Ecological reasons for a steady-state economy Present situation: Exceeding global limits to growth In effect, mankind is confronted with planetary overshoot-and-collapse in our time . The significant impact of human activities on earth's ecosystems has motivated some geologists to propose the present epoch be named the anthropocene. The following issues have raised much concern worldwide: Overpopulation World population is expected to reach 9.8 billion by 2050, and continue growing thereafter. This unprecedented number of people is already stressing natural environments and wildlife habitats everywhere, increasing pollution levels, and worsening human living conditions. Uncontrolled urbanisation forces millions to live in congested shanty towns, and large cities swell to become megacities with high crime slum areas. Overpopulation may even lead to social conflict and violence, when too many people, especially young males, compete for too few employment opportunities in stagnating economies. Pollution and global warming Air pollution emanating from motor vehicles and industrial plants is damaging public health and increasing mortality rates. The concentration of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is the apparent source of global warming and climate changes. Extreme regional weather patterns and rising sea levels caused by warming degrade living conditions in many — if not all — parts of the world. The warming already poses a security threat to many nations and works as a so-called 'threat multiplier' to geo-political stability. Even worse, the loss of Arctic permafrost may be triggering a massive release of methane and other greenhouse gases from thawing soils in the region, thereby overwhelming political action to counter climate change. If critical temperature thresholds are crossed, Earth's climate may transit from an 'icehouse' to a 'greenhouse' state for the first time in 34 million years. 1. Over the last 50 years, the state of nature has deteriorated at an unprecedented and accelerating rate. 2. The main drivers of this deterioration have been changes in land and sea use, exploitation of living beings, climate change, pollution and invasive species. These five drivers, in turn, are caused by societal behaviors, from consumption to governance. 3. Damage to ecosystems undermines 35 of 44 selected UN targets, including the UN General Assembly's Sustainable Development Goals for poverty, hunger, health, water, cities' climate, oceans and land. It can cause problems with food, water and humanity's air supply. 4. To fix the problem, humanity will need a transformative change, including sustainable agriculture, reductions in consumption and waste, fishing quotas and collaborative water management. On page 8 of the summary the authors state that one of the main measures is: " enabling visions of a good quality of life that do not entail ever-increasing material consumption;
Ecological reasons for a steady-state economy Planetary boundaries In effect, mankind is confronted by an ecological crisis, in which humans are living outside of planetary boundaries which will have significant effects on human health and wellbeing . The significant impact of human activities on earth's ecosystems has motivated some geologists to propose the present epoch be named the anthropocene. The following issues have raised much concern worldwide: Pollution and global warming Air pollution emanating from motor vehicles and industrial plants is damaging public health and increasing mortality rates. The concentration of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is the apparent source of global warming and climate changes. Extreme regional weather patterns and rising sea levels caused by warming degrade living conditions in many — if not all — parts of the world. The warming already poses a security threat to many nations and works as a so-called 'threat multiplier' to geo-political stability. Even worse, the loss of Arctic permafrost may be triggering a massive release of methane and other greenhouse gases from thawing soils in the region, thereby overwhelming political action to counter climate change. If critical temperature thresholds are crossed, Earth's climate may transit from an 'icehouse' to a 'greenhouse' state for the first time in 34 million years. Over the last 50 years, the state of nature has deteriorated at an unprecedented and accelerating rate. The main drivers of this deterioration have been changes in land and sea use, exploitation of living beings, climate change, pollution and invasive species. These five drivers, in turn, are caused by societal behaviors, from consumption to governance. Damage to ecosystems undermines 35 of 44 selected UN targets, including the UN General Assembly's Sustainable Development Goals for poverty, hunger, health, water, cities' climate, oceans and land. It can cause problems with food, water and humanity's air supply. To fix the problem, humanity will need a transformative change, including sustainable agriculture, reductions in consumption and waste, fishing quotas and collaborative water management. On page 8 of the summary the authors state that one of the main measures is: " enabling visions of a good quality of life that do not entail ever-increasing material consumption;
R
Present situation: Exceeding global limits to growth
Planetary boundaries
R
with planetary overshoot-and-collapse in our time
by an ecological crisis, in which humans are living outside of planetary boundaries which will have significant effects on human health and wellbeing
D
Overpopulation World population is expected to reach 9.8 billion by 2050, and continue growing thereafter. This unprecedented number of people is already stressing natural environments and wildlife habitats everywhere, increasing pollution levels, and worsening human living conditions. Uncontrolled urbanisation forces millions to live in congested shanty towns, and large cities swell to become megacities with high crime slum areas. Overpopulation may even lead to social conflict and violence, when too many people, especially young males, compete for too few employment opportunities in stagnating economies.
D
1.
D
2.
D
3.
D
4.