Additional material for Fundamentals of Sustainable Development, Niko Roorda, 2012
Chapter 1: Needs
Case: Top tier ice cream
Prestige is a creamy ice cream encased in a crispy chocolate jacket. Prestige is a pure treat, and a true quality
product. The name says it all: Prestige is the top tier of ice cream.
Snavvel: 13-05 13:42
Leggie23: 13-05 13:47
Snowball: 13-05 13:48
Miranda: 13-05 14:00
Snowball: 13-05 14:15
Snavvel: 13-05 14:26
mmmm I’d prefer white chocolate ....... yummm
delicious delicious delicious :)
could do with some too, only those prestiges are way too big for me :-(
I hate prestiges, gross, they make me sick
how about an iced lolly then. also far fewer calories in them. that was always the
problem with prestige – if it’s about energy you might as well eat a pack of butter
how can you hate prestiges... come on... speak for yourself, like tastes differ you
know... if you can’t stand something, doesn’t mean another person doesn’t love it
Does a person really need a large and
tasty Prestige ice cream bar – is it really
something we all need? That depends on
how you look at the issue. Of course nutrients are something that we all need –
carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins
and trace elements. The ‘Recommended
Daily Intake’ (RDI) tells us how much we
need every day. While an ice cream bar
contains a number of these substances
(see table 1), this does not mean that we
have to eat ice cream, as we can obtain
our nutrients through other foods too.
So, in a literal sense, an ice cream bar is
not a need. Furthermore, most people in
the wealthy nations are already consuming much more a day than they require –
a typical ‘disease of affluence’, which is
one of the disadvantages of our prosperity.
Even though ice cream might not exactly
be what is meant by a physical need, you
might still crave one. This is most likely a
different kind of need – a mental one –
and so precisely defining what a need is
remains a difficult task.
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
The psychologist Abraham Maslow devised a theory on needs that has since
become famous. Maslow’s model distinguishes between five different types of
needs, as can be seen in figure 1.
Table 1. Nutritional information and ice cream
Nutrient
Recommended
Daily Intake (RDI)
1 ice cream
(Magnum Intense)
Per
portion % of RDI
1276
11%
Energy (kJ)
11600
Proteins (g)
57
3,3
6%
90
max. 22
21
16
23%
73%
Carbohydrates (g)
of which sugar
270
26
26
10%
Fibre (g)
25
1.6
6%
Calcium (mg)
800
-
-
Iron (mg)
10
-
-
Zinc (mg)
15
-
-
Vitamin A (mg)
1
-
-
Vitamin B6 (mg)
2
-
-
Vitamin C (mg)
60
-
-
Vitamin D (mg)
0.005
-
-
Folic acid (mg)
0.2
-
-
Fats (g)
of which saturated
Average values for men and women between 19 and 30.
Sources: ‘Nutritional information for energy, proteins, fats and digestible carbohydrates’, Health Council of the Netherlands, The Hague, 2001. H. van den Berg:
‘From preventing deficiencies to optimal intake for the prevention of chronic
diseases’, Netherlands Nutrition Centre, published in Nutrinews, March2003. The
standard for nutritional fibre is from the Nutrition Centre. The information for
Magnum ice cream is published by Ola, which manufactures the ice cream.
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The standard pyramid form of
Maslow’s model serves the purpose
of representing the fact that some
needs are more fundamental than
others. The theory states that a
person will only be fully motivated
to fulfil his or her needs at a certain
layer of the pyramid if the needs of
the lower layers are already fulfilled
to a reasonable degree. So, a person
suffering from severe hunger will
devote a great deal more attention
to that than to social needs such as
love and affection, as he or she will
primarily focus on getting enough
food to stay alive.
The pyramid is not always this litFigure 1. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
eral, and there are enough exceptions in which, for example, people
Source: Abraham Maslow: ‘Motivation and personality’. New York, 1970.
are suffering from famine while still
maintaining strong family bonds. Maslow’s pyramid consequently serves merely as a model of reality, and just
like any other model it is a simplification of that reality.
Sustainable development deals with fulfilling needs both today and in the future, and at every one of the five
levels in Maslow’s hierarchy. This is evident in table 2, in which a number of concrete needs are listed as examples for each level. The adjoining column contains a number of examples of themes related to sustainable development. The table also shows that the lowest two levels are (primarily) concerned with prosperity – in other
words, the material aspects of well-being. The upper levels primarily concern mental needs and thus are mainly
concerned with welfare.
