Anthropocene Blues: Abundance, Energy, Limits
Since fossil fuel consumption has been integral to the project of modernity, energy history offers one way of trying to understand the Anthropocene and link the histories of capital and climate.
Since fossil fuel consumption has been integral to the project of modernity, energy history offers one way of trying to understand the Anthropocene and link the histories of capital and climate.
LeCain provides a detailed analysis of Chakrabarty’s “Four Theses” and its implications for humanism. This thinking diverges from that of Western Enlightenment by challenging the humanistic belief that we are separate from, even above, the material world. In fact, human culture is inextricably linked to the natural material world; we are both a force and product of it.
This essay examines what the concept of the Anthropocene means for environmental law and policy. Humans can be viewed as both insider and outsider—as an integral part of nature, which we have a duty to protect, and as lord and master of the natural world, taking what we can for our own survival. Eagle explores how the choice of an insider or outsider view can influence political discussions regarding environmental regulation.
Weik von Mossner looks at how we currently tell stories about global environmental change and human agency in the Anthropocene, the limitations of such narratives, and how consumers of these narratives are affected by them.
Sideris addresses the challenge of achieving interdisciplinary dialogue to tackle the notion of humans as a geophysical force.
DeB. Richter addresses the problem with declensionist narratives of the environment, proposing the Georgic narrative as a valuable alternative.
Chakrabarty responds to the contributors of this volume by addressing five issues he considers fundamental to discussions on climate change.
McAfee examines the changing roles of scientists and politicians in the decision-making processes that affect the environment.
Martin’s essay examines the influence of the human-built environment on the evolution of other species. Studying these relationships offers us a new way of thinking about human niche construction and the Anthropocene.
Kluiving and Hamel explore why the Anthropocene emerged. They suggest that an analysis of global changes in human niche construction using geoarchaeological data offers new perspectives on the causes and effects of the Anthropocene.