We all need to work together, because there are no jobs on a

Hear, O children of earth, the solemn voice of Sharan Burrow: “We all need to work together, because there are no jobs on a dead planet; there is no equity without rights to decent work and social protection, no social justice without a shift in governance and ambition, and, ultimately, no peace for the peoples of the world without the guarantees of sustainability.” These words are not spoken lightly, but as prophecy and warning. They call us to see that all human striving—our work, our rights, our justice, and even our peace—rests upon the living foundation of the earth itself. Without the soil, the rivers, the air, there is nothing. The dead planet offers no bread, no shelter, no future.

The origin of this wisdom is the age we now inhabit, when mankind, in its hunger for profit, has plundered the earth as though it were endless. Forests fall, oceans choke with plastic, the air grows thick with smoke. Burrow, as a guardian of workers and a voice of conscience, reminds us that it is folly to speak of “jobs” or “equity” if the ground beneath us collapses. For what is labor when the fields are barren? What is justice when the seas have risen? Thus she places before us the ancient truth: sustainability is not a luxury but the root of all human order.

The ancients knew this well. The Egyptians revered the Nile, for they knew that if its floods ceased, their kingdom would wither. The Babylonians built their codes of law not only on human order, but upon the rhythms of agriculture, water, and land. The Hebrew scriptures taught that the land itself must be given its Sabbath, a rest, lest it turn against its masters. All of these peoples understood that man’s dominion was fragile, and that justice could not flourish apart from the earth’s abundance.

Consider the Dust Bowl of the 1930s in America. Farmers, in pursuit of short-term gain, tore up the grasses that held the soil. Then came the winds, and with them, devastation. Fields turned to deserts, families fled in despair, and countless livelihoods were lost. Here was the bitter truth made flesh: when the land dies, work dies; when the earth is broken, human communities crumble. This is the very warning Burrow now sounds, but on a scale greater still: not just one nation’s soil, but the whole planet trembles on the brink.

Her words also bind together the higher callings of society. Equity, she says, cannot exist without decent work and social protection; social justice cannot exist without transformation in governance; and peace cannot endure without the guarantee of sustainability. These are not separate struggles, but one great struggle. For what peace is there in a world where famine spreads? What justice can stand when millions are uprooted by floods or drought? What equity exists when only the powerful can flee from climate’s wrath, while the poor are left to perish?

The lesson, O listener, is as clear as the morning sun: the fight for sustainability is the fight for life itself. It is not for the rulers alone, nor for the farmers alone, nor for the laborers alone, but for all. Each must labor together, lest we share in ruin together. To serve the earth is to serve mankind; to neglect it is to betray all generations yet unborn.

Practical wisdom flows from this truth. Let nations change their governance, placing long vision above short profit. Let workers demand not only wages, but decent work that honors both human dignity and the earth’s limits. Let each citizen live with restraint, consuming wisely, protecting the fragile, planting rather than plundering. And above all, let all peoples unite, for division in this cause leads only to destruction.

So remember the words of Sharan Burrow: no jobs on a dead planet, no equity without rights, no justice without courage, no peace without sustainability. Hold these truths close, O children of tomorrow, and act upon them. For the earth is not merely our dwelling—it is our mother, our foundation, our hope. Guard her, and she will guard you. Neglect her, and all that you build will turn to dust.