Year 10 Hand-in Assignment: Sustainable Societies

Below is a link to a Google Docs version of my task as well as the actual assignment (includes a breakdown of the assignment criteria)
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dg5ns8pn_0chqsrpgp

Task: Sustainable Societies in History

Society and Environment Year 10 ATP

Adam Chan

Original Description of ICP Criteria

Level Seven
The student investigates an issue or event by devising hypotheses and modifying and adapting the conduct of the investigation according to the resources and nature of the evidence available; and analyses the validity and consistency of conclusions drawn by self and others according to the sufficiency of the evidence gathered and avowed values positions.
(Processing & translating)
Students apply their generalisations about concepts and processes to develop questions and potential solutions. They evaluate their methods and inferences. They compare before-and-after situations, group and classify practices of people in society, apply categories such as laws or educational practices to societal behaviour at points in time and are sympathetic to differing viewpoints. They engage in reflective thinking about to analyse and clarify data and to justify a position. They identify strengths and weaknesses of their own planning methods and viewpoints and make modifications where necessary. They use appropriate technology as a method of organising and analysing data. Students draw valid conclusions consistent with the evidence gathered and evaluate them in relation to their knowledge of broader perspectives.

Breakdown of ICP Criteria

Verb Noun

Investigate An Issue (in this case, sustainable societies)

Devise A hypothesis

Modifies Hypothesis according to evidence

Analyses Validity & Consistency of Conclusions according to evidence and value positions

PROCESSING AND TRANSLATING

Compare Situations (before and after the situation)

Group & Classify Practices of the society

Divide Information into Categories (e.g. Education, Laws)

Use/Apply these categories To behaviours of society (different context) Different Viewpoints (e.g. minority of society)

Reflect Data/Evidence then:

Analyse & Clarify The data/evidence so I can:

Justify/Argue a position

Identify/Review/Edit Planning/Position

Use Technology to:

Manage Data

Draw Conclusions

Evaluate conclusions by comparison

A Sustainable Society

Q: What is it and what are the principles of a sustainable society?

Original Hypothesis

A sustainable society is one which can remain in a stable and positive condition indefinitely through various levels of sustainable design which negate/nullify the society’s anthropogenic effects. Sustainable design is a method of achieving social, economic and environmental sustainability. It can permeate every aspect of society. For example: The way products are produced, distributed, used and the way the resulting waste is managed can all be affected by sustainable design. Therefore, a society can achieve economic, environmental and social sustainability is through effective use of sustainable design. Example: One aspect of achieving economic and environmental stability is to apply sustainable design to how we utilize our resources to create products, the overarching goal being to maximize our economic productivity within the limits of renewable resources and minimizing our anthropogenic effects on nature to a level of sustainability.

Modifying my Original Hypothesis

My original hypothesis was both not entirely focused on answering the question and inefficient in expressing the answer, shown by its unnecessary length (compared to my second hypothesis). This was because it was written before my investigation into past, successful, complex societies. Additionally, there was a focus on sustainable design, which is rather narrow in scope, as it is one of the many methods of achieving social, economic and environmental sustainability.

2^nd Hypothesis

To sustain is to maintain, to not be in a precarious state or state of collapse. Therefore, a sustainable society is one which is in a stable state, and not under threat of collapse. There are three major components of sustainability; social/political, ecological and economic sustainability. The three of these factors contribute to whether a society is sustainable or not. If a society can achieve the sustainability of these three factors, then it can be considered a sustainable society.

Modifying my 2^nd Hypothesis

This hypothesis was much clearer and easier to understand. Notice the exclusion of the concept of sustainable design, as I wanted to focus on the question of what factors create a sustainable society, and not go into detail on these factors, saving this information for my main model. My original hypothesis about the three main principles were relatively unchanged as my investigation yielded examples which fell under one or more of the categories. My position is not a new one however, as the idea of these three main principles has also been adopted by other groups, including the Swedish Government, which in a National Strategy for Sustainable Development, identified these three main areas. (Source: http://www.sweden.gov.se/content/1/c6/02/05/15/a64eb2d7.pdf). However, note the addition of a political factor to the equation. This came from the evidence of societies which may have met the other criteria but collapsed, due to outside forces such as military conquest. Therefore, politics aka power between and within countries became a part of the equation.

