Scaling the Anthropocene: How the stories we tell matter

Abstract

Ongoing debates in the Earth, planetary, and social sciences examine the merits and implications of traces in the stratigraphic record that would indicate that humans are now one of the 'great forces of nature'. Candidates for key marker horizons in such a stratal section include noted changes in carbon and nitrogen concentrations, plastics, radionuclides, and metals. Candidates for determining calendar age, include the tipping point in land cover from wildlands to agriculture and the first nuclear detonation. Here we offer a critical review of recent literature contributing to delineating an Anthropogenic stratum, by exploring their interpretation as initiating, sustaining, or indeed ending an Anthropocene epoch. We also offer a reflection on the layer not representing a new period, any more than, for instance, iridium marks a 'meteoritic' epoch between the Cretaceous and Palaeogene. We examine temporal scales for their accord with geological methods of definition and delineation, and for the opportunities and constraints each presents for understanding and responding to transformations in the Earth system. Our thesis is that increasingly fortified stances on the 'right' definition of the Anthropocene epoch follow traditions of linear and authoritarian historical accounts, and prevent discovering epistemes of human-environment interactions that are open for coexistence. The coexistence of many key transitions will sustain ongoing and fruitful deliberations over human-environment interactions that the Anthropocene proposal has initiated, promoting research that can work with the many scales, discourses, and narratives of environmental change.

Ideal-Type Narratives for Engineering a Human Niche

“…Nowadays, as anthropogenic global change is intentional and massive, narratives shall capture social and cultural features, such as the preferences of people, their world-views, and shall reflect general purpose (e.g., [4,35,46,49,58,95,134]). Such narratives extend the discussions between specialists beyond the respective realms of professional competence and influence the engineering of the production systems and consumption patterns.…”

“…Whatever shape intersections may take in view of the scientific-technical means and economic resources, what is essential for the decision taking will be people's worldviews, their preferences regarding their lifestyles, and their values. People's references and values are shaped by and expressed through their narratives [35], for example, narratives about the purpose of actions and views about 'what is right'. Communication that does not entail expert knowledge and that is close to the lay public's terms will enable laypersons to argue their choices.…”

Hazards and disasters in the Anthropocene: some critical reflections for the future

“…Fourth, when studying slow emergencies, we will require different types of data and knowledge. Traditional societies and knowledges may be more attentive than the currently privileged western sciences to recognizing the onset of slow emergencies, familiar as they are with subtle variations in seasonal, animal, and planet behaviours (Veland and Lynch 2016). Dalby (2016), Veland and Lynch (2016) passionately call for the voices, experiences, and knowledge of others, especially Aboriginal ones, to be heard.…”

“…Traditional societies and knowledges may be more attentive than the currently privileged western sciences to recognizing the onset of slow emergencies, familiar as they are with subtle variations in seasonal, animal, and planet behaviours (Veland and Lynch 2016). Dalby (2016), Veland and Lynch (2016) passionately call for the voices, experiences, and knowledge of others, especially Aboriginal ones, to be heard. Last, and perhaps most importantly, the study of slow emergencies forces us to confront a simple truth which is that for the vast majority of human and more-than-human populations, the concept of 'the future hazard and disaster of the Anthropocene' is a fantasy.…”

“…Much is being written about the arrival of the Anthropocene, a concept that if accepted, means we have entered a new epoch in Earth history (Ellis et al 2016;Veland and Lynch 2016). This epoch is one in which for the first time in geological history, a single species-Homo sapienshas emerged as a planetary scale force, shaping both the surface morphology of the planet and the functioning of the Earth system itself.…”