Spring and hope: It’s a beautiful early spring morning with summer-looking cumulus clouds around the horizon—heightening my longing to get up to the high country this summer. Birds are singing their songs of joy and hope, and I am trying my best to sing along in spite of the turmoil in our country. How did we get here, and how do we get beyond it? We all dream of a better world, and we have been suggesting dreaming as a useful tool for starting the path to a better future. Although we work specifically with food and foodsheds, there is nothing about the value of dreaming that is unique to local food work. There are many paths toward sustainability, although we do extoll the virtues of local food and foodsheds work as a powerful, accessible, and nurturing tool toward deeper sustainability.

Dreaming is useful since you can jump straight to a vision of a desired future without being held back and limited by the nagging questions of how to get to that particular future. In recent essays, we have talked about first exploring and getting to know one’s local foodshed, and then, armed with that knowledge, envisioning or dreaming of what it could be. I was prepared to next jump into how to implement measures to start making those dreams a reality—things like organic, regenerative, and wild farming and much more. Yet, the soul-searching mood of the country lately suggests that it would be good first to take stock of the impediments to overcome and underlying issues to address in order to increase the chances of achieving those dreams.

Checking our assumptions or guiding principles is critical to making progress on seemingly intractable problems. We dream, envision, plan, and then so often meet insurmountable obstacles and end up stuck with the status quo—“business as usual” simply continues. Eventually, we may find it hard to keep dreaming. Assumptions are an essential efficiency to simply get through the day, but unquestioned, some can work against us. As individuals, we have our own assumptions that should be recognized and periodically reassessed. Yet, we are also immersed in society’s assumptions and guiding principles, some of which we accept as our own either through conviction or convenience, others which we rebel against, and many which we feel we must just accept—”it’s just the way the world works,” we are told. While some assumptions move us toward a better future, many fundamental ones tend to stand in our way, and many of those we don’t even stop to think about.

A short list of problematic assumptions that so often block our way toward a brighter, fairer, and sustainable world starts with assuming that there are no limits to ever-increasing economic growth—that such growth is inherently both necessary and good. That obscene income and wealth disparities are to be expected and unchallenged. That population and resource extraction can and should increase indefinitely on this finite planet. That ever-increasing personal wealth, consumerism, and convenience and unfettered “free” markets are what keeps us and our world working and happy. That we can depend on technology to bail us out without question. We have some serious issues with fairness, facts, and limits—and just a bit of selfishness at play.

More enlightened self-interest might just help! In contrast to selfishness, “self-interest,” within bounds, seems a positive—we should look after our own survival, well-being, and happiness—just not exclusively. (Think of the airline advice to put on your own oxygen mask first in order to help others.) On the other end of the caring continuum would be altruism. In between is the rich area of “enlightened self-interest” which has intrigued me for many years. It’s essentially recognizing that what is good for others—for all living things—in many cases ends up being good as well for oneself.

Enlightened self-interest’s power comes from the fact that the more we are aware of how interconnected the things of this world are, the more things fall into the self-interest basket. Sharing food with others, supporting and paying fair taxes to assist those less fortunate, not spoiling the “commons” with overuse and pollution, and reducing one’s carbon footprint can all be shown to benefit ourselves as well as others. We so often fail to act with that conviction.

Respect, fairness, wisdom, and compassion are values or traits we might embrace and strive for in becoming the type of person we want to be. Efforts to help people become more responsible and proactive about addressing sustainability issues might be more successful when the question moves from “what does my identity group stand for” to “what type of person do I want to be”—a more constructive use of peer pressure. Who would not like to be considered—by oneself as well as by others—as respectful of other people, as being fair to others, as making wise choices, and having compassion for others. The more that we are aware of the interconnectedness of all living things and of the workings of the planet—and aware of the consequences of our actions—the more things we will recognize as cases of enlightened self-interest. This awareness-building in our society can be a powerful tool that we as advocates, educators, and nonprofits can use to move society to a brighter and more fair future for all.

The ultimate in self-interest: As we become more aware of the consequences of our actions—both good and bad, my belief in the inherent goodness in people leads me to expect that we are more likely to make wiser, more responsible decisions, and to move more often into the realm of altruism where the good for “other than oneself” becomes the greater motivation. Yet, even in this realm, we may find the ultimate in self-interest as we see ourselves as the persons we strive to be.

Moving ahead with greater clarity: None of this should stop us from dreaming and pursuing those dreams. Rather, it should redouble our efforts to do so with open minds, checking that our assumptions match our own values, and moving ahead boldly on our dreams while at the same time working to improve the assumptions and guiding principles of the society we work within.

Considering the naïve, the impossible, and the unthinkable.