A: A sustainable society is a stable society not under the threat of collapse. The three major principles of a sustainable society are:

1. ECOLOGICAL SUSTAINABILITY

2. ECONOMICAL GROWTH

3. SOCIAL/POLITICAL STABILITY

Therefore, if a society can achieve all three of the above, the society is sustainable.

__________________________________________________________________

MODEL

The Three Principles

Q: So what do these principles consist of and how do we practise them? Are there relationships between them? More importantly, who have taken steps (both in the past and present) to uphold these principles?

Ecological Sustainability

Ecology is the study of organisms and their relationship with the environment, including other organisms. So to have ecological sustainability, we must maintain a healthy relationship with the environment. However the relationship between humans and the environment has changed little over time though with a growing population, the strain on this relationship is increasing dramatically.

Basic Needs

The most important feature of this relationship is how the environment satisfies our basic needs of oxygen, water and etc. These resources are different from say oil, as there are no substitutes for them. Therefore it is important that we maintain these resources as well as because they are essential to our survival, thus basic needs. Additionally, because there is a set amount of water on earth that must be used and reused indefinitely we must realize that there will come a time where these basic resources will not be enough to support us and the environment. In a situation like this, there are a number of outcomes. The first is that the resource is used more effectively and thus able to support a larger population though this simply delays the problem. Another is that the population gradually decreases to a level where the available resources can support ithe last and most detrimental course is that we don’t adapt to the lack of resources and the population greatly decreases as a result. The stage where we can maintain our population balanced with the available resources is a form of ecological sustainability. There are few cases of past societies with this problem, as they usually did not last long enough to create a lasting impact on the environment. This is why areas low in these basic resources such as deserts are not home to successful past societies in comparison to Egypt and the Nile or even Mesopotamia with the Tigris and Euphrates. However, with new technology such as irrigation, dams and water pumps we have been able to live in areas past societies found impossible. Australia is one of the countries facing this problem and we have responded with various water restrictions, new technologies (desalination and treatment plants) and others to deal with this problem.

Foods

Another basic need that is heavily dependent on water is food. The first humans hunted other animals for survival. In modern times, we don’t hunt animals, we have domesticated them and we breed them but for the same reasons; survival and admittedly luxury. The use of agriculture has also allowed us to support a larger population. However, it has become clear that it is becoming harder and harder to supply adequate amount of food to everyone, a recent example being the recent food crisis in Haiti (http://abcnews.go.com/WN/story?id=4691282&page=1). This problem is also due to a growing demand from a growing population and the imbalanced/inefficient distribution of food. However, food shortages are very much frequent in history even with a lower population. This is because of our ability to elevate levels of food with new farming techniques, which increase energy efficiency. For example, the crop harvester does a job that usually would take longer and more energy. Additionally modern fertilizer increases the yield of the crop, increasing supply. Therefore, it could be argued that new technologies can ‘keep in check’ the ecological problems we face today in an effort to achieve sustainability. In the past the Chinese, using new farming technologies transformed useless hilly country into terraced fields of crops, satisfying their civilizations need for sustenance (this is an example of humans modifying their environment, in this case terrain for their benefit). A modern example is GM crops, genetically modified crops designed to be cheap to grow and give generous yields. However, like the intensive farming conducted by the Chinese, it is inevitable that this new technology will alter our relationship with the environment, possibly with positive or negative effects. A comparison of two countries’ approach to resource management, particularly food is Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Haiti, to satisfy its need for food, has cut down its forests and undertaken intensive farming. Today, Haiti still suffers sever food shortages and poverty (see above article) yet its neighbour remains in a much more stable state in comparison.

Energy Sources

But food is a resource which can be continuously produced quite readily. How about resources which do not replenish themselves or cannot recover at the rate we are using them like fossil fuels? It is obvious with our rate of consumption that alternative energy sources are needed. This is not however the first time we have resorted to other methods of producing energy. In history, the use of new energy sources was always accompanied by a need for a new one. We originally used wood as fuel for thousands of years, and with the apparent deforestation of 16^th century Europe a search for an alternative fuel began. The result was coal. Other countries dealt with the crisis differently. Tokugawa Japan for example, failed to find an alternative resource such as coal, so they developed a way to manage the forests sustainably. This is an example of how sustainable societies are affected by their surrounding environment, in this case, the absence/lack of a resource (coal) and how they dealt with it (forest management). However, oil and gas are still the most easily used and most efficient sources of energy compared to alternatives such as solar energy today. A few of the alternatives such as solar energy, nuclear fusion and nuclear fission are very abundant and easy to attain, though the cost of using these methods are still higher than oil/gas. Today, the search continues for new energy sources to replace rapidly disappearing oil and gas reserves.

