Terrible Beauty

Our contradictions in facing climate change

ARGUMENT #1 :
Schendler exposes the fool’s mirror  

1. Critique of corporate sustainability: Corporate sustainability initiatives and individual actions, while important, are insufficient to address the climate crisis. They often distract from the necessary structural reforms, and preserve the status quo of fossil capitalism.
   
   
2. Critique of individual responsibility: The concept of individual responsibility, promoted by companies like BP, shifts the burden onto citizens to resolve the crisis while ignoring the massive impact of major fossil fuel companies. This approach guilt-trips individuals and limits effective collective action.
   
   
3. Critique of the values-actions gap: There is a dissonance between human values—such as protecting family, community, and nature—and the often inadequate or symbolic actions to combat climate change. Schendler calls this contradiction a “terrible beauty,” and urges us to reevaluate our priorities.
    

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