---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If the environment were a bank, it would…"
description: "\"If the environment were a bank, it would have been saved by now\" — Bernie Sanders"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/667/bernie-sanders-233_bank_if-the-environment-were-a-bank-it-would_2350520.jpg"
---

#  If the environment were a bank, it would have been saved…

![“If the environment were a bank, it would have been saved by now” quote by Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/667/bernie-sanders-233_bank_if-the-environment-were-a-bank-it-would_2350520.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/667/bernie-sanders-233_bank_if-the-environment-were-a-bank-it-would_2350520.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/667/bernie-sanders-233_bank_if-the-environment-were-a-bank-it-would_2350520.jpg)

> “If the environment were a bank, it would have been saved by now”

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

If the environment were a bank, it would already be depleted.

**In simple terms:** Nature is a bank that’s being overdrawn.

Key Takeaway

Treat nature as a finite resource.

Themes

environment economics conservation

Mood

urgent concerned

Type

activist warning

When to use this quote

- policy making
- personal consumption
- corporate responsibility
- educational programs

Key Concepts

sustainability resource management

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we balance profit and planetary health?
- What policies could “save” the environmental bank?

A Different Perspective

Economic growth often overrides environmental care.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Climate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/climate/) [Environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) [Ironic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ironic/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/)

## Related quotes

> [If the climate were a bank, they would already have saved it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugo-chavez/if-the-climate-were-a-bank-they-would-already-have-saved-it/)

[Hugo Chavez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugo-chavez/)

> [The Senate voted 59 to 39 in favor of an amendment I offered to the Budget Resolution calling on the Fed to tell the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-senate-voted-59-to-39-in-favor-of-an-amendment-i-offered-to-the/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [The Postal Service is a vitally important institution for the American people. It must be saved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-postal-service-is-a-vitally-important-institution-for-the/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [97 percent of the scientists who wrote articles in peer-reviewed journals believe that human activity is the fundamental reason we are seeing climate change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/97-percent-of-the-scientists-who-wrote-articles-in-peer-reviewed/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [As a member of both the energy and environment committees, I am constantly astounded by how many of my colleagues prefer to focus on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/as-a-member-of-both-the-energy-and-environment-committees-i-am/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [I want to break up the Wall Street banks. Hillary Clinton doesn't. I want to raise the minimum wage to 15 bucks an hour.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/i-want-to-break-up-the-wall-street-banks-hillary-clinton-doesn-t-i/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [My first concert isn't that cool or ironic. I wish it had been like, "My first concert was the Backstreet Boys," but the first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-kroll/my-first-concert-isn-t-that-cool-or-ironic-i-wish-it-had-been-like-my/)

[Nick Kroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-kroll/)

> [“I've never written a quote I feel would be suitable for my gravestone. Wouldn't it be ironic if it were this one? Oh, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-lilly/i-ve-never-written-a-quote-i-feel-would-be-suitable-for-my-gravestone/)

[Ryan Lilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-lilly/)

> [One of the most destructive mistakes we Christians make is to prioritize shared beliefs over shared relationship, which is deeply ironic considering we worship…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-held-evans/one-of-the-most-destructive-mistakes-we-christians-make-is-to/)

[Rachel Held Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-held-evans/)

> [“I find it ironic that someone so ambivalent about living fights so hard to survive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-grover-swank/i-find-it-ironic-that-someone-so-ambivalent-about-living-fights-so/)

[Denise Grover Swank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-grover-swank/)

> [It is more than a little ironic that "capital accumulation" once a rather tendentious Marxian view of a supposed capitalist obsession, should have become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kuttner/it-is-more-than-a-little-ironic-that-capital-accumulation-once-a/)

[Robert Kuttner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kuttner/)

> [“Myrna was not astigmatic; the lenses were clear glass; she wore the glasses to prove her dedication and intensity of purpose.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kennedy-toole/myrna-was-not-astigmatic-the-lenses-were-clear-glass-she-wore-the/)

[John Kennedy Toole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kennedy-toole/)