Economic Growth

This principle has much to do with sustainable development or growth. If we have a look at history, the growth have mankind has been rapid, almost exponential. For example, in the few hundred years of the Roman Empire, not much had changed, but in the few centuries prior to today, we have made a multitude of advances. It could be said that in the past few centuries we have experienced great growth, thought not necessarily sustainable growth/development.

At all times, the society should aim to be earning more than it is losing. In the area of trade, the society must be able to make a profit on its exports then spending on their imports. However, if a country is entirely self sustainable, then they do not need to rely on this rule but societies like this are rare. Societies who adhere to this rule include Japan, whose exports include televisions, mobile phones and other electronic devices. The Phoenicians, also specialized in trade, though they also exported their culture and knowledge as well.

Social/Political Stability

The way our societies are organized and managed plays an important role in whether that society is sustainable or not. An autocratic society for example has a number of advantages and disadvantages. Because decisions are made by a single individual, and thus without question, his/her orders are carried out quickly and efficiently. This allows this society to react and make big changes very quickly. However, because there is no ability to question the orders, the fate of the society is very much dependent on the decisions the leader makes. Similar to ‘putting all your eggs in one basket’, this approach to society is very risky. However, in societies where things just need to be done quickly, to for example achieve sustainability, it can be advantageous. For example, the Roman Empire when it was not a republic was very dependent on its emperor, evidenced by large differences in its success depending on its emperor.

A heavily polarized society also has its benefits/problems. It allows easy work division and categorization and thus management. However, excessive segregation can often build conflict between the groups of that society. This can escalate to civil war and often a reorganization of the society. The Mayans had a revolt where because of the polarization of their society, specifically classes of society caused discontent. This is obviously not social stability, a feature of a sustainable society, and the Mayans soon went into decline, this instability a factor of their collapse.

Political stability is having a stable power base on the world stage. The objective is to maximize the amount of allies the society as well as minimize the number of enemies. However, it is preferable to have allies who also have a strong power base than one without friends. Various groups bound together by treaties hold a defensive pact, an agreement between two or more societies to provide military aid in the event of an invasion. The most famous defensive pact today is NATO. Its counterpart, the Warsaw Pact no longer exists, a relic of the USSR. Previous to these two, during and prior to World War II, the Tripartite Pact was signed by Nazi Germany, Japan and Italy. Additionally, simply being an ally of a few powerful countries is all you need to safeguard yourself from invasion. This is the case in Bhutan which is a small country sandwiched in the middle of India and China. Due to it having no military clout it has resorted to maintaining good relations with both countries, protecting itself from almost certain collapse.

Relationships between these Principles

Social/Political Stability & Ecological Sustainability

The relationship between these two principles is important to sustainability. If the society values the environment, it is obviously easier to take care of and thus easier to achieve ecological sustainability. Certain relationships and treaties between countries can also encourage ecological sustainability, such as the Kyoto Protocol. Certain countries have political legislation that deal with ecological sustainability, certain rules and regulations that must be followed by companies (e.g. Alcoa) and people (e.g. sprinkler restrictions). Japan would’ve never been able to enforce its rules of forest management without a stable government. This just shows the interdependence of these principles. Additionally, your physical location on the world map has a way of determining a society’s importance to another. For example, Japan is a natural ally of the US due to its strategic position in relation to other societies such as Korea and China. In comparison, Saudi Arabia is an ally of the US because of its massive oil reserves. The latter differs from the former in that the relationship between these societies is based on resources, rather down political influence.

Social/Political Stability & Economic Growth

The rules of a society determined by politics impact the society’s economy. Additionally, the society’s structure also affects the economy. For example, a communist run society has a much differently operating economic system to say a capitalist free market society. Additionally, economic strength can be translated into political clout on the world stage. A perfect example in out modern context is China, who, due to its production power and thus economic strength holds a large amount of power on the world stage.

