Isambard Kingdom Brunel born on Portsea Island in 1806 Charles John Huffam Dickens born on Portsea Island in 1812 PIP Portsea Island Post    Home page    Editorial    Leading issues    Classifieds    Island City    Right to reply    About PIP    Contact    Return to the CAP Index NIMBY - Not In My Back Yard NIMBY- Not In My Back Yard principles are a self-centred approach to environmental and social issues where individuals are encouraged to think only about their personal interests so as to gain advantage in any situation and not concern themselves with others and, even less so, about the potential harmful consequences for others resulting from their motivation, actions and outcomes in defending their interests. A typical example is corraling some road space through dropped curbs or parking permits causing others not to have access to road space, even when it is not in use. In the analysis of the Territorial Imperative man is seen to be able to balance enmity, a state of hostility, created by NIMBY with amity, a state of friendliness, by seeking to achieving a community level solution benefiting all. Quite often effective solutions can only be found when "representatives" truly understand the preferences of constituents, are able to articulate these and to manage affairs so as to take decisions to uphold a community level interest. Fundamental to this process is the defence of freedom in preventing some impinging on the freedom of others whilst enabling all to enjoy freedoms operating with a space deemed appropriate, not by statutes or the point of view of some politician, but by the normal expectations of behaviour that emerge from the commonality of points of view, generally referred to as the community conscience. This requires patience, imagination, investment and innovation so as to advance the state of affairs of all within the community.