment. For instance, the sprawling manicured lawns in the suburbs – that could use chemicals in abundance – are more punishing on the environment than the high-rises of Manhattan, on a per capita land use. Yet Manhattan is not necessarily the model in urban design.
If we are to address the density of population centers in the Philippines, we must first learn respect for time and space? Makati and Fort Bonifacio should be our showcases but if premier developers don’t demonstrate such respect – and a bias for efficiency and productivity, our ability to be globally competitive would remain in doubt? Global competitiveness continues to accelerate at warp speed – we can’t keep going through cycles of missteps, including inefficiency and corruption scandals among scores, which can ensure our slide down the abyss? We don’t want to be our own worst enemy – which is what sustainability is about?
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