Economic Growth and Ecological Sustainability

The selling and buying of physical products is very much dependent on the society’s environment. For example, if a country has all the resources it needs to create a product inside itself, it will be more successful than a country which has to import resources to create its own product. Additionally, it makes sense in economical thinking to have a sustainable environment as it ensures a steady flow of resources. Also, using these resources more efficiently in the creation of products is also in the interest of both principles. Therefore it is important to understand that these two principles are complementary. For example, today there has been an influx of companies which deal with ecological sustainability, which then translates to economic growth. This is because of the need for ecological sustainability.

REFERENCES

Wikipedia. (2008, April 16). Sustainability. Retrieved April 17th, 2008 from:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainability

University of New Mexico (288, February 12). What is Sustainability, Retrieved April 17th, 2008 from:

http://www.unm.edu/~cleugh/whatissustainability.html

Wikipedia. (2008, April 13). Sustainable Design. Retrieved April 17th, 2008 from:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainable_design

United Nations University. (2007, November 26) Realization of a Sustainable Society --Zero Emission Approaches. Retried April 18th, 2008 from:

http://www.unu.edu/zef/publications_e/suzuki_intro_ZE.pdf

Sweden Government Home (2002, February 17th) Sweden's National Strategy for Sustainable Development 2002. Retrieved April 18th, 2008 from:

http://www.sweden.gov.se/content/1/c6/02/05/15/a64eb2d7.pdf

EROEI. (N/A) What is EROEI?. Retrieved April 18th, 2008 from:

http://www.eroei.com/

SymbioCity. (N/A) Sweden and Sustainability. Retrieved April 17th, 2008 from:

http://www.symbiocity.org/?pageId=9

Hubbert Peak (1999) Reflections on Sustainability, Population Growth, and the Environment -Revisited. Retrieved April 18th, 2008 from:

http://www.hubbertpeak.com/bartlett/reflections.htm

Government Communication (2003) A Swedish Strategy for Sustainable Development-Economic, Social and Environmental. Retrieved April 18th, 2008 from:

http://www.sweden.gov.se/content/1/c6/02/52/75/98358436.pdf

Open Directory (2008, March 11th) Science: Environment: Sustainability. Retrieved April 19th, 2008 from:

http://www.dmoz.org/Science/Environment/Sustainability/

The World Wide Web Virtual Library (2008, January 24th) Sustainable Development. Retrieved April 20th, 2008 from:

http://www.ulb.ac.be/ceese/meta/sustvl.html

ISEE Conference (2008) ISEE 2008 Nairobi. Retrieved April 20th, 2008 from:

http://www.ecoeco.org/conference08/home.php

By Adam Chan

Sustainable Societies-2nd Hypotheses

Below is the revised hypotheses for my SOSE Task: Sustainable Societies in History

This time around I kept a clearer focus on what was asked of me: What factors create a sustainable society, as in the original hypotheses, I felt that I went on to developing a model, which should be done later in the task. Thus it is a tad shorter than my original hypotheses.

Sustainable Societies
2nd Hypothesis
By Adam Chan

What factors create a sustainable society?

What is a sustainable society? Firstly, what do we consider sustainable? To sustain is to maintain, to not be in a precarious state or state of collapse. Therefore, a sustainable society is one which is in a stable state, and not under threat of collapse. There are three major components of sustainability; social, ecological and economic sustainability. The three of these factors contribute to whether a society is sustainable or not. If a society can achieve the sustainability of these three factors, then it can be considered a sustainable society.

Task: Sustainable Societies Original Hypothesis

Below is the first part of our Year 10 Sustainable Societies in History Task:

Sustainable Societies

Original Hypothesis

By Adam Chan

A sustainable society is one which can at least remain in a stable and positive condition indefinitely through various levels of sustainable design which negate/nullify the society’s anthropogenic effects. Sustainable design is a method of achieving social, economic and environmental sustainability. It can permeate every aspect of society, for example: The way products are produced, distributed, used and the way the resulting waste is managed can all be affected by sustainable design. Therefore, a society can achieve economic, environmental and social sustainability is through effective use of sustainable design. Example: One aspect of achieving economic and environmental stability s to apply sustainable design to how we utilize our resources to create products, the overarching goal being to maximize our economic productivity within the limits of renewable resources and minimizing our anthropogenic effects on nature to a level of sustainability.

The Roman Empire-Collapse of Complex Societies

Introduction

Throughout human history, people have organized themselves into complex societies united by similar values and beliefs, which have attempted to survive the test of time, inevitably collapsing and placing the foundations of a new society. Such a cycle has been repeated over time yet the reasons and causes behind it are largely unknown and obscure. To understand and reveal these reasons/causes, cases of collapse must be studied, and a famous and perhaps infamous case study of collapse would be the ancient civilization, the Roman Empire.