Table 2. Maslow’s hierarchy and sustainable development
Examples of needs, according to the
hierarchy
Themes of sustainable development
5. Selfactualisation
Developing one’s own talents
Creativity
Performing
Responsibility for one’s own actions
Education, literacy
Plans for the future, innovation
Meaningful work, appropriate pay
Responsibility for others, transfer of problems
4. Ego needs
Recognition by others
Self-confidence, self-respect
Social prestige
Power
Respect for people who are different
Emancipation, freedom of expression
Ownership, wealth, ruthless exploitation
Tyranny, democracy
3. Social needs
Belonging to a group
Affection, friendship
Love
Valuing, acceptance
Cultural differences, standards, xenophobia
Solidarity, aid
Family reunification
Discrimination
2. Safety and
security
Shelter
Guaranteed income
Justified treatment
Protection from danger
Refugees, freedom of settlement
Distribution of wealth, providing for old age
Human rights, unequal distribution of wealth
War, terrorism, disasters
1. Physical
needs
Food, drink
Air to breathe
Sex
Rest, sleep, health
Food production, clean water, diseases of affluence
Air pollution, particulate matter, climate
Population increase, contraception, AIDS
Nature, quiet, healthcare, the environment
ity
(especially) Prosper-
(especially) Welfare
Maslow’s hierarchy
of needs
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Questions
o Do you identify with each of the 20 needs in table 2? Which do you consider the most important?
o Do you have any other needs? At what level of Maslow’s pyramid do they fit in?
Not everyone will consider every one of the 20 needs in table 2 to be equally important. Where one person
may attach a great deal of importance to financial security and shelter, another might attach much value to
creativity and freedom. To put it in even simpler terms, one person likes ice cream while another prefers a
salad. The grand total of an individual’s values and preferences is his or her personal ‘value system’.
The different needs are also to some extent in conflict with each other. If you regularly overeat, your health will
suffer, while if you pay a large sum for an expensive car as a status symbol (a typical ego need), there will be
less money for a house or to build up a pension, which gives you safety and security. Many of the choices cannot be balanced against each other – how could you compare the freedom a car gives you to the security of
your own house or the safety a pension provides?
Short-term and long-term needs
We often have to deal with a conflict between direct needs, which can be immediately satisfied, and long-term
needs, and it is very common for people to satisfy the former, even if this is at the cost of the much more im-
Figure 2. "Near-sightedness": the ice cream cone, which is closer, seems to be bigger and more important than the
Eiffel Tower, which is further away
portant long-term needs. We could call these people ‘near-sighted’, as they can easily discern that which is
close (both in terms of distance and time), but struggle to perceive that which is further away (see figure 2).
This near-sightedness, or short-sightedness, is something that every human being suffers from to a greater or
lesser extent, and it is one of the greatest handicaps when it comes to working towards sustainable development. People are generally more occupied with thinking on the short-term than on the long-term. This can be
witnessed on an individual level and on a wider level, such as in politics. The result is that measures, which are
urgently required to improve society in the longer term and to save people, are frequently not implemented as
greater attention is paid to the problems of the here and now. This makes it important to understand why
humanity is so near-sighted.
Contemporary research has shown that the underlying cause is deeply rooted in the structure of the human
brain. Our brains are made up of a number of different parts, with the best known being the cerebrum (see
figure 3). The outer layer of the cerebrum is called the cerebral cortex, while the foremost part, located just
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behind the forehead, is the
frontal lobe. This is a crucial
section of the brain, and is the
seat of our ‘higher’ mental
functions – awareness, attention, free will and consciousness.
Hidden beneath the cerebrum,
there is a collection of small
structures called the limbic
system. This system came into
being at an early stage of the
evolution of animals, hundreds
of millions of years ago, and it
is sometimes referred to as
the ‘crocodile’ or ‘reptilian’
brain, as a major limbic system
was already in existence before we became proper mammals and had barely developed
a cerebral cortex. The limbic
system has a number of primitive mental functions – emoFigure 3. A cross-section of the human brain, showing the limbic system
tions such as fear, anger, rejection and instinctive care, as
well as pure physical feelings such as pain, hunger, thirst and sexual desire. The ‘higher’ emotions, such as romantic love, sorrow, musical rapture and generosity are made up of one or more of the basic feelings in the
limbic system, along with our thoughts, memories and associations in the cerebral cortex.
The limbic system is a relatively primitive one when it comes to mental functions. It contains no language functions whatsoever, nor any feelings of solidarity or a perspective on the future. The limbic system is solely aware
of the here and now, and it focuses continuously on survival. It shamelessly works to its own advantage, and in
a person’s life the frontal lobe and the limbic system experience quite some conflict with each other.
The latest research has shown that the limbic system frequently beats the frontal lobe, which means the decisions a person makes are regularly due to the limbic system. These decisions are made unconsciously, based on
instincts, and only a small portion of our decisions are made by the frontal lobe, based on conscious considerations. For us, it certainly doesn’t feel like this is the case, and we all feel as if we nearly always direct our behaviour using our consciousness and on the basis of sensible considerations. However, this is only what we think –
the frontal lobe is just imagining this, and in reality the limbic system manipulates the frontal lobe through
smart tricks. Two examples will illustrate this.
