The Future Starts Now. Anthropocene – the Age of Human Influence on Nature and Climate

What does the Little Ice Age at the end of the 16th century have to do with the present day?...

What does the Little Ice Age at the end of the 16th century have to do with the present day? Quite a lot. The climate in Europe altered dramatically. Grain crops declined and the economy and society entered a serious crisis. People attempted to use science and technology to free themselves from their dependence on nature, leading to industrialisation and ultimately globalisation. Today this modern world has reached its limits and now faces renewed challenges due to its selfmade climate emergency.

Today it has become difficult in many ways to talk about nature. To some extent, things have gone so far...

Today it has become difficult in many ways to talk about nature. To some extent, things have gone so far that we can no longer presume to speak of nature as such. In his essay, therefore, Hartmut Böhme begins by asking what it means to live in a “post-nature” age. He then discusses the most important approaches to observing nature. He refutes the recently postulated theories regarding the inability of western culture to consider the interrelatedness of nature and culture.

In an age when globalisation and consumer capitalism are on the brink of failure, an alternative picture of progress is...

In an age when globalisation and consumer capitalism are on the brink of failure, an alternative picture of progress is emerging – that of bioutopia. This entails individuals relating to themselves as objects of biological design. The image of the “next humans” unites strands of bodily, technological and media history. With growing autonomy they will turn away from the aspirations of current ecological thinking. Tomorrow’s human will be a cyborg – and more or less immortal.

What do reflections on geological processes and their related scientific research have to do with the academic study of poetry?...

What do reflections on geological processes and their related scientific research have to do with the academic study of poetry? Falb is not interested in poems that take as their subject matter the ecological transformations of the earth, or which conjure up apocalyptic scenarios. Anthropocene poetry is free of all aesthetics; it is a data-set, divided into stanzas or not, which communicates at most things that one could also read in books of pop-science. But freed of fiction.

Today, species extinction has reached an extent and a speed that are almost unprecedented in history. This development poses a...

Today, species extinction has reached an extent and a speed that are almost unprecedented in history. This development poses a cultural challenge as well. In art, film and literature, extinct and vanishing species are seen as signals for a crisis of modernisation in which humankind is finally trying to reimagine itself as a biological species – a “post-human” model of the human being as a cosmopolitan animal.

Terror attacks, natural disasters, plagues, wars, collapsing economies: We tend to think of our future as a catastrophe. Eva Horn...

Terror attacks, natural disasters, plagues, wars, collapsing economies: We tend to think of our future as a catastrophe. Eva Horn examines the history and the motives of this modern sensibility for catastrophe in cinema, science and literature. She identifies the bio-political conflicts that are fought out in these scenarios of doom, but she also shows where, in the calls for security and prevention, these are effective fictions that we need to understand and analyse as such.

Humans have changed the entire earth system so profoundly that we are obliged to think in terms of a new...

Humans have changed the entire earth system so profoundly that we are obliged to think in terms of a new geological epoch. What does it mean to comprehend human beings as a geological force? What is nature if it is being influenced and shaped by people worldwide? And how can our political systems address this global problem? This book tackles the most important questions and challenges posed by the Anthropocene epoch.

What happens when technologies become actors in their own right? During the 20th century a new component – the technosphere...

What happens when technologies become actors in their own right? During the 20th century a new component – the technosphere – became established that is com- parable to the biosphere or the atmosphere. It is increasingly dominating parts of our planet, from material processes and human mobility, to the financial and commercial markets. It has already started to transform the spaces of human experience and emotion. Power is in the hands of those who hold sway over the technical infrastructure.

The catalogue of the exhibition Welcome to the Anthropocene addresses the term Anthropocene as well as the idea behind it....

The catalogue of the exhibition Welcome to the Anthropocene addresses the term Anthropocene as well as the idea behind it. In 18 essays, prominent scientists and social scientists, architects, economists, artists and journalists investigate the question, widely discussed internationally, of whether or not the Anthropocene is a new geological epoch. Thus this volume, with its richly illustrated catalogue section, offers an impressive panorama of different perspectives and underscores our responsibility for the future of the planet.

The magazine Third Nature is dedicated to interactions and feedback between nature and culture. It seeks to join, follow and...

The magazine Third Nature is dedicated to interactions and feedback between nature and culture. It seeks to join, follow and prompt debates that have become urgent since our entry into the Anthropocene epoch. The first issue therefore looks at topics such as genetically augmented potatoes in seed banks, capitalist business practices as housekeeping for the Earth, and the relationship between volcanism and the internet.