However, it is important that we define the Roman Empire we are studying as technically, it can be argued that the Roman Empire evolved into the Holy Roman Empire through Charlemagne which is present in modern times through the independent Vatican City in Italy. Therefore, the collapse of the Roman Empire studied in this report is the collapse of the Western Roman Empire, as opposed to the Eastern Roman Empire. Also important is the definition of full-scale societal collapse: A drastic decrease in human population size and/or political/economic/social complexity over a considerable area for an extended time.

Using and Analysing Frameworks

In order to better understand and interpret the collapse of such a society, we should construct a framework supported by the evidence presented. There are a few frameworks that we have studied; Joseph Tainter’s and Jared Diamond though there are many more. People have applied their framework to the Roman Empire’s collapse and developed different reasons as to the causes for collapse.

However, through the careful analysis of such theories we can dismiss some by analysing such theories for accuracy, bias and omission. For example, a well used theory is the Christianity theory (Edward Gibbon): That the infiltration of Christianity was linked to a loss of civic virtue in the Romans. However, if we include the evidence that the Eastern Roman Empire, which was dominantly Christian, and continued to survive for many more centuries, we can critically analyse and dismiss such theories. Furthermore, if we dig deeper into the evidence presented we can see that while Christianity did not contribute to a loss of civic virtue, it was a factor of the collapse of the empire (mentioned later). Additionally, we must take in consideration the context of which these frameworks come from and how they may affect the theories consturcted. For example, in Joseph Tainter’s context where climate and environmental change such as global warming is a popular topic and even part of modern culture, it is only natural to seek corresponding evidence to support this. Compared to a context where global warming is still relatively unknown, frameworks created in this context may not place such emphasis on climate and environmental change.

My Conceptual Framework

After reading, understanding and analysing the purported reasons for collapse, I have drawn up my own framework which encompasses all the apparent reasons for the collapse of the Roman Empire. I have determined that the reasons fall into at least one of two categories; causes which originated from inside the society as opposed to causes from outside the society. However, we must remember that these two categories have a equal relationship, as something inside the society may affect something outside the society, which can come back to affect the society. For example, during the Cold War, the actions of a communist/capitalist country led to ‘cautionary’ action by the other (e.g. the buildup of nuclear weapons in both Turkey and Cuba). Branching from these two categories are sub-categories which better define the reasons for collapse. These are: Social, Political, Economical, Environmental and Military causes. It should be understood that such causes can be a combination of the two as a social trend can eventually transgress into a political problem which may contribute to a society’s collapse. For example, it is often argued the social structure and the Russian culture’s values and attitudes of a non-class based society and state-owned economy caused problems for the Soviet Union through bad economical management and corruption. Additionally, we must always consider the influence of outside factors on these internal problems. Expanding upon the theory of the USSR’s economical problems, it can also be argued that its social economical model was incompatible and unable to compete effectively on the free trade market which dominated the world at that time.

Reasons for the Roman Collapse

The reason why the collapse of the Roman Empire is so popular with many historians is the fact that the empire seemed to be so invincible and well prepared to deal with any conceivable problems before a sudden decline began and the empire collapsed. More importantly, the fall of the empire could not be attributed to one major problem, as the Germanic invasion was more of a coup de grace to an already weakened and dysfunctional empire. However, after researching a multitude of theories I believe it was a series of ongoing problems which caused one major problem which ‘broke the camel’s back’, except in this case, it was Rome’s back which these problems broke.

Interior Factors of Collapse

The first of Rome’s interior factors of collapse originates from its very founding. Originally, the area on which the first Romans settled was perfect for growing wheat and pasturing animals. They also drained the nearby marshes, creating more habitable land. This action was the beginning of Rome’s poor resource management and future environmental damage, as opposed to the Aztecs, which more or less adapted to their environment (e.g. Tenochtitlan; swamp).