Example 1: Response to danger
Imagine that your eyes register a danger – a man threateningly approaching you. This signal is first sent from
the eyes to the limbic system, which immediately alerts your body. The limbic system ensures, by means of a
hormone-shot, that your muscles become tensed, your blood flows to your arms and legs, and that your digestive system comes to a temporary halt. Reflexes already put you in motion, and you run (a flight response) or
you ball your fists (a fight response). The limbic system also sends a message to your frontal lobe, but that
message takes half a second longer to arrive! Your body is occupied with a wide range of responses quite literally before you are aware of what is going on. Your frontal lobe, which assumes it is making these decisions,
immediately comes up with a reason why the responses already engaged are the best choice, and consequently
imagines that it made those choices. This is rationalisation: explaining your behaviour in retrospect and coming
up with a reasonable explanation for it.
Example 2: Response to something delicious
The frontal lobe is constantly rationalising things, as can be seen in the second example in the form of a dialogue between the limbic system (L) and the frontal lobe (F). The dialogue is imaginary of course, as the limbic
system is incapable of language.
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Eye:
L:
F:
L:
F:
L:
F:
L:
Eye:
F:
L:
F:
L:
F:
L:
F:
L:
F:
L:
F:
L:
F:
L:
F:
L:
F:
L:
F:
L:
Hey guys, I spot an ice cream.
Great, I’m hungry!
No, we’re not hungry. We just ate!
I’m going to eat it!
No, our stomach is still full. It’s a bad idea to have an ice cream now.
Hungry!
Those ice creams contain a lot of calories. It’s bad for our digestion, and will make us fat.
Hungry! Hungry!
Wow, it’s big!
Yes it is. It’s almost melting.
I’m starving!
If it melts, we’ll have to throw it away.
Ice cream! Eat it! Ice cream! Eat it!
That would be a waste, wouldn’t it?
Staaaarving!
It costs money, and you shouldn’t waste.
Hun-ger-y! Hun-ger-y! Hun-ger-y!
We didn’t eat ice cream yesterday.
I’m going to eat it, just you watch!
We could go for a run tonight…
I’m preparing the body already to eat it. (Lowers the blood sugar level, which causes feelings of hunger.)
Oh! I feel it too. You know, we really feel like an ice cream.
Yes! Hungry!
What if we promise that we’ll start watching our weight tomorrow?
Yes, definitely! Hungry, delicious!
Then we could do with the extra nutrients!
Want, want, want!
I think it’s a good idea to eat that ice cream. It will be fine.
Yesss!
In the above scenario the limbic system is employing a different manipulative trick, producing a hormone that
lowers the blood sugar levels, making you feel weak and in desperate need of something sweet. And as soon as
you’ve decided to heed the limbic system’s choice and grab that ice cream, it will send waves of pleasure and
satisfaction through your cortex, even before you’ve started eating. This means you are rewarded for your
behaviour, and will most likely do it again next time.
Questions
o Can you identify with this imaginary dialogue? When was the last time that your limbic system managed to
beat your frontal lobe?
o And when was the last time that your frontal lobe won?
Mental ‘near-sightedness’ in the form of short-term thinking and in the form of selfishness is a property that is
deeply rooted in the fundamental structure of our brain. That inclination to want to eat a lot of fatty and sweet
substances originates in our prehistory, when foods rich in energy were often scarce and where the hunt for
them cost a great deal of that selfsame energy. That is why the limbic system was programmed to stimulate us
to eat a great deal of high-calorie food when it was available, as it would increase our chances of survival. In
today’s world, however, a near limitless supply of sweet and fatty food is available, for which we generally have
to make very little effort to get. But the limbic system has not changed, and hence it stimulates behaviour that
actually has a negative effect on our chance of survival. The result is an epidemic of obesity.
The selfish limbic system also works for possession and power, as that provides security. The need for this is –
like the need for food – one of the baser needs on Maslow’s pyramid. Should the limbic system not be sufficiently curbed by the frontal lobe, it will endeavour to acquire a limitless amount of power and prosperity, to
the detriment of others. And because the system has no awareness of the future, it does not care that forests
are stripped and the environment polluted, and in this respect too we can only expect responsible behaviour to
intervene from the frontal lobe.
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Fortunately, the frontal lobe is not completely dominated by the limbic system. Proof of this is the existence of
democracy and human rights. Should the limbic system have complete control of our actions, then there would
be no charities and no people devoting themselves to conserving the environment.
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