Making the Case for the Anthropocene

It is important to recognize that we are in the Anthropocene. If we recognize that we are in the driving seat of changing the conditions for world development, it profoundly shapes our attention in terms of economic growth, social well-being, and development. There are no untouched pieces of nature left in the world; that's why we talk of social–ecological systems. While some scientists argue that the Anthropocene begins with the invention of agriculture 8000 years ago, it is only in the last 50 years that exponential pressures on the biosphere have risen so drastically. Professor Rockstrom argues for a much later start date of the Anthropocence, dating it to the mid-1950s.

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