The Ultimate Issue Facing the Survivability of Homo sapiens

 

Currently, there are over eight billion humans populating planet Earth.  There are over eight billion humans - each one of us having a clear perception that we are individuals on our personal journeys.  Each of us has been shaped by our genetic inheritance (i.e. genes), our particular life experiences, our families, our historic perspective, our unique cultural worldview, our language, our religious and spiritual inclinations, our philosophical point of view and many other factors.  In other words, each of us is uniquely different.  Even within the same family, even among identical twins, everyone is different. 

As members of the same species, Homo sapiens, we share common characteristics directly related to the human brain. These include intelligence, language, our ability to make tools and with these, build civilization. We share the same panorama of emotions, wishes, desires and needs. This has been true ever since the beginning of our species; some estimates have determined this to be about 300,000 years. So far, we have survived quite successfully as our numbers attest. So, what is different about the current epoch

Due to the nature of the rapidly evolving technological changes that have transpired over recent human history, inspired and promoted by the Industrial Age, we now collectively face the prospects of a future living on a planet with a seriously degraded natural environment possessing a profoundly diminished capacity to support highly evolved species like our own.

Although our higher order brain capacity recognizes, understands and appreciates the nature of this present danger, the powerful and emotionally charged affiliation to tribe or nation, our ever-present fear and suspicions about those different from us, our collective affinity towards delusional states of being have clouded our judgment. This dilemma is of a profoundly serious nature, for our future as a species is irrevocably tied to the collective choices we make – reality is unforgiving in this regard.

Currently there is no clear or unambiguous way forward in meeting this ultimate challenge. From my perspective, since this is a dilemma that encompasses the viability of the entire species, a globally based solution is an absolute requirement. Unfortunately, there are forces operating in many human communities that are directing collective energy towards moving backwards to a more insular mindset that can exacerbate the underlying issues. In my mind, this tendency is wrong-headed and dangerous, for it interferes with the kind of communication between people that this kind of all-encompassing problem mandates.

What is required is a radical departure from collective action based upon irrational and delusional thinking and a movement towards a concerted effort to come together with the recognition that all humans are members of the same human family. After all, the science is clear and a multiplicity of tools are readily available to thwart the unrestrained progression towards planet-wide degradation of Earth, our extraordinary home. The teaching of science should be a fundamental part of any curriculum in early education; science is the gateway to an appreciation of reality. It is after all, in the best interests of everyone to find a global solution to the threat of an environmental catastrophe.

There are many young people with boundless energy, imagination, creativity and focused concern that are actively engaged in reshaping the future. My hope and optimism lie with them, for it will soon be their world to manage and sustain.