For decades the worlds of politics, economy and society have busied themselves with climate change and its dramatic consequences –...

For decades the worlds of politics, economy and society have busied themselves with climate change and its dramatic consequences – without getting even close to arresting its progress. Yet those consequences will be dramatic indeed: The continued burning of fossil fuels is threatening a scorching end to our civilisation. Self-Combustion is an urgent plea for societal changes and the restructuring of the global economy, in order to ensure that our future descendants have a world worth living in.

This collection of essays brings together about a dozen different humanities perspectives on the contemporary epoch. The book looks back...

This collection of essays brings together about a dozen different humanities perspectives on the contemporary epoch. The book looks back on the two-year “Anthropocene Project” staged by Berlin’s Haus der Kulturen der Welt, sharing texts by Jane Bennett, Dipesh Chakrabarty, Paul Edwards, Anne Peters, Jürgen Renn, Bernd Scherer, Peter Sloterdijk, Benjamin Steininger, Davor Vidas, Jan Willmroth, Jan Zalasiewicz and others.

The ways we think of the climate and climate change are determined by the pictures that scientists use to visualise...

The ways we think of the climate and climate change are determined by the pictures that scientists use to visualise their findings. But pictures have an impact. Birgit Schneider examines the limitations and potentials of these representations, showing us how data is developed visually today, and how methods, deviations and uncertainties are often lost behind the suggestive power of the climate imagery – an essential contribution to efforts to invalidate the arguments of climate-change deniers.

Jens Soentgen characterises the Anthropocene as the age of fear – above the animals’ view of humans. The killing of...

Jens Soentgen characterises the Anthropocene as the age of fear – above the animals’ view of humans. The killing of animals around the world serves not only to drastically reduce the populations, it also spreads fear amongst the survivors. That fear influences their behaviour, reproduction and feeding habits. But options exist for a reconciliation. The reduction of fear is an ethical commandment that is equally justifiable as the reduction of pain.

Enlivenment is the attempt to find a fundamentally new outlook on the interactions between nature, human beings and economics. The...

Enlivenment is the attempt to find a fundamentally new outlook on the interactions between nature, human beings and economics. The essay aims at a new understanding of the diverse economic, ecological and social crises that face us. We will only establish the basis for a new economy and an effective form of crisis management after we have learnt to talk not of “control” but of “participation” whenever the topic arises of the relationship between humans and nature.

An intellectual continent is charted afresh: Here at last we have access once again to all the writings of the...

An intellectual continent is charted afresh: Here at last we have access once again to all the writings of the explorer, naturalist and man of letters, Alexander von Humboldt, that have remained unprinted for 150 years. They tell of Humboldt’s expeditions, and even today they still make an essential contribution to many different areas of research – from anthropology to climate science.

Alexander von Humboldt’s monographs, articles and essays have been shared exceptionally widely: around 800 texts in 15 languages on 30...

Alexander von Humboldt’s monographs, articles and essays have been shared exceptionally widely: around 800 texts in 15 languages on 30 disciplines, in 250 places of publication across five continents. He published his writing for a period of 70 years, from 1789 to 1859.

The Other Cosmos contains a selection of 70 texts – one from each year providing examples of his work, his research, his thinking and his life.

Vegetation, soil and climate are the most important components of ecological systems. This book reveals concisely the current state of...

Vegetation, soil and climate are the most important components of ecological systems. This book reveals concisely the current state of our knowledge about the Earth‘s ecology. It highlights the interactions of the different biological and geographical components, helps us to comprehend the eco-house that is the Earth and understand its vulnerability, and leads us towards more sustainable actions. As such, it lays the foundation for an understanding of the bigger context in a global perspective. With a generous selection of illustrations and photos.

Since the end of the 20th century, Alexander von Humboldt has become a significant figure in the public discourse in...

Since the end of the 20th century, Alexander von Humboldt has become a significant figure in the public discourse in many areas of knowledge and a wide range of scientific fields. This handbook renders Humboldt‘s enormous body of work accessible, and describes the paths taken and the impacts achieved by this extraordinary explorer, academic and writer.

A large number of manuscripts, notes and letters, edited here for the first time, shed light on the decades of...

A large number of manuscripts, notes and letters, edited here for the first time, shed light on the decades of work Humboldt devoted to his Geography of Plants. They document the scope of his reading and his writing practices, and show how he gathered infor- mation from around the world and networked research and academics. The edition includes contributions by science historians, which examine the origins and context of Humboldt’s botanical geography and introduce some less well-known predecessors, contemporaries and critics.