Initial Factors for Collapse

The fall of Rome had very much to do with the rise of Rome. More specifically, how Rome became such an empire also influenced how it collapsed. Originally, the area on which the first Romans settled was perfect for growing wheat and pasturing animals. They also drained the nearby marshes, creating more habitable land. This action was a reflection of Rome’s future resource management and future environmental damage, as opposed to the Aztecs, which more or less adapted to their environment (e.g. Tenochtitlan; swamp). As time went on, Rome became a center of trade, growing in wealth and power but it was this that masked Rome’s early problems. Even in its infancy, Rome was highly dependent on the trade of allied trading partners, and was by itself, not self-sustainable. So when relations with their allies soured and as trade diminished, Rome was forced to take action and declare a war of conquest. This cycle of not being able to self-sustain itself caused Rome to launch successful conquests of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa.

How Initial Factors for Collapse Helped Cause Later Factors for Collapse

Such hostile takeovers proved to be the bane of Rome in the long run. As Rome required more resources from its newly conquered lands and more military campaigns were launched, high trade tariffs and high taxes were introduced. Understandably these conditions bred resentment and disloyalty within Rome’s citizens. This combined with their cultural differences split the empire into the Romans actually living in and around Rome, and the marginalized new Romans. And because they were considered as 2^nd class citizens, and with no representation within the Roman governmental system more resentment began to build within these minorities. This is an example of how interior military action (the takeover of various societies) led to interior social unrest (which would cause future problems).

Additionally, such unrest began to expose the flaws in the Rome governing system. The Roman system of the Senate and various assemblies and organizational groups was created in the context of when Rome was still a small republic. When the context changed greatly with Rome expanding and thus having to govern a wide variety of cultures and ethnicities produced a huge numbers of logistical difficulties. The different cultures/ethnicities within the empire held different religions/values/attitudes as well as languages and economic systems (e.g. currency). Combined with the vast extent of the empire, the Roman governing system was seriously outdated and yet did not change with it. Further study of the Roman economic system revealed that it was pitifully simplistic and inefficient; based on plundering/acquiring new resources and never making anything new. All these reasons contributed to an inefficient governing and economic system. So here we can see a further extension of a ‘domino’ effect where military conquest led to social unrest and also economic and political problems. The economic and political problems can be compared to the modern EU. It faces similar and new challenges, but has addressed many/most of them. The EU has a standardized monetary system (Euro), member states with varying culture as well as having to deal with modern world complexity. It is through effective legislation and management that the EU has remained an efficient governing body. The same could be said with China and its attempts to standardize currency and language. The Ming and Qing dynasty as well as the People’s Republic of China all tried to accomplish standardization of the provinces by creating an official language which was a combination of the dialects of various provinces. This helped the government govern more effectively and efficiently. However, the Qing dynasty of China still collapsed, though it was more a consequence of factional in-fighting than bad government. All of these factors would sow the seeds of Rome’s later destruction.

The Weakening Effect Caused by Initial and Later Factors for Collapse

Eventually, Rome could not expand anymore, and was hit with a barrage of subsequent problems. The Persians to the east of Roman’s borders proved to be capable adversaries and the logistics factor was heavily in the Persian’s favour, as Rome had to deal with numerous problems. There was the opposition to the war in the Senate, a waning number of recruits and the physical problem of getting troops and supplies to where they were needed. So when Rome began to fail to expand, the failing economic system and environmental damage (mostly deforestation) were exacerbated. So instead of fixing the economic system, the government chose to increase taxes, hoping for a ‘quick fix’. The plan backfired horribly; higher taxes combined with social unrest/resentment already among the marginalized led to revolts and rebellions. And so Rome sent soldiers to enforce inefficient/broken Roman law and policies rather than changing its destructive ways. This tied up even more resources and soldiers so it became clear that more soldiers were needed to enforce law. Thus Roman was forced to recruit from its 2^nd class citizens, which were more interested in elevating themselves than enforcing inefficient laws which their people suffered for. Also recruited were mercenaries, specifically Germanic mercenaries who had to be paid to ensure their loyalty. All of this had to be paid and supported for, increasing the strain on the Roman economy. Additionally, marginalized/conquered Romans began to make up the majority of the empire’s population. And over the years, this population advantage led to a growth in political power. However, they used this power to further pursue their own agendas as opposed to Rome’s wants/needs. Furthermore, they grew to hold more power in the military forces due to increased recruitment, and because of the way Roman government is structured (where the army has a large amount of influence on the emperor) political and social clashes began to appear.

