Language of the Anthropocene
Changes throughout the anthropocene have resulted in a range of language that wasn’t used before we were aware of humanity’s effects. oscar discusses some of these key terms that have emerged…
Illustration by Alicia Hayden.
We have categorised every significant period of geological time of Earth’s history. The first is the Hadean eon, which describes the formation of the planet 4.6 billion years ago and today, we are in what is known as the Holocene, which began around 12,000 years ago. We have recognised around 42 particularly significant chunks of time between now and the Hadean eon. These are called the geological epochs. Geologists and biologists debate around how they are chosen. It’s typically due to significant changes in rock layers, which are often dictated by what life was on the planet. There are other ways too, such as atmospheric conditions. Interestingly, many of these epochs end with some kind of extinction event.
Anthropogenic changes shape our planet. Image from Maxim Tolchinskiy, Unsplash.
The Holocene, which we live in now, is particularly unique. It’s signified with a rapid temperature spike marking the end of an ice age. It’s around this time that humans began to farm and develop large civilisations, and the human population has since exploded in a way unlike any other species in Earth’s history. Our ability to shape our environment has been our key to success but also highlights our failures. The human-caused alterations to our planet are known as ‘anthropogenic changes’. Our atmosphere, ecosystems, natural resources extraction, and massive population are all considered anthropogenic. It is more or less impossible to pick a part of the planet which hasn’t felt the effects of anthropogenic forces.
The undeniably massive effect that we have had on our planet has led to a push to label our current geological epoch the Anthropocene (anthro- from human, and -cene meaning recent/new). Since humans have become disproportionately dominant, the climate’s temperature has risen at an unprecedented rate. We as humans move more earth manually than plate tectonics, we completely reshape ecosystems and waterways with canals and damns, we have produced enough concrete to coat the Earth in a 2mm layer and all of this is causing the most rapid mass extinction event ever seen on the planet, biodiversity has fallen by 68% in just 50 years.
These troubling, rapidly changing times have resulted in a range of language that just wasn’t used before we were aware of humanity’s effects. I am going to discuss some of these key terms that have popped up over the past 50 years.
Ecological Grief
Rainforest destruction is a key source of ecological grief. Image from Steven Schnoor, Flickr.
Starting with a heavy one. Anyone with a good understanding of the modern natural world has experienced this, being aware of just how much our landscape has been degraded. It feels impossible to find untouched parts of the world. Constant negative news about the state of our global ecosystem gives us a sense of hopelessness and fear. Rainforest destruction and loss of species are just devastating concepts. If you resonate with the feeling of ecological grief, then talk to others about your worries. Spending time immersed in nature can be beneficial, and take a look at the fantastic work being done in rewilding projects across the world. You could even get involved and volunteer with environmental organisations. The world is changing, and people’s mindsets are becoming greener. The younger generations will take the next few decades by storm and make the changes that need to be made.
Tipping Points
The use of the term ‘tipping point’ is not necessarily a term just for the Anthropocene. A tipping point is a point that, if crossed, will result in an irreversible change. The term is used in multiple fields of study but has become associated particularly with environmental change. Tipping points are often the result of vicious cycles such as the loss of permafrost in the north; as the permafrost melts, CO2 is released which then increases the greenhouse effect and warms the planet further. Beyond a certain point, the planet will be too warm, and the permafrost will be permanently lost.
Cave painting of a bull from East Kalimantan, Borneo thought to be over 40,000 years old. Image from Kalimanthrope.
Species Loneliness
For 99% of the time that humans have been on the planet, we have had a very close relationship with nature. We relied on the natural ecosystem and played our part in maintaining the ecosystem too.
As we have developed as a species, our connection to nature has grown more distant, particularly in cities. This feeling of disconnect is called species loneliness - the feeling that we are isolated and separate from the natural world. This is often associated with ecological grief and ties into why some people seem so comfortable dismissing the importance of nature’s processes through over-extraction of resources and pollution. It seems commonplace for people to combat nature rather than accept and nurture it. New studies are showing the importance of immersion in nature for mental health. While COVID stops us from going too far from our homes, spring is here and the dawn chorus is in full swing, so get up early and listen to that fantastic avian orchestra!
Habitecture
We have spent millennia slowly driving nature out of our (and its) home. The loss of green spaces and natural degradation are ugly results of arguably, one of humanity’s most impressive advancements - architecture. Our ability to create enormous, complex structures is truly something to behold, but we have been incredibly detrimental to nature through building them. Habitecture looks to change this and is a concept that promotes wildlife-friendly structures, whether it be green roofs, wildlife crossings or habitat-friendly housing. We’re already seeing this more frequently and hopefully, in time, our cities will be as green as the rainforests!
Gardens by the Bay, Singapore. Image by Daniel Lee, Flickr
Intensive Agriculture
Vast swathes of land are dominated by monoculture crops and animals packed into tiny areas. Intensive agriculture refers to the processes around most of our food production systems. At its core, it is agriculture with the idea of maximising efficiency on the largest scale possible. It’s often associated with the use of heavy machinery, automatic systems and heavy labour for those involved. Unfortunately, the bulk of our food comes from this industry and its effects on the environment are catastrophic. Soil degradation, waste management, over fertilisation, surface run-off and greenhouse emissions are just a few of the negative impacts of intensive agriculture. Modern techniques and information are slowly making intensive agriculture less impactful but farmers are often reluctant to alter their methods.
Sixth Mass Extinction
This seems to be an issue many people are unaware of. As far as we know, there have been five major extinction events and many other smaller ones. It’s generally pretty unclear what the actual cause of each event has been, but one consistency is a rapid change in climate for one reason or another. What makes the sixth mass extinction, or ‘Holocene extinction’, so worrying is the time over which it has happened. Other extinction events have seen species losses of 65-90% and can take anywhere between 3-30 million years to recover. Previous events occurred over centuries to multiple millennia, but the Holocene extinction has seen a 68% loss of species in just 50 years. We need to be doing everything in our power to conserve what we have left. Land degradation and rapid climate shifts are far too unsustainable to maintain a healthy ecosystem.
As you can see, a lot of language of the Anthropocene paints a rather bleak picture. For an environmentalist, the modern world is hard to be part of. But with that said, dawning on our failures is as unsustainable as our modern lifestyles. It’s important to remember what we can still do for the planet. Even if we were to lose 99% of the species on the planet, I’d still fight for the rights of the cockroaches, the fleas, and the plankton. The world is constantly changing and the evidence is in this bizarre human-crafted slice of time. We must work together to try and push back against the Anthropocene.
Other useful resources:
The Human Planet: how we created the Anthropocene by Mark Maslin and Simon L. Lewis
Species loneliness, Nature & Mental health, Mind
Creating habitecture for the greater good, mecc interiors inc.
Thank you to Alicia Hayden for her beautiful illustration. You can find more of her work on Instagram @aliciahaydenwildlife.
Oscar Mullineux
Oscar is a freelance writer and graduate of Ecology & Conservation. He is a passionate conservationist with a strong desire to understand the science of nature and share that knowledge with others. Oscar is looking to expand his network and develop his writing portfolio.
When he’s not working, you’ll find him immersed in nature, ID-ing, foraging, bush crafting and learning about the natural world first hand. Oscar also likes to explore his creative side through crafts, creative writing and music production. You can find out more about Oscar on his website, Twitter and LinkedIn.