00:00:00: Hello, dear listeners.

00:00:02: Here is the latest episode of my podcast Creating a Future part of The Way Forward series.

00:00:13: What does it take to be happy?

00:00:18: Our consumer society claims to have their answer.

00:00:22: According to it To Be Happy We need to consume Consume A Lot Consume Evermore And Consume Everything Both Material and symbolic goods, personal services as well as technological cultural sporting or entertainment services.

00:00:53: We consume to display our social success at a membership of the ruling class Or at very least To avoid appearing as members Of the class of the losers And depressed.

00:01:09: we consume to derive immediate pleasure in rapid repeated ratification.

00:01:17: And this is done from an individualistic perspective, happiness for me and if necessary at the expense of others without giving the slightest thought to non-human life or future generations everything alone.

00:01:43: right now then I shall be fully happy.

00:01:50: that's a promise.

00:01:54: all seems self evident.

00:01:58: All this appears to be underpinned by the immediate experience of tangible pleasures, eating a rich sugary meal.

00:02:11: Having sex with a satisfying partner winning a sports match either oneself or vicariously by having supported The Winner showing the neighbors one's new car Or talking over dinner in town about once latest holiday exotic, original and different place.

00:02:42: We have every reason to believe it!

00:02:45: This doctrine is drummed into us hundreds of times a day through every possible form of propaganda.

00:02:56: These forms are often highly visible And designed.

00:02:59: be so The advertising hoardings disfiguring our towns & cities the adverts interrupting programs on commercial television and radio channels banners cluttering up our visits to websites and use of social media.

00:03:23: Others are more insidious, fiction programs claiming to depict middle-class households yet set in a material environment implying incomes four times higher or presenting callous cynical and domineering roots as positive role models.

00:03:49: This doctrine is also conveyed through the prevailing political and economic discourse, according to which The aim of all public action is the indefinite growth of GDP And therefore for consumption If possible at a frenzied rate.

00:04:10: Seen in Western Europe during the nineteen fifties and sixties.

00:04:12: I mean China from the Nineteen nineties to two thousand ten.

00:04:19: There was just one problem.

00:04:23: It's major.

00:04:26: This narrative is false, profoundly completely false.

00:04:35: The scientific findings that have studied the relationship between individual pursuit of materialistic goals on one hand and happiness or well-being in other teachers are that the pursuit these goals create a sense of emptiness deep dissatisfaction and depressive and self-destructive behavior.

00:05:05: In every concrete terms, people pursuing materialistic goals or more heavily in debt have poorer quality interpersonal relationships are less motivated by their work or studies and report lower levels of personal and physical well being.

00:05:26: These findings are consistent with the teachings on numerous wisdom traditions from across the spectrum.

00:05:36: What other scientific findings teach us and which is again consistent with these same traditions of wisdom, it's on the contrary that lasting happiness rises from acting together without us in a way we have chosen ourselves whilst feeling secure and confident about future towards a goal has meaning beyond itself.

00:06:03: This goal may be for example a present or future human community, an aspect of life and beauty.

00:06:11: Or an idea for goodness or truth.

00:06:16: This may seem naive or idealistic yet it is rooted in empirical observation whether the context of production cooperatives local political or social activism or collectively tended gardens.

00:06:34: people participating these collectives are happier more energetic Healthier, more optimistic and want to provide enterprising than those who do not.

00:06:47: The cosmopolitical cooperative applies the scientific findings –to its long-term vision–the society of agreement & to it's day-to-day operations Our Long Term Vision Of A Deeply Just Sustainable And Democratic Society.

00:07:07: The Society Of Agreement brings happiness because it ensures security for the future, meaningful work and democratic participation.

00:07:24: Our day-to-day activities are organized into freely formed teams centered on concrete projects that all converge to varying degrees towards the realization of a society agreement.

00:07:39: Anyone is free to propose these projects or amend them once they have started!

00:07:46: As well as to decide on their implementation, we protect ourselves against potentially hostile reactions from those around us by using strict pseudonymity.

00:07:59: You can experience all of this for yourself by taking part in our activities!

00:08:05: We will also be able listen the next episode into coming days.

00:08:10: See you soon.