> [“sometimes when everything seems at its worst when all conspires and gnaws and the hours, days, weeks years seem wasted – stretched there upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/sometimes-when-everything-seems-at-its-worst-when-all-conspires-and/)

[Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/)

> [I love Derrick Brown for the surprise of one word waking up next to another. One moment tender, funny or romantic, the next, visceral,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/i-love-derrick-brown-for-the-surprise-of-one-word-waking-up-next-to/)

[Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/)

> [Nostalgia keeps dissolving the ironic narratives in which I have contained my past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/nostalgia-keeps-dissolving-the-ironic-narratives-in-which-i-have/)

[Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/)

## More by Bernie Sanders

> [The rich people are apparently leaving America. They're giving up their citizenship. These great lovers of America who made their money in this country-when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-rich-people-are-apparently-leaving-america-they-re-giving-up/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [As the longest serving Independent in the history of the United States Congress, as somebody who came into office by defeating an incumbent Democratic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/as-the-longest-serving-independent-in-the-history-of-the-united/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [What Wall Street and credit card companies are doing is really not much different from what gangsters and loan sharks do who make predatory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/what-wall-street-and-credit-card-companies-are-doing-is-really-not/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [What we have got to do immediately is to say that racism and xenophobia is totally unacceptable and we will stand with the 1…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/what-we-have-got-to-do-immediately-is-to-say-that-racism-and/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [In 1999, Hoffmann-LaRoche paid a $500 million criminal fine for leading a worldwide conspiracy to fix prices for certain vitamins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/in-1999-hoffmann-laroche-paid-a-500-million-criminal-fine-for-leading/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [We need a strategy. And the goal is to bring millions of people together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/we-need-a-strategy-and-the-goal-is-to-bring-millions-of-people/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [We are living at a time where a handful of people have wealth beyond comprehension - huge yachts, jet planes, tens of billions of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/we-are-living-at-a-time-where-a-handful-of-people-have-wealth-beyond/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [The deficit crisis is real and must be addressed. But it cannot be solved on the backs of the weak and vulnerable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-deficit-crisis-is-real-and-must-be-addressed-but-it-cannot-be/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [I want to break up the Wall Street banks. Hillary Clinton doesn't. I want to raise the minimum wage to 15 bucks an hour.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/i-want-to-break-up-the-wall-street-banks-hillary-clinton-doesn-t-i/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [The Palestinian people's needs must be respected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-palestinian-people-s-needs-must-be-respected/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [Hillary Clinton wants to see that all Americans have the right to choose a public option in their health care exchange.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/hillary-clinton-wants-to-see-that-all-americans-have-the-right-to/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [If you want to know if your food contains gluten, aspartame, high fructose corn syrup, trans-fats or MSG, you simply read the ingredients listed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/if-you-want-to-know-if-your-food-contains-gluten-aspartame-high/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [It reminds me in some ways of the debate taking place in this country and around the world in the late 1930s. There were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/it-reminds-me-in-some-ways-of-the-debate-taking-place-in-this-country/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [I am sure that there are some single payer advocates who think the only thing worth fighting for is single payer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/i-am-sure-that-there-are-some-single-payer-advocates-who-think-the/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

> [The case to be made is that we have got to get people involved - continue to get people involved in the political process…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-case-to-be-made-is-that-we-have-got-to-get-people-involved/)

[Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

[Explore all 853 Bernie Sanders quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/)

## More Bank quotes

> [It isn't what a man's got in the bank, but what he's got in his head, that makes him a great merchant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-horace-lorimer/it-isn-t-what-a-man-s-got-in-the-bank-but-what-he-s-got-in-his-head/)

[George Horace Lorimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-horace-lorimer/)

> [My aim was to make money for the bank. You lose track of the amounts involved when you are engaged in this kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-kerviel/my-aim-was-to-make-money-for-the-bank-you-lose-track-of-the-amounts/)

[Jerome Kerviel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-kerviel/)