So now the empire was beginning to have divisions in power. Not only that, but the introduction of Christianity to Rome was also damaging in that it clashed with previous Roman religion; creating more division. Inevitably, civil war began to break out with near regular occurrence. At one period of time, there were at least a dozen different factions vying for power in Rome. With the addition of plague there was a dramatic and quick breakdown of central authority. Even more disastrously, the split of the empire into East and West signaled the end of a Rome unified by its beliefs and values. So Christianity itself was not one of Rome’s problems, it was the clash and subsequent split of beliefs within Rome that was the problem. A similar situation was evident in England during the English Civil War. Another consequence of these civil wars is that various legions of soldiers which were originally tasked with protecting Roman borders to the north were called back to Rome to deal with/take part in the uprisings and coups.

Culmination of a Collapsing Empire and Outer Military Factors Accelerate Collapse

All of these factors transformed the empire into a weakened, disjointed group of squabbling factions and full scale collapse was inevitable. Rome began a slow decline before being accelerated into collapse when united Germanic tribes to the north of a now weakened border, swept into Roman Empire and looted many major cities and trading centers. Much of Rome was reduced to rubble but Roman culture lived on to influence future European societies centuries after its collapse.

A Reflection on Rome’s Inevitable? Collapse

Essentially, it was Rome’s failure to spread and encourage a set of relatively similar values and beliefs across its empire. This failure was caused by Rome’s poor resource management and poor economic system which caused Rome to go on sustained military conquests to acquire more resources. Examples of empires who managed to conquer their neighbours and yet maintain social stability include the Aztecs and Mayans. An example of isolated societies (with poor resource management and environmental damage) which were denied the option of military expansion is Easter Island, which collapsed rather quickly compared to Rome, despite facing the same problems. However, Rome’s poor governing and economic system led to actions which encouraged this social disparity. This problem was usually counterbalanced by Rome’s ability to acquire more resources through military conquest but when such military campaigns failed due to cost and logistical difficulties; more strain was placed on Roman society, igniting the social unrest into full scale revolts. Thus, clashes within society (e.g. Christianity) eventually and logically transgressed into clashes within Roman politics. And due to the poor political system, such factional clashes elevated into full blown civil wars similar to the English Civil War. Therefore there was a rapid breakdown of central authority through these divisions in politics and society which translated into divisions in the military which affected Rome’s ability to fend off invaders like the Germanic tribes to the north. So the Roman Empire collapsed due to its poor resource and economic system which led to social disparity which transgressed to social and political collapse. The process of collapse was simply accelerated by the Germanic invasion.

Conclusion: What can Contemporary Society Learn from the Roman collapse?

In today’s context of increasing globalization (specifically economic globalization), general mixing of cultures particularly in Australia, accelerated climate change, complex political systems and geopolitics we can learn much from the collapse of the Roman Empire.

Change in the Australian environment and world climate has accelerated at an alarming pace compared to the climate change during the Roman Empire. And with a growing world population, it is even more necessary to reconsider how we manage our resources, preferably utilizing them in a sustainable way unlike Rome, who because of poor resource management was forced into military conquest. Particularly in Australia, where agriculture is an important part of our economy, the effect the environment has is twofold. And as the demand for raw materials (which are abundant in Australia) grows in developing countries, the importance of using our resources wisely must and can work with economic rules.

Economic globalization is a growing trend that is expected to have a lasting impact on business. It is already apparent and already affects Australian business through the free trade agreements Australia has with certain countries (e.g. America) and the World Trade Organization (WTO). Though globalization was unheard of during Roman times, the effect of its poor economic handling is just a sign of how important economic management is to the survival of a society such as Australia. However, it remains to be seen how much globalization will be affected by the global climate change.

Around the world we have seen a growth in immigration and migration. In Australia where immigration is booming, it is important that Australia manages these new people with different cultures and thus values and beliefs in an effective manner. This can be done by addressing these people’s values and beliefs and promoting new/existing roles within Australian society. Hopefully, this will preserve social unity, keeping Australia socially ‘stable’ in comparison to the Roman Empire, which failed miserably in this respect.

Also important is that Australia stays aware and retains its ability to adapt to a changing state of politics and power relations between nations. In a world where communication is becoming increasingly important, it makes sense for Australia to ‘keep in touch’ with the world. So far, Australia has attempted to reach out to its Pacific-Asia neighbours, specifically ones who will play an important role in the world such as China. Australia also has retained and strengthened its relations with the USA, which still remains a global ‘superpower’ for now.

Bibliography

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