Europe was unsustainable. When the settlers came to America, they Brough with them the value that made Europe an unsustainable place, such as capitalism and white supremacy. These values led to actions which caused an increasingly unsustainable way of life. Using the same lenses as used in the Cycle of Native Life, valuable lessons can once again be gleaned. Values such as those espoused by the Europeans lead to feedback loops which spiral out of control. These cycles continue to expand, covering the whole continent, leading to an unsustainable Cycle of Colonial Life (Cronon, 2003).

Sources

Cronon, William. Changes in the Land: Indians, Colonists and the Ecology of New England. Hill and Wang, 2003.