The Goal of an Effective Near-Future City

Only humans create waste and excess. Animals do not. Humans alone are shortening the life of the Earth. The era when meaningless images and commercials displayed on giant screens were symbols of great cities has long since passed. The problem lies in using systems for such purposes, and that itself is outdated. Isn’t the goal of an effective near-future city one where you can see a sky full of stars at night, hear the rustling of leaves in the wind, the chirping of insects, and the sound of flowing water? This doesn’t mean living in the countryside. It means living in a city, yet having contact with nature, and protecting and embracing nature itself.

The era of buying things with money and filling homes with possessions should have ended at least 20 years ago. We need a system that provides what is needed, when it is needed, to whom it is needed.

It might be difficult to practice this in the world of art, craft, or hobbies, as the criteria for selection are matters of preference and taste. What about the very basic tools that everyone uses in daily life?

For example, a refrigerator – does it really need a particularly different design or specification? What about a television? Even with differences in functionality, is a round television necessary? The proof is that without seeing the logo, you can’t tell which manufacturer it is. What about a washing machine? A bed and bedding? While hospital beds are rented, what about the mattress? If you have to buy a new one every few years to suit your physical condition and body, why not simply rent one that fits the occasion? What about down comforters? They are unnecessary in the summer. At most, they are used for half the year, and the warmth required from a down comforter differs between mid-winter and early autumn. Wouldn’t it be incredibly convenient if you could rent or exchange them according to the temperature and your living conditions at the time?

For items necessary for daily comfort, if they are equipped with standard quality, functionality, and design at an assumed level, there is no need to keep them as personal property for many years. The waste of money and energy associated with disposal and discarding when replacing them should also be unnecessary.
If humanity has achieved spiritual growth, that growth should save the Earth. And saving the Earth and making life comfortable for the elderly are, in fact, the same thing.

Will Humanity Never Be Truly Happy?

There was only one thing lacking in Reston, Virginia: the recycling system was inferior to that in California. And CaliforniaMalmö (Sweden) Environmental City Development Planhas not yet reached that level.

A solar-heated central heating system, waste disposal through extreme recycling systems, security ensured by a single card key, and reasonable guarantees of safety and maintenance directly linked to personal life managed by telephones and sensors – integrating these into a comprehensive concept should be beneficial for both the Earth and the elderly.

Prioritizing economic activity above all else and considering the environment can lead to situations where cheap solar panels made in China are flooded with orders, causing competing American companies to go bankrupt one after another. Will humanity never be truly happy?

Words like “hotter than usual” and “already summer-like heat” are frequently heard on the news. What is “usual”? What is “midsummer”? Such general definitions are not only no longer applicable, but they may not even exist anymore. The natural environment itself has become so unpredictable. In such times, where should we set our sights for comfort, what should we consider the standard, and where can we find the fundamental values of a human way of life? Shouldn’t we, discarding preconceived notions, reconsider these questions?

Stop and Think.

In this context, “Less is More” can certainly be considered one answer.

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