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Working for a sustainable future

Date Posted: Monday, January 22, 2007
Author: Christen Pears

In 1981 Bermuda’s Delicate Balance introduced the island to the concept of sustainable development. The wording was different - ‘carrying capacity’ - but the principle was the same. Bermuda was growing rapidly and any future development had to be carefully planned to prevent the island exceeding its capacity. Co-authored by Stuart Hayward, Wolfgang Sterrer and Vicki Holt, the book advocated an integrated approach to the economy, transport and the environment. The authors presented a copy to the Government with the aim of putting sustainable development at the top of the political agenda but after a brief flurry of enthusiasm it was all but forgotten.

It is only in the last few years that the issue has finally returned to the limelight. In 2005, the Government created the Sustainable Development Round Table. The lay body was set up as a watchdog and charged with gathering and collating public views on environmental issues. Among its members was Stuart Hayward. An environmental activist for more than 30 years, he hailed the development as a “quantum leap” that marked a fundamental shift in the attitude of policy makers towards sustainable development. Recently, however, he has come to view the initiative in a very different light.

At the end of November, Mr Hayward was one of three members to lose their posts. Along with the chairman, Malcolm Butterfield, and farmer, Tom Wadson, he was told that, as part of the re-organisation of government boards and committees, he would not be re-appointed. He was surprised to say the least.

“It’s the Premier’s call and he’s not required to give reasons but I don’t think anyone on the Round Table will disagree that I was one of the hardest working members,” says Stuart. “It’s disappointing, not just on a personal level but in terms of sustainable development in general. I think it says a lot about the current government’s attitude.”

Without any official explanation of his dismissal. Stuart says he can only draw the conclusion that sustainable development is lower on Premier Ewart Brown’s agenda than that of his predecessor, Alex Scott, who instituted the Round Table initiative. Stuart believes the current administration wants to water down the role of the Round Table. “What happened was classic decapitation. You remove the most active and vocal people and then the entity lapses.”

Although he is disappointed, Stuart is not bitter and will continue to offer assistance to his former Round Table colleagues. “I don’t want to discourage or discredit those who have been re-appointed. The job of watchdog is just as tough, if not tougher than before. I’m sure they will do their best to fulfil that role and I will assist them in any way I can.”

Stuart has been one of Bermuda’s leading environmentalists for three decades and describes himself as a “community resource”. He has served as an independent MP and when he’s not campaigning on environmental issues, he’s teaching youngsters to play the recorder.

He wasn’t always interested in the environment. His late father, jazz pianist Lance Hayward, used to tell a story about seven-year-old Stuart who, when asked what he wanted to do when he grew up, replied that he wanted to “help all the people in the world”. It was a tall order and in the 60s and 70s he began to focus on the environment. While studying in Washington DC, he was able to observe the fledgling environmental movement first hand, and when he returned to Bermuda after an absence of 12 years it seemed the right time to put these new ideas into practice.

"I was tremendously shocked when I came back at the amount of traffic on the roads and the construction that was going on. So many of the places that had been wildernesses were disappearing,” he recalls.

His first real test as an environmentalist came with the campaign to prevent Admiralty House being turned into a training college for the hotel industry. The site had been used by the navy and later the police, which meant that few Bermudians had even seen the beautiful parkland but more than 6,000 attended a two-day concert to raise awareness and the area was saved. Stuart went on to join the National Trust, eventually heading its environmental committee, and also spearheaded the Save Open Spaces group. In 1981 he co-authored Bermuda’s Delicate Balance, which was the first time anyone had advocated an integrated approach to issues such as the environment and economy.

A quarter of a century later, Bermuda continues to struggle with these issues. The island is in danger of reaching a point where it can no longer provide its growing population with basic resources such as fresh water, its roads are congested, open spaces are disappearing and this is beginning to manifest itself in a growing number of social problems.

“Sustainable development encompasses three factors: economy, social equity and environmental health. If we ignore any one of those, the whole platform is in trouble,” explains Stuart, who already believes there are signs of a breakdown.

“There are people who are concerned with these issues but it’s the policy makers and entrepreneurs who drive developments and they tend to think the economy is the be all and end of Bermuda’s existence. The economy may be doing well but there are people who can’t afford housing, there’s tension between Bermudians and foreign workers and violence is becoming more of a problem, particularly with young people.

“Part of the problem is people’s tendency to compartmentalise issues and look at problems in isolation. They don’t necessarily see the connection but the sustainable development principle encourages a different view.”

Stuart is not advocating a moratorium on development but he would like policy makers to think more carefully about their decisions. One of his major concerns is the number of hotel developments currently planned across the island. While he agrees that the expansion of the tourism industry is welcome, he questions whether so many hotels would serve Bermuda well. It may be that future problems will outweigh any short-term benefits. Factors to consider include the need for foreign workers both to supplement the overstretched construction industry and to staff the new hotels, increased traffic as materials are moved across the island and the development of currently pristine areas.

“It’s the whole attitude towards the environment that’s worrying. When you hear statements saying that anything we do for tourism is positive, whether it’s mega cruise ships or a multitude of hotels, and that nothing should stand in it’s way, there’s an element of depravity there. I don’t want to badmouth anybody but there is an element of depravity, too, in the way anyone thought they could take one third of the Botanical Gardens to build on. That’s what we’re up against – not just the environmentalists but the sociologists and economists too.”

There are obstacles – vested interests, apathy, ignorance - but Stuart hopes that Bermuda’s future will be shaped by the sustainable development principle. He is encouraged by the increasing numbers of people, particularly among the younger generation, who are aware of environmental issues. During last year’s three-month public consultation on sustainable development, hundreds of people attended meetings. He knows, however, that awareness is not enough. If real changes are to be made, people have to take action.

“It’s time to take the next step. It’s not enough to lament what’s happening; people have to become more active. We have to make sure that in our personal lives we reduce our impact on the environment and that our leaders, both economic and in government also act with sustainability in mind.”

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