> [I earnestly feel terrible for any mistakes at the bank.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-mnuchin/i-earnestly-feel-terrible-for-any-mistakes-at-the-bank/)

[Steve Mnuchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-mnuchin/)

> [You can look at the West Bank. Cities are like prisons. They can be closed quickly by the Israeli forces, and everything stops in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hassan-nasrallah/you-can-look-at-the-west-bank-cities-are-like-prisons-they-can-be/)

[Hassan Nasrallah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hassan-nasrallah/)

> [What we prefer to do is operate our investment bank in a way that is like what investment banks used to be, which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-stephens/what-we-prefer-to-do-is-operate-our-investment-bank-in-a-way-that-is/)

[Warren Stephens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-stephens/)

> [The situation in the West Bank and Gaza involves a military occupation amid urban guerrilla warfare, analogous to the British security measures in Northern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-schwartz/the-situation-in-the-west-bank-and-gaza-involves-a-military/)

[Jack Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-schwartz/)

> [Remember, your bank will never call and ask you to hand over account numbers or say you must swap money from one account to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-rippon/remember-your-bank-will-never-call-and-ask-you-to-hand-over-account/)

[Angela Rippon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-rippon/)

> [I couldn't be working in a bank and launch a clothing line. It's only because cinema gave me a lot of access that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vijay-deverakonda/i-couldn-t-be-working-in-a-bank-and-launch-a-clothing-line-it-s-only/)

[Vijay Deverakonda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vijay-deverakonda/)

> [If there is a risk in a bank, our first question should be 'Okay, what are you in the bank going to do about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeroen-dijsselbloem/if-there-is-a-risk-in-a-bank-our-first-question-should-be-okay-what/)

[Jeroen Dijsselbloem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeroen-dijsselbloem/)

> [With post offices and postal workers already on the ground, USPS could partner with banks to make a critical difference for millions of Americans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/with-post-offices-and-postal-workers-already-on-the-ground-usps-could/)

[Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/)

> [True wealth is not measured by how much money you've got in the bank or how many toys you've got. Some of the happiest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rashad-evans/true-wealth-is-not-measured-by-how-much-money-you-ve-got-in-the-bank/)

[Rashad Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rashad-evans/)

> [I might have added zeros to my bank balance and followers to my Instagram account, but apart from that, I still lead a middle-class…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-massey/i-might-have-added-zeros-to-my-bank-balance-and-followers-to-my/)

[Vikrant Massey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-massey/)

> [Monetary policy transmission encompasses the whole continuum of interest rates; of course, the central bank only determines the overnight policy rate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/urjit-patel/monetary-policy-transmission-encompasses-the-whole-continuum-of/)

[Urjit Patel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/urjit-patel/)

> [I actually love Twitter and Instagram. I do think it's so strange to think that 20 years ago, people would never have known personal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorde/i-actually-love-twitter-and-instagram-i-do-think-it-s-so-strange-to/)

[Lorde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorde/)

> [The Oslo Accords in 1993 determined that the Gaza Strip and the West Bank are a single territorial entity which cannot be divided. Immediately,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-oslo-accords-in-1993-determined-that-the-gaza-strip-and-the-west/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

Browse all 916 Bank quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "If the environment were a bank, it would have been saved by now",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Bernie Sanders"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/if-the-environment-were-a-bank-it-would-have-been-saved-by-now/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Bank"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/if-the-environment-were-a-bank-it-would-have-been-saved-by-now/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/667/bernie-sanders-233_bank_if-the-environment-were-a-bank-it-would_2350520.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/667/bernie-sanders-233_bank_if-the-environment-were-a-bank-it-would_2350520.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/667/bernie-sanders-233_bank_if-the-environment-were-a-bank-it-would_2350520.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“If the environment were a bank, it would have been saved by now” — Bernie Sanders",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Bernie Sanders",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "If the environment were a bank,...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/if-the-environment-were-a-bank-it-would-have-been-saved-by-now/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/if-the-environment-were-a-bank-it-would-have-been-saved-by-now/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
