Future studies

A unique introduction to the fields of macroevolution and macroecology, which takes an enquiry-led approach to exploring the evolution and distribution of biodiversity across time, space and lineages.

The rapidly increasing human pressure on the biosphere is pushing biodiversity into the sixth mass extinction event in the history of life on Earth. The organisms being exterminated are integral working parts of our planet’s life support system, and their loss is permanent. Like climate change, this irreversible loss has potentially devastating consequences for humanity. As we come to recognise the many ways in which we depend on nature, this can pave the way for a new ethic that acknowledges the importance of co-existence between humans and other species.

An eye-opening and vital account of the future of our earth and our civilisation if current rates of global warming persist.

Through gripping narrative stories and incidents that exemplify his arguments, the author takes us on a world tour that begins with a heartstopping description of the tragic crash of United Airlines Flight 232 from Denver to Chicago and includes Las Vegas in ts desert, a wilderness beach in British Columbia, and his solitary search for a little girl in Patna, India.

Projections for the United States and Canada to 2030 have been made with a global model to account for concurrent changes in other countries. Three future scenarios were investigated: two IPCC-based scenarios assuming the rapid growth of wood-based energy, and one IPCC-based scenario without this assumption. The model, under the IPCC scenarios, accounted for trends in population, income and land use along with emerging technology and predicted changes to consumption patterns for wood products and bioenergy.

The world we live in is changing, and so are our societies. Some transformations we can observe and experience every day. Others, such as the aging of our societies and global warming, might appear far removed from our everyday life. Yet these developments will have profound consequences for us. This book assembles research, forecasts and ideas from scientists around the world. They look into the future and explain what climate change and demographic trends will mean for us.

This book emerged from a conference sponsored by the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies with the ambitious title, “Toward a New Consciousness: Creating a Society in Harmony with Nature” (held in Aspen, late 2007). The event convened an extraordinary group of some 100 leaders in science, business, policy, the arts, philosophy, religion, and other walks of life to explore the necessity of a fundamental transformation in human values toward the natural world as a necessary and neglected component of arresting the linked environmental and social crises of our time.