Look at the graphic below. It's a stark representation of the accelerating and overlapping impacts that human activity has on our environment. And this is based only through 2010. Since then, obviously it's getting even worse. 

I suspect that few of us understand how rapidly and how disastrously we are altering the biosphere. 

Now, here are a few excerpts from a beautiful and compelling essay about our story...
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There was a time when life moved slowly, fitting perfectly into the rhythm of the earth. People would awaken with the sun, plant their crops to the song of the seasons, and gather their yield when the time was right. For generations, they danced to the same rhythm. People were farmers, their offspring became farmers, and the tradition continued generation after generation. The Holocene was our stage, and we were mere extras in the grand play that unfolded on the timescale of gods.

Fast forward 10,000 years, and we have elevated ourselves to the roles of main actors in this grand production. We no longer merely fit our role; instead, we have reshaped the stage to suit our diva-like demands.

The Holocene has been replaced by the Anthropocene and, in this new play, things move at a much faster pace. They move so swiftly that generations no longer practice the same professions. Not only do entire professions change from one generation to the next, but humans also switch from one profession to the next within a single lifetime. 

Technology advances so rapidly that the world is unrecognizable from birth to old age. Even the planetary conditions, which would typically take millions of years to shift, now dance to our rhythm.

We now understand that the accelerating changes in Earth’s environment can be exacerbated by feedback loops that are triggered when critical tipping points are reached. These environmental ‘snowballing’ effects include phenomena such as the release of methane from thawing permafrost, which further increases global temperatures, and the reduction in albedo from melting ice, leading to increased energy absorption and further melting.

Furthermore, the swift advancement of new technology has established a ‘human feedback loop’ in which new technologies facilitate an even faster development of subsequent technologies. This loop has contributed to an exponential surge in the pace of change, as innovations build upon one another in shorter time-frames.

The journey from the traditional farmer’s fields to the globalized, technology-driven present has been swift, transforming professions, landscapes, and even the fundamental workings of our environment. Yet, as we race forward, the shadow of unintended consequences looms large. The urgency of our technological advancement must be balanced by an equal urgency for reflection and consideration. The very tools that enable our progress can also amplify its negative impacts.
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FULL ESSAY -- https://archive.ph/eG5om

ALTERNATE LINK -- https://medium.com/the-new-climate/epochal-acceleration-88280b83bfb0

GRAPH SOURCE -- http://www.igbp.net/globalchange/greatacceleration.4.1b8ae20512db692f2a680001630.html

#Science #History #Environment #Climate #ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis

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