Dr. Tadhg O'Mahony:

I thank the Chair and the members of the committee for the invitation to contribute to its consideraon of the report of the Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss. The report is both a clarion call of crisis and an inspirational framework for action. Central to this story is the economics of the status quobut more fundamentally than this, it is a story of people. What is the future of people who live and work on land and water, by the coast and on the sea? What is the future of the people in rural Ireland?

The status quois driving the biodiversity crisis, declines in water quality and increased greenhouse gas emissions to name but a few factors. At the same time, as acknowledged by the Irish Farmers Association, IFA, member who spoke to the citizen’s assembly, most farms in Ireland are not financially viable. The status quodoes not benefit most farmers and often puts them at increased financial risk. We are upholding this status quoby considerable public subsidy. The status quo, built on maximising production, cheap food policy and driving export demand for dairy and meat, is not working for rural Ireland or for biodiversity.

My background is in considering shifts in where we are going and in the economics of possibility.

I spent eight years developing a globally pioneering approach to bring together sustainability and well-being, in other words, to put human well-being and nature at the very centre of what we do. Not only is it clear that these goals can be aligned, a key thing that I have learned on this journey is the importance of reflecting on how we frame our analysis and policy, what and who is prioritised within, and to whom is this beneficial. Instead of thestatus quo, what would it look like if we put rural people, rural livelihoods and nature together at the centre of what we do? Instead of taking the approach that squeezes farmers and squeezes nature, what would a vibrant, prosperous and sustainable rural Ireland look like?

The international literature is very clear that in an economics of change, there are substantial opportunities for livelihoods. However, in Ireland, we do not yet have the analysis that allows us to fully understand these opportunities and all of the benefits these could provide across the wide range of public policy priorities. Economic analysis often considers the current path and not the alternatives, the economic costs and not the benefits, whether economic or beyond. In an economics of change, to support more enhancement of biodiversity and more support for transition to environmentally enhancing activities, we will need to pursue funding innovations. In public funding, we need to consider redirection of existing subsidies as a critical measure, switching from environmental pressure to environmental enhancement. Channelling the revenue of environmental taxation and considering the general budget of tax and spend are other options. There may also be opportunities to harness private funding and EU supports, and these will need to be explored.

We know the current approach is dysfunctional and we know that we cannot stand still. We need to reconsider our priorities and put farmers, rural livelihoods and nature at the centre of what we do. We need to reflect on what a flourishing and prosperous future would look like. We need to move from preserving stasis to building vision and collaboration, from an economics of the status quo, to an economics of change, and from a policy of survival to a policy of flourishing for sustainable well-being. The interests, identities, values and voices of the people concerned, particularly those in rural Ireland, are central to moving from the challenge to the opportunity.