This article is an opinion piece by committee member Professor John Wood and a foretaste of an evening of talks and discussion – Bikes & Biodiversities, A St John’s Society Green Conversation Event, 28th October 2024. Tickets available here.
Why do we prefer to count things, rather than combining them? Synergy is the free bonus we get when we combine things in the right way, so why is it missing from the academic curriculum? The answer relates to money. By adding things up we pretend we are creating profit. Money became a synergy-free zone because we designed it to avoid dispute. But all is not lost. The synergies within ecosystems can inspire us to design better worlds.
Q: Which Earthly creature has the highest energy efficiency when travelling? A: The Condor is a pretty good contender, as it can surf on air currents with hardly any exertion, but….
…surprisingly, the Condor is not top of the list. The winner is neither an animal nor an insect. The stupendous energy efficiency of a bike and its rider results from the synergies within and between each of them. Of course, the magic won’t work without a nice flat road, but just as the bike needs a rider, so the road also needs a nice round wheel. Bicycles are engineered to synergise these and many more synergies in a glorious ‘synergy-of-synergies’. Could urban planners learn from this example? Could we create synergistic communities or ‘synergy cities’ that would make our lives healthier, happier, harm-free (and cheaper)?
Some mathematical studies show that high density cities can bring better logistics with lower energy demands. This thinking is embedded in the notion of a “15 minute city” (choose your preferred timescale). In this vision of urban life everyone accesses their daily needs via a short walk or bike ride. If it would deliver healthier, happier lifestyles – what’s not to like? Unfortunately, in an economy addicted to the automobile, a car-free lifestyle may seem almost unthinkable.
By building our towns and cities around the normality of heavy motorised vehicles we continue to reduce the diversity of species we need. By intersecting natural habitats with lethal roads and impermeable structures we have depleted many species. We need more ‘green corridors’ that encourage animals, birds and insects to inhabit, diversify and proliferate. And we can create additional synergies by building bike shelters with green roofs. Unfortunately some councils are disturbingly out of touch with their own biodiversity policies. They continue to use ecocidal herbicides despite warnings from the scientific community. They worry about pavements being lifted up by tree roots but seem unaware that they may be causing the problem. The closer we bring tarmac to the very edge of a tree, the more we reduce its water supply. And the thirstier it gets, the more likely it is to bring its roots above ground level in search of a drink.
We need to imagine things much further ahead. At present, governments and local councils seem to spend their time adding and subtracting assets, rather than envisioning the possible synergies we might find over the next ten thousand years. Such a timescale is not so extravagant. We know we can expect at least another billion years of free solar energy. This week, our local council is replacing cement paving slabs with tarmac on a piecemeal basis even though the climate crisis shows us that tarmac surfaces are a liability in times of extreme heat or flooding. Phasing out cement is a sensible move as it accounts for 8% of our global carbon emissions. But tarmac is not the best replacement. Its dark colour absorbs so much more ultraviolet sunlight that it melts when surface temperatures reach 50 degrees C; and this can happen even at air temperatures of 20 degrees. We need to build our cities like sponges, so that they absorb heavy rain and hold it safely below the surface. As the planet warms, asphalt and concrete will make flash floods more frequent.
One of nature’s free gifts is moss, which is perfect for absorbing excess water and for sequestering greenhouse gases. So when I saw high power water jets being used to remove moss from the rubberised tarmac in our local children’s playground I complained to the appropriate councillor. The reply assured me that biodiversity issues were important to the council. But it went on to say that if the park’s contractors had not destroyed the moss it might have attracted other species. This would be funny if it were not so serious. Our long-term wellbeing is increasingly dependent on our willingness to understand biodiversity. Councils can help by swapping more roadways with walkways, stopping the poisoning of plant life and by welcoming mosses in public spaces, buildings, gardens and allotments. A greater diversity of life forms will offer a greater number of synergies.