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Simple living as a concept is distinguished from the simple lifestyles of those living in conditions of Poverty in that its proponents are consciously choosing to not focus on Wealth directly tied to Money or restrictive, cash-based Economics . Although Asceticism may resemble voluntary simplicity, proponents of simple living are not all ascetics. The term "downshifting" is often used to describe the act of moving from a lifestyle of greater consumption towards a lifestyle based on voluntary Simplicity . HISTORY From the 2nd Millennium BC various Hindu and Buddhist groups in the Eastern World had established a voluntarily simplified spiritual lifestyle. This practice continued with various Abrahamic Religious movements in the Middle East and Europe . Various notable individuals have claimed that spiritual inspiration led them to a simple living lifestyle, such as Francis Of Assisi , Ammon Hennacy and Mahatma Gandhi . In North America , religious groups including the Shakers , Mennonites , Amish , and some Quakers have for centuries practised lifestyles where some forms of Wealth or Technology are excluded for religious or philosophical reasons. For more information about Quaker simplicity see '' Testimony Of Simplicity ''. Henry David Thoreau , a Naturalist , Utopia n and writer, is often considered to have made the classic non-sectarian statement advocating a life of simple and Sustainable Living in his book '' Walden '' ( 1854 ). Of course, countless individuals and families whose names are unknown to literature and history have, by choice or from necessity, lived simple lives of direct self-responsibility. People who eschew high technology are often referred to as Luddites , after the groups of skilled English hand-loom weavers and croppers who smashed automated looms during the industrial revolution. From the 1920s to the 1960s , a number of fairly prominent modern writers (in English) articulated both the theory and practice of lifestyles of this sort, among them Gandhian Richard Gregg , economists Ralph Borsodi and Scott Nearing , anthropologist-poet Gary Snyder , and Utopian fiction writer Ernest Callenbach . Richard Gregg wrote a book entitled The ''Value of Voluntary Simplicity'' (1936) and many decades later Duane Elgin wrote the highly influential book ''Voluntary Simplicity'' (1981). There are Eco-anarchist groups in the United States and Canada today promoting lifestyles of simplicity. PRACTICE Some people who practice voluntary simplicity act consciously to reduce their need for purchased services or goods and, by extension, their need to sell their Time for Money . Some will spend the extra free time this generates helping their family or others in a voluntary way. Others may spend the extra free time to improve their own quality of life, without regard for the well being of others. Living simply may also reduce available time. People practice simple living in order to improve their Quality Of Life either Psychological ly, Economic ally or Spiritually , and to enrich their interpersonal relationships with family, friends or partners. Yet the majority of people who enjoy doing their own cooking, gardening, sewing and " Do It Yourself " do not advocate a life of voluntary simplicity. POLITICS Although some religious and political movements may encourage such practices, simple living itself is apolitical. There is no basic conflict in living simply and espousing most political theories. One could, for example, be a totalitarian monarch who espouses simple living, such as by Sumptuary Laws . Many Green Parties have been much influenced by the above groups and often advocate voluntary simplicity as a consequence of their " Four Pillars " or the "Ten Key Values" of the United States Green Party . This includes in policy terms rejection of Genetic Modification and Nuclear Power and other potentially hazardous technologies beyond human control. The Greens support for simplicity is due particularly to the positive environmental benefits of the tendency of simplifiers to consume significantly fewer resources due to their less materialist lifestyles. This concept is expressed in Ernest Callenbach 's "green triangle" of ecology, Frugality and health. Many with similar views avoid involvement even with Green Politics as compromising simplicity, however, and advocate forms of Green Anarchism that attempt to implement these principles at smaller scale than modern nations, e.g. the Ecovillage . This view is often allied with a general critique of Globalization as Industrial Capitalism , Colonial Imperialism , or a Neoliberal " Neocolonialism ." Such a pairing is not universal among practitioners of simple living, however, who may denounce such obsession with worldly affairs as distasteful or unseemly. TECHNOLOGY Living simply may involve reconsidering what is " Appropriate Technology ", as Anabaptist groups such as the Amish or Mennonites have done. People who practice simple living have very different views on the role of technology. Theodore Kaczynski aggressively rejected all technology, while others see the Internet as a key component of simple living in the future, including the reduction of an individual's Carbon Footprint through Telecommuting . The idea of Food Miles , which are the number of miles a given piece of food has travelled between the farm and the table, is used by simple living advocates to argue for locally grown food, and this idea is beginning to gain mainstream acceptance. Some argue that computers and the internet will allow people to do things they needed a car to do before such as work or shopping while video games will make staying at home a much more attractive option. Advertising is criticised for fostering a consumerist mentality. Most advocates of voluntary simplicity tend to agree that cutting out, or cutting down, on Television viewing is a key ingredient in simple living. Some see the internet, Podcasting , Community Radio or Pirate Radio as viable alternatives. However, hi-tech technologies of all kinds requires a complex industrial base and knowledge of Physics and Materials Science , which at the moment are a part of a Military-industrial Complex , and so may defeat some of the purposes of voluntary simplicity movements. On the other hand, technology can allow communications between communities and provide information on effective simple lifestyles for those who wish to change their lives, and can be run on renewable sources of energy. Voluntary simplicity can certainly include high-tech components — indeed computers, internet, Photovoltaic arrays, Wind and Air turbines, Solar Energy , and a variety of other cutting-edge technologies can be used to make a simple lifestyle within mainstream culture easier and more sustainable. OTHER, NON-RELIGIOUS APPROACHES A reference and starting point for this approach can be found in James Robertson's ''new economics'' and the work of thinkers and activists, who participate in his ''Working for a Sane Alternative'' network and program. REFERENCES
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