Category: Climate change

Is It A Wonderful World?

Sometimes it feels as though everything is awful. Does that feeling obscure how wonderful the world is? Or is it, in fact, not full of wonder?

It’s a simple fact that humanity faces existential-level crises, from climate change to species extinction. In addition, ongoing wars, uncertainty over artificial intelligence, political unrest add to an uneasy sensation that sometimes feels like it permeates everything.

And yet, there is great wonder in the world. There is stunning natural beauty, like waterfalls or mountain ranges. There are is an amazing variety of animals, birds, and fish that populate every nook and cranny of the world. In addition, there are man-made wonders that are a testament to our species’ ingenuity. We understand the world as never before, and have ever-increasing ability to improve things.

Of course, some of these are in conflict: our ability to impact the world is putting our climate future in jeopardy. We risk losing the amazing diversity that exists in the animal and plant world, which in turn endangers our own future.

But shouldn’t that add to the wonder, in fact? Just because the ecosystem is fragile doesn’t take away from how special it is. In fact, just the opposite: fragile, impermanent things can be the most wonderful. Think of, say, the intricacies of an individual snowflake, which exists for such a short moment in time.

As the famous song begins:

“I see trees of green/Red roses tooI see them bloom/For me and youAnd I think to myself What a wonderful world.”

Is that, in fact, true? Or does the peril we face, human stupidity and greed, and our uncertain future detract from it? Is the world wonderful?

Related questions: How can we maintain wonder? What’s the most amazing natural wonder you’ve experienced? What is the greatest problem facing humanity? Is it a cruel world?

 

How Do You Prepare For A Crisis?

The sad reality is that each of us will face a crisis — or even more than one — over our lifetime. What, if anything, have you done to prepare?

Climate change threatens all of us. Rising sea water, stronger storms, weather disruption, even species extinction are all possible consequences of runway global warming. What might you do to be ready for this future?

But maybe you don’t think this is a serious threat, or you have confidence that we will address this problem before it becomes too serious.

The western coast of the United States is due for a major earthquake. Tectonic plates have been shifting, building up energy, the release of which could flood entire cities, impacting millions of people. What can individuals do to prepare for this eventuality?

But maybe you don’t live there, or know anybody who does.

Artificial Intelligence could very well reshape our entire society over the next decade or two. The worst case scenario would see mass layoffs and a collapse of the job market. And that doesn’t include the possibility of A.I. becoming self-aware, and the dangers that might pose. Are there steps that could be taken with this in mind?

Even if you discount any one of these possibilities, it seems like one or more of them could very well happen. Another financial Great Depression, a global pandemic, a meteor strike from the heavens, the rise of dictators across the globe threatening another world war, any of these could happen. Or something we haven’t thought of could catch us by surprise.

But we shouldn’t simply react. We can anticipate bad things, and prepare ourselves for them. So: How do you prepare for a crisis?

Related questions: What is the greatest problem facing humanity? How do we prepare for the next pandemic? Should we try to predict the future? How can we turn sadness into constructive action?

 

Do You Have Faith In Democracy?

Democracy finds itself under attack in the United States, as well as around the world. Do you believe it deserves to survive?

There is no doubt that democracy has been an effective method for running  a country. Great strides in human rights, technological innovations, scientific discoveries, and more have resulted.

However, one of the downsides of a democratic form of government has been on display recently: it is slow. It is difficult to get a consensus of a large populace to agree on a particular issue. Disagreements can lead to inaction, or action that is inconsistent.

At the same time, the rate of change in our world has been speeding up. New innovations spread quickly around the world, but the regulation regarding them takes much more time to craft and implement.

Take, for example, social media. The social media companies have gone from startups to tech titans in just a few short years. As a result, many countries struggle to keep up with the risks they pose.

A.I. (artificial intelligence) seems to be on a similar path. Even though many people are concerned with the dangers that A.I. poses, there have not been any significant efforts by governments to exert any control over development and implementation.

And, of course, the largest existential threat is climate change. The challenge around that is larger because of all the secondary problems that come with it: strengthening storms, species extinction, emerging diseases, displaced people, and so on. It may be that a democracy will prove unable to make necessary changes in time.

Do you think democracy can survive the threats it faces? Is it possible these threats to democracy are coming about because of its inability to tackle these multiple important issues?

Related questions: What is the greatest problem facing humanity? What role should government play in our lives? What makes a good leader?

Is Everything Broken?

Looking around at all the failing institutions and organizations that surround us, it is easy to ask the question: Is everything broken?

The government seems broken. The current U.S. administration seems intent on dismantling many departments. However, even before that, the legislative body was so deeply divided that new laws rarely got passed. Additionally, the judicial branch is rife with corruption.

Education seems broken. Teachers’ salaries are not competitive with other, non-teaching jobs. Many schools are underfunded, and are overburdened with numerous requirements. Educational outcomes are declining.

Health care seems broken. A family can go bankrupt if one person gets sick. Medical knowledge and technology has never been better, and yet not everyone has equal access to it.

The media seems broken. Due to mergers and bankruptcies, media outlets are concentrated in fewer and fewer hands. The Internet has disrupted traditional delivery and funding methods, which has left newsrooms slashed. In some cases, misinformation and clickbait have replaced actual reporting.

The climate seems broken. Storms are more powerful, droughts more severe, floods are more frequent, and so on. Events that happened once a century now happen once a decade, leading to greater damage and more deaths.

The list goes on and on. Wealth disparity, racial relations, ecosystem collapse, cultural loneliness, immigration, overdose deaths, housing, and more. Systems are increasingly hard to navigate, expensive, and ineffective.

Or is this merely pessimistic thinking? There have always been difficulties. Every generation has challenges to overcome: world wars, financial depressions, assassinations, disease outbreaks, natural disasters. Are things actually worse today than they were, say, 100 years ago? 500 years ago? 10,000?

What do you think? Is everything broken?

Related questions: What is the greatest problem facing humanity? Will the future be better than the present? Why do we put up with unhappiness? Is it a cruel world?

What Is The Biggest Challenge Faced By Today’s Youth?

Humans face a number of challenges. Young people, in many cases, are impacted to a greater extent than their older counterparts. What is the biggest challenge today’s youth faces?

There is no doubt that young people of today are faced with big problems.

For instance, social media has been shown to be quite harmful to the developing brain. Previous generations did not have to grow up in the social media age.

Many schools practice active shooter drills in case of a a gun-wielding attacker. Adults, in particular politicians, seem incapable of doing anything to actually make schools safer places to be.

Similarly, the economic outlook for a young person in today’s society is troubling. Soaring college costs leave them drowning in student debt, with the very real prospect of having to postpone buying a house or starting a family. Not to mention the prospect of possible failure of programs like Social Security.

The rapidly-improving Artificial Intelligence could mean major changes to jobs and the workforce. And some public figures are even sounding alarms that A.I. could pose a threat to humans as a species.

The bitterly-divided political parties would seem to be bringing about a failure in our governmental institutions. Regardless of the winner of the next presidential election, there may be widespread unrest, protests, and perhaps even violence.

On the environmental front, climate change and the resulting effects pose an existential threat. Each year is hotter than the last, with more extreme weather. Ecosystems are collapsing, with species going extinct. That’s a problem for all of us, but surely it’s a bigger problem for someone expecting to live, say, seventy five more years vs twenty five.

As a result of all these troubles, it is not surprising that such a large percentage of young people suffer from mental health issues. Today’s youth faces problems from personal to societal to existential. What do you think is their greatest challenge?

Related questions: What is the greatest problem facing humanity? Will the future be better than the present? What do we owe the future?