Challenges abound: As we face a seemingly unlimited number of challenges these days—many of which seem desperate and rather unsettling—it seems a good time to revisit the possibilities, to lay aside our assumptions for a minute, to open our minds (and hearts), and to consider what might be. Our ability as humans to filter out unlikely, infeasible, and downright crazy ideas is a very helpful way to get through the day, but perhaps a few minutes here and there to let down the guard and consider some really “wild ideas” could help. This is not to say that we shouldn’t judge these ideas critically, but that we may benefit from at least considering them.

Progress eludes: I feel confident in saying that we are not making the progress needed against challenges, especially relating to climate, biodiversity, and environmental degradation—let alone social justice, fairness, and peace. Wonderful progress is made everyday by many, many people, but it is often not enough to register a net gain. Cutting soil erosion on a farm by 10% is worth celebrating, but if you are still losing more soil than gaining, the outlook for that farm is bleak unless more dramatic progress is made. Rescuing an endangered species is amazing progress, but how many unknown species are being lost in the meantime? Any progress should rightfully be acknowledged, praised, and supported, but net progress is essential. Progress—perhaps even an order of magnitude greater than at present in some cases—is needed, and may well require pursuing some “wild ideas” if the world as we would like it is to be.

Reimagining: In the farm-to-institution work we are doing now, the idea of “reimagining hospital meals” is catching on as a wonderful way of expressing—in the face of the many obstacles—what might be. Can we likewise “reimagine” what we might be able to do to make the world better in so many ways? In addition to possibly revealing some much more effective strategies, it can provide a more positive and refreshing mindset for problem solving. It can help one remain engaged in seeking solutions rather than becoming paralyzed from discouragement. This is at the core of what I have referred to before as Possibilism and Positivism.

The pushback: I have enjoyed, in my teaching and subsequent sustainability work, posing wild ideas to stimulate thought and discussion, but not without some laughter, some sideways looks, some outright hostility. Getting outside the box can be uncomfortable and sometimes threatening. Business as usual is much more comforting. Taking one day at a time is doable. That “it will take time” allows one to stay the course. (Why are there so many clichés to support the idea of not rocking the boat?)

Naïve wild ideas: I see someone calling me or my ideas naïve as really meaning that they “know how things work.” If I just understood things better, I would realize the error of my suggestions. We all have much to learn, but this is a patronizing and often quite effective form of dismissal. In fact, I do think that some naiveté can be useful in exploring new ideas—why do such refreshing ideas come from people not expert in a given field, and especially from our children? Ideas worth considering at the very least.

One idea often labeled naïve is that of an organic future for food production. “If you only understood real agriculture, you would know that widespread organic isn’t feasible.” I often hear the debate cast as “can we have an organic future?” but I would rather ask “how can we have it so?” If we decide that this is in our own interests as well as for future generations and the planet, the question becomes “how can we not have such an approach to food production?” and one of “how soon?” Coming from an open-minded attitude of possibility helps ensure the pursuit is thorough and increases the probability of success.

Impossible wild ideas: To say an idea is impossible might indicate a lack of that essential ingredient in all this—imagination. “I just can’t see how this could possibly work.” Not unlikely but actually impossible, therefore not worth considering for any amount of potential benefit. As a weather forecaster in a previous career, I see that most in the future is on a probability spectrum—few things are at zero probability. If the potential gain is high, considering even a low-probability outcome is warranted. Once deeper consideration begins, facts and strategies may be uncovered that show that the chances of a successful outcome are indeed much higher that once thought.

It’s no coincidence that I call these ideas “wild,” since so many of my favorites relate to actual biological wildness. E.O. Wilson’s book, Half-Earth, promotes such a concept—that to save the world’s species including ourselves, we must allow half the earth to be essentially wild. Many people might like the prospect, but would see this as not even remotely possible given human nature and our track record as a species. The discussion thus stops in a sense of hopelessness. In fact, Wilson and other others show that it is not only essential, but well within the realm of possibility—admittedly with a considerable change of heart on the part of humans. More on this another time.

Unthinkable wild ideas: These are ideas that some people just don’t want to think about, not so much due to a lack of knowledge or of imagination. All types of wild ideas present a threat to various people, especially those in power, since they threaten the status quo. But unthinkable ideas are essentially rejected since they lie at the very foundations of the status quo, things that if questioned, change our society and our way of life. An ever-expanding economy, population growth, huge disparities in wealth and income, unfettered consumerism, social and environmental injustice—all, if questioned, would upend how our society works, and inarguably for the better! It’s easier not to think of such changes, but if we face them head-on with an attitude of possibility, we just might start making the fundamental changes sorely needed to undergird all the other wild ideas we hope to bring to fruition.

Refreshing: For me, simply considering these wild ideas as viable possibilities is refreshing and stimulating, and helps me stay engaged in the good fight to bring greater fairness and sustainability to the world. I hope it might do the same for you.