Paradox of the Anthropocene

In the current narrative of climate change as the cumulative ignorance of human species, it seems obvious to assume that humans are not the most intelligent species on this planet. It is true that we have already moved from the Holocene to the Anthropocene era when our inventions became a telluric force, altering all the layers of the earth. And even though we have had hundreds of generations of minds working on various technologies which were driven by a multitude of beliefs and systems, we fail to see a larger picture of where we are headed as a species. We have weaved around us, such complex economic and social anthropocentric constructs that it becomes impossible for an individual or a nation to immediately act upon global problems such as climate change, even though we are quite aware that our current trajectory could wipe us off the earth’s surface in the near future.

At this contradictory junction, it is more important than ever to rethink our narrative as a species while being inclusive of our planet and its systems. This will help us determine what progress is, what is it that we need to care for and to understand what designing for the uncertain future is.

Image source: e-flux