In elementary school, I learned about the Seventh Generation Principle: it is a philosophy followed by the Haudenosaunee First Nations people where the environmental impacts of the decisions we make today should be considered up to seven generations in the future. For example, the extent of fishing in a season one year is limited by the need to maintain a viable population for the future. As far as I know, other First Nations peoples have similar values.
So, this makes me question why the procedural dimension of justice in decision making that directly affects their communities is so often ignored. Is what’s socially just, specifically in these communities, not also ecologically just the majority of the time? So, the future I envision is one where the procedural dimension of justice is really emphasized and all involved individuals are represented in decision-making processes. I hope distributional and recognitional dimensions of justice will directly be more equitable as a result.
Hi Anonymous Owl! I loved your example. I agree that all individuals should be represented equally in decision-making processes. Perhaps in including "all involved individuals", we (non-Indigenous persons) are neglecting to include those who are not yet present physically, those being the individuals that will be present in future generations. However, this reminds me of the values some of my own friends are demonstrating when they express that they don't want to have children because they don't want them to inherit the planet we will be leaving them with...which to me seems similar to the values the Haudenosaunee have in thinking seven generations into the future when making their decisions. It seems that some of us actually do share similar sentiments when making decisions and that there is common ground somewhere for us to build a future where we see the values and processes of Indigenous people's to be just as legitimate as our own (non-Indigenous ones).
I really appreciate you telling us about the Seventh Generation Principle. It’s interesting to see how deeply entrenched sustainability is in some cultures, and a little disheartening to see how antithetical it is to modern industry. Procedural justice would absolutely improve our decision-making, especially if ideas like the Seventh Generation Principle were brought to a larger audience. Thank you for this great post!
This was a really insightful post, thank you for sharing what the Seventh Generation Principle is. Definitely puts things into a new perspective for me and I agree with you that it is mind-boggling that the procedural dimension of justice in decision is often ignored when it makes the most sense that those directly involved would know the best about the situation and deserve the most power in the decision making.
Hey!
I have never heard of the Seventh Generation Principle before- so thank you so much for sharing that! I believe it is a very relevant and interesting way to consider the environmental impacts of our decisions.
Great! Recognitional justice might mean considering all decisions affecting First Nations peoples in terms of Seventh Generation principles. That would be a huge change!
It's interesting how easy it is to separate ourselves from future generations. We're so present-focused that our societies even treat elderly people poorly, despite the fact that every one of us will likely be elderly one day. We need a cultural shift in mindset, to stop being so short-sighted and to find compassion for future people, and a future world.
Hi, I totally agree with you that the importance of procedural justice is often neglected. What do you think should be done to be more inclusive about others' (ex: future generation) perspective?
Very well written. I have never learned about the Events Generation Principle. I will definitely read more into that!
This line of thinking is powerful and it directly related to the recognition dimension of injustice. Our current policies may not have significant harm to the present, but by allowing any damage to compound over time, we are ignoring the voices of future generations. slay