Summary:
This short but complex book assesses the many, current
risks to all life on earth and considers some avenues for repair that may provide
hope for the future. E. O. Wilson, a distinguished scientist, describes how all life
on earth is inter-related. With a long view to the past and a wide view of the
present—from microscopic creatures to humans—Wilson praises our planet’s
biodiversity and warns of the dangers that may cause it to collapse; these
dangers are human-related. Humans are an apex predator, smarter than all other
creatures, but we are also too numerous, using too many resources, and causing
various pollutions, including global warming. The health of the world and the
health of all its creatures—humans included— are, for better or worse, interlinked
forever.
A Prologue warns that we are playing an “end-game” with the
earth. To avoid a point of no return from mass extinctions, Wilson proposes a
bold plan of setting aside one-half of the earth in reserve in order to
stabilize the survival of humans.
Part I, “The Problem,” describes the damage to our planet,
on a par with the Yucatan asteroid 65 millions years ago, the so-called Fifth Extinction.
We live in a narrow biosphere threatened by dying species, invasive species,
collapse of interdependency, pollution of air, land, and water, loss of the
commons, overhunting, human population growth, and outright habitat destruction
(including the many impacts of climate change). He states, “the Sixth
Extinction is under way” and “human activity is its driving force” (p. 55).
Average time for recovery from each of the five previous extinctions
is 10 million years.
Self-centered humans do not understand the vast complexity
of nature, including the many species not yet studied.
He imagines far-distant geologists observing, “What a terrible
time it was for people, and for the rest of life” (p. 9).
Part II, “The Real Living World,” criticizes some
conservationists who see nature in service to humans. Wilson says we are not
owners of nature but stewards. He describes the abundant life of the Great Smoky
Mountains National Park and a typical seashore as well as the extinction of the
Ivory-Billed Woodpecker.
Wilson contacted “eighteen of the world’s senior
naturalists,” asking for suggestions for the “best reserves” to shelter
“plants, animals, and microorganisms” (p. 135). Fifteen pages lovingly describe
their recommendations of 33 places around the world. He concludes that “a great
deal of Earth’s biodiversity can still be saved!” (p. 136).
Part III, “The Solution” states, “The only solution to the
Sixth Extinction is to increase the area of inviolable natural reserves to half
the surface of the Earth or greater” (p. 167). Wilson reviews crises of water
and food, and he warns against “self-inflicted disaster” that could wipe out
most species by the end of this century. He provides two examples of
restoration projects, the long-leaf pine lands in Florida and Gorongosa National
Park in Mozambique. He believes the population bulge to ten billion people will
be temporary.
Wilson rejects geo-engineering of the oceans or the atmosphere
as well as a proposed use of a passing asteroid. He argues that synthetic biology
has promise for improving our brains for moral reasoning and ecological
understanding. We need altruism (all working for all) and biophilia (deep love
of nature).
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