2.6 - Eroding the Culture

Question 1

What is cultural dilution?

Answer 1

• powerful civilisations have bought cultural change to dozens of places for thousands of years - cultural diffusion
• sometimes it is achieved using coercion, using legal or even military tools
• languages, religions and customs were spread around the world using force by the British Empire

Question 2

What are some environmental impacts of cultural dilution?

Answer 2

• instead of low meat/high veg, it’s becoming more meat and fast food
• more livestock which creates more methane, more imports of particular crops, deforestation for space to grow soya
• continue to get worse as more people escape poverty and acquire land
• social prestige is associated with certain delicacies - e.g. shark fin soup so number of slaughtered sharks goes up

Question 3

Does it matter if we lose culture?

Answer 3

• ‘hyperglobalsation’
• we end up losing lots of local languages
• might lose a sense of value for different ecosystems; economic growth becomes the primary goal and the social value of biosphere is lost