First blog post! Island civilization: a vision for human occupancy of Earth

In “Island Civilization: a vision for human occupancy of Earth in the Fourth Millennium,” Robert Frazier Nash proposed what could the human tenure on Earth be like a thousand years from now – as you probably know, that will be the beginning of the Fourth Millennium. He wants you to think – outside of the box, creatively and realistically. He discusses that there are several ways that the natural world we developed and evolved in could become – with four profound scenarios that makes you go, “Hmmm, what if?” But before you began to think, let’s discuss a short history.

Millenniums were not recognized until 1582, when Christian officials arbitrarily fixed a date for the birth of Christ. And, the Millennium was not a big deal until after the end of the Second Millennium. That is where it showed just how humans are – far as characteristics. And, that brings us back to main purpose of the essay, the strategy for occupation of the planet that will work in the very long run and for the whole ecosystem, which is by fair the greatest challenge facing humans – evolution on earth. The author explains upon the bible’s perception of “wilderness” which was the land God cursed. And, that Adam and Eve lost it (paradise) and were banished into the wild (land God cursed.) European colonists of the New World carried in their intellectual baggage a full load of bias against wilderness, and Indians were savages who needed to be “civilized” or eliminated. But, after a rocky start, those pioneers became very good at breaking the “will” of uncontrolled land and peoples! Which led to the lost in the celebration of westward expansion, and the irony of it all! Civilization because unsustainable (do you think?)

And that led to the current Millennium, and the main purpose of the essay. Mr. Nash explains the many ways that the Fourth Millennium can come about. The first scenario was the wasteland scenario, which anticipates a trashed, poisoned, and used-up planet that can support only a pathetic vestige of its once-miraculous biodiversity and civilization. Furthermore, he states, “Humans have proved to be terrible neighbors to most of the rest of life on the planet.” And also, “we did not share well.” The second scenario was the garden scenario, which basically says that human control of nature by the Fourth Millennium will be total, but beneficent. Mr. Nash goes about saying that our species has occupied and modified every square mile and every planetary process from the oceans to weather to the creation and evolution of life. This scenario creates that, “It is all about us – humans.” The third scenario that was discussed was called the future primitive. It involved writing off technological civilization as a ten-thousand-year bad experiment. Humans will become foragers again – hunting for food and provisions. The fourth scenario for the Fourth Millennium is Island Civilization. The author states, “It’s a vision, a dream if you prefer Martin Luther King’s rhetoric, and it means clustering on a planetary scale.” It’s a vision where boundaries are drawn around the human presence (not wilderness), and advanced technology permits humans to reduce their environmental impact. Furthermore, better technology (tools) will be peace, not war in nature! And, it will mean the end of the idea of integrating our civilization into nature (herding/agriculture –final.) With more knowledge, humans will be clever enough to create the environment, rather than adapt to what nature provided, so humans will only have an impact on a tiny part of the planet.  Rest will be self-willed! Within the fourth scenario, human freedom will be compromised. The planet is shared amongst millions of other species; only limited numbers of humans can enjoy unlimited opportunities. Mr. Nash explains on how to make that step toward Island Civilization! First, check the population growth and turn it back to a total of about 1.5 billion or a quarter of the present level.  In addition, nature must be put above people: “Earth First!” which was the name Dave Foreman, Mike Roselle, and their colleagues gave to their program in 1980. Second, humans need to take some of the “marginal” lands that can be modified with their intelligence! Living space will vary tremendously – possibly on the poles, around mountains, in the air (still confused about that one) and also undersea (again, quite confused) and humans will live in hundreds of concentrated habitats scattered widely over Earth.

For fear, perhaps, of the controversial topic, many people remain in silence about religion – God, and unsustainable civilization.  In this current millennium, we as society are self-destructive, just as Mr. Nash so eloquently stated. And, that is why I am having a hard time grasping the idea of Island Civilization. In the bible “wilderness” was the land God cursed; and just as Adam and Eve angered God, we are angering God and living in wilderness, and we have been the of caused it. We live in a world filled with hatred, jealously, and anger. If your opinion is different from mine, then by all means, turn on the news, or better yet, look online at various gossip websites, such as TMZ, mediatakeout, worldstarhiphop, et cetera (technology is something isn’t it?) Topics among the various sites range tremendously; from President Obama “allegedly,” stealing money to Jay-Z “allegedly,” being apart of the illuminati clan.  We continuously torture ourselves by putting on pseudo-personas and being dollar driven. Technology is neutral, but it has contributed to the demise of mankind. I do believe however, that Island Civilization is possible even during the current state that we are in as whole. It would most definitely be absolutely wonderful! Many of us are going “green” and many of us are caring towards each other and other species, but we all must get on board. We must all do our parts, we have more knowledge now, and more technology, and we must use both for good, not evil. Just as Mr. Nash stated, “we’ve been horrible roommates in the earth house-hold,” and now boundaries will be set. Living arrangements will greatly vary; food production, energy generation, waster treatment and cultural activities will take place in 100-mile (or so) closed-circle units supporting three million humans. Bottom line, humans must do their part even if it means giving up some of freedom!
 

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Peace is better than war. No more selfishness from humans, if it continuous, we will continue to be a threat towards biodiversity. And, biodiversity is still very much important for survival; it still supports ecosystem services like air quality, climate, pollination, and many other things; genetics and species!

And I'll leave you with an awesome quote from the author himself. 

“The beauty of Island Civilization is that it permits humans to fulfill 

their evolutionary potential without compromising or eliminating the
opportunity of other species doing the same.”
-Roderick Nash