This paper was really interesting to read, as this subject is one that gives me a lot of anxiety but I also like to try and educate myself on subjects which give me anxiety.

I personally see myself fitting somewhere between the Gaian and Promethean perspectives, leaning more toward Promethean. In the paper, there was a quote somewhat along the lines of, “when a species messes up, they are wiped out without regret”. Humans have messed up, we’ve messed up bad. Nature on the planet is dying because of our own greed, and in a way our own desire to be like a god taking dominion over the planet. But if we are to remain in inaction, we will be punished for that. It is a complicated balance between not wanting to further the problem, while also needing to solve it. If we don’t try, we agree to succumb to the miss-steps of our forefathers and ourselves.

I think there is an important distinction to be made between the planet and nature. In my own mind, I do not view the atmosphere (including climate, natural disasters, etc) and nature as one. They work independently. Humans have had influence over nature for thousands of years, but our contribution to climate change is not a direct effect on nature. It is rather an indirect effect through the lens of influencing the planet. So to say, humans could go to Mars and cause similar issues without having the same green grass and animals around them. I think this is my main step apart from the Gaian perspective.

As much as the potential negative effects of things such as injecting aerosols into the atmosphere scare me, I know that we will NOT be able to fix this by trying to convince everyone on the planet to be more sustainable. There is not enough money in that business, and the elites of the human race are largely powered by greed. It is really sad to think about, but that is just how the human world works.