The Pubescent Stage of the Industrial Era

Yesterday I had lunch with Andrew Revkin, author of the NY Times Dot Earth blog, and I’d like to share some of my thoughts about our conversation. Revkin made an interesting analogy between the growth of industry and the stages of human development. In terms of our fossil fuel use, Revkin argued that humans are in the pubescent stage, where, like a teenager acclimatizing to the newfound size, strength and knowledge recently accumulated, humans must become habituated to our ability to harvest fossil fuels. Relative to the nascent period of fossil fuel discovery in the mid 19th century, the 20th century was characterized by building infrastructure to satisfy a cultural shift to the worship of fossil fuels, typifying energy and plastics as the crux to our “modern, convenient lifestyles”.

Puberty is not typically characterized by wise decision making…
(http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/AA73/AA73.htm)

Stretching Revkin’s idea to the next logical stage in our cultural development, we are hitting the climax of fossil fuel extraction and use. Peak oil analyses indicate that as we empty the most accessible reservoirs of carbon, oil, gas and coal will become more expensive to excavate (e.g. dirtier tars that require more refinement will be harvested after cleaner and purer resources are exhausted; wells must be dug deeper after shallower reserves are consumed). In the meantime, 97% of scientists recognize that global climate change is indeed caused by human industry, and the effects of these changes are both broad and deep. It is time to enter the more mature adult stage of this new industrial society and try to marry some of the fantastic advancements of modern technology with sustainability.

As with the excitement and vulnerability of emerging adulthood, we are locked in a race between our potency and our awareness of that potency and its effects. So caught up in the thrill of discovering new tools, we haven’t developed the cultural wisdom to stop and question whether they should be used, and how we can best implement them. It is time to temper our fervent launch into the industrial age with mindfulness. This doesn’t necessarily mean a rejection of technology, but a shift away from the over-confident and entitled “burn-baby-burn” approach of cheap luxuriant living without considering the effects on neighboring communities, global ecology and preservation of resources for future generations.

We can use technology to enjoy the benefits of industry in a responsible, ethical way. If there is anything that the pubescent phase of the industrial age has revealed, it’s that technology is nearly limitless! We are not impeded by existing (read: fossil fuel hungry) infrastructure – look at the cities we’ve built in the past decade! They can be rebuilt and revised to serve a sustainable lifestyle. We are not impeded by stubborn social psychology. Look at the inter-generational fluidity in ideology! Just in the 20th century, we have already tackled some of the social challenges that have piggybacked the industrial revolution by implementing new deal labor regulations, establishing the Food and Drug Administration and starting the conservation movement. Recent human history has already demonstrated an interest in progress that improves quality of life and addresses social inequality.

So what are we waiting for? Let’s face it. Puberty sucks. It’s time to grow up, take responsibility for our actions and start building a global community that is aware of its own potency and can balance progress with mindfulness.