Long-lasting thinking

How do we provide motivation for long-term gains, when we may not be alive in the long-term? Do people care about a future they won’t exist within? Global warming is a common example, why cut fossil fuels if you won’t feel their impact.

Short term thinking is a byproduct of our inherent desire for material goods. But happiness is built in the long-term when our children have noticeably better lives than ourselves. This means we have to sacrifice some of our material-desires to fund the future.