The Global Warming Mess Is Hard to Clean Up: Humans Thought They Were So Clever, and Brewed a Collective Disaster

Our ancestors of 70,000 years ago are called "Homo sapiens," and they are praised for creating a brilliant culture unlike that of any other living thing. What will future generations call us? The new book by Indian anthropologist and writer Amitav Ghosh gives the answer: "deranged." Confused, disordered and blind with arrogance, ignoring the laws of nature, leaving behind a mess of global warming.

The deeper problem lies in the structure of the endless pursuit of economic growth. "Modern people all think this is an irreplaceable model, but it is actually a shallow fantasy," Ghosh says. "This is what I call the 'Age of Blindness': isolated individuals lack social connections, keep pursuing wealth, ignore the crisis right in front of them, and in the end threaten the survival of the collective."

Climate change is right before our eyes, the truth that "deranged people" refuse to face

Ghosh, who holds a doctorate in anthropology from Oxford University, is currently one of the most important Indian writers. His novel "Sea of Poppies" uses the Opium War as its backdrop and sketches an epic story spanning the Indian Ocean and the waters off China; it is a monumental work that has drawn the attention of the international literary world.

Earlier, while doing research for the book "Hungry Tide," Ghosh was startled to discover that because of climate change, the mangroves of Bangladesh disappeared overnight and can never recover. What surprised him even more was that people actually turned a blind eye to the drastic changes right in front of them; even when the United States repeatedly encountered record-breaking hurricanes, everyone remained indifferent.

Modern literature, which emphasizes engagement with real-world issues such as human rights and homosexuality, also rarely deals with climate change. "It's as if this were science fiction, but climate change is not a problem for future generations; it is a fact happening right now among you and me," Ghosh said in a speech in Ferrara in northern Italy. "Dickens depicted the Industrial Revolution, Zola sketched capitalism. Today climate change is the greatest disaster humanity faces, yet few writers have written novels about it."

Storytelling in the Era of Climate Crisis Amitav Ghosh – NHK World Direct Talk from Tree Hugger on Vimeo.

Everyone's clever calculations produce a collective disaster

Climate change is a classic example of the "tragedy of the commons": the clever calculations of every rational person end in collective disaster. It is like herders grazing the most sheep on public grassland to maximize personal benefit; everyone increases the size of their flocks, short-term returns rise, and the result is a depleted grassland. Even knowing that the Earth is warming, every country lacks the will to cut carbon emissions in order to secure its own competitiveness.

Some actions to respond to climate change are simple to describe and not hard to do: eat a little less meat to reduce carbon emissions from livestock farming, turn the air conditioner temperature up and use a few degrees less electricity. But if collective action is impossible, each person's power is negligible and insufficient to reverse the situation. Since it cannot be changed, not acting and continuing to enjoy present conveniences is the "clever" choice. Moreover, many people think the harmful consequences of climate change are elsewhere, not on the land beneath their own feet.

Ghosh writes in the book: "The fossil fuel economy ensured wealth and historically exploited the countries of the South (the less developed countries), so now the countries of the South have the right to demand a greater economic return. From any perspective of redistribution, this is correct. Yet this argument happens to make us realize how deeply trapped we are in a great derangement: our lives and choices are confined within a historical context that can only lead down the path of self-destruction."

Geographer David Archer once said that capital always flows toward short-term profit and always overexploits unregulated common resources. This trend is like the invisible hand of fate, pushing the hero toward unavoidable doom in a Greek tragedy. Ghosh believes this statement "precisely explains the essence of humanity's current deranged confusion."

Thinking they can control nature, humans feel nothing about natural disasters

Ghosh believes the results of climate change come from distant causes set in motion decades ago, like a frog boiled slowly in warming water, so humans feel nothing. More crucially, humanity's understanding of nature has changed. "Since the Enlightenment, humans have always thought they had the ability to control nature, praising those who escaped nature's influence. Now the many changes on Earth are forcing humans to realize once again that we cannot escape nature's limits." The degree to which humans have become disconnected from nature has grown even more severe over the past 50 years, and among those in the public eye, Pope Francis is one of the very few who has realized the root of the problem.

Literature in the past paid more attention to the relationship between humans and nature, such as "Moby-Dick." The Bible contains many descriptions of humans and nature, and Chinese culture also emphasizes the harmony of heaven, earth, and humanity. "Religions in the past usually used natural disasters to deter people's behavior. Although they lacked a scientific basis, they at least made people reflect on their relationship with nature. Now, under materialism, people scarcely fear the power of nature anymore."

Controlling energy means controlling power; the United States will not give up "fossil fuels"

As the world's largest carbon emitter, many Americans still believe climate change is a conspiracy theory. Ghosh says: "In fact, the U.S. government knowingly commits the offense. Even Trump knows about the climate problem; it is just that change is too difficult. Beyond the economic model, it also involves U.S. military power. The Pentagon needs enormous amounts of petroleum energy; its military bases around the world, military aircraft, and warships are all very fuel-hungry." What is more, controlling energy means controlling power, and the United States, which built its hegemony on the foundation of "fossil fuels," will not easily transform.

To curb global warming, the use of fossil fuels must be greatly reduced, but consumerist capitalism makes it very hard for people to stop the cycle of constant production and consumption. Even after signing the Paris Agreement to combat climate change, governments will hardly truly implement it, "because this means economic growth stops, which means losing political power."

In the era of globalization, goods, finance, and people flow across borders in great quantities. Ghosh points out: "Paradoxically, everyone is so indifferent to global disaster issues." If people have even a little awareness, "it usually turns into responsible consumption, such as buying electric cars and energy-saving light bulbs, thinking this can save the Earth."

If humans do not act, the Earth will no longer be habitable within a century

The deeper problem lies in the structure of the endless pursuit of economic growth. "Modern people all think this is an irreplaceable model, but it is actually a shallow fantasy." Ghosh explains, "This is what I call the 'Age of Blindness': isolated individuals lack social connections, keep pursuing wealth, ignore the crisis right in front of them, and in the end threaten the survival of the collective."

To awaken the world's attention, American journalist David Wallace-Wells pointed out in sensational language: "If we do not take action now to curb climate change, the Earth will be uninhabitable within a century." The apocalyptic view drew criticism from many who said it does not help solve the problem and may even plunge people into despair and make them simply stop acting.

Ghosh, however, says the influence of apocalyptic thinking is not that great: "People are shocked in the moment, and soon put it behind them." In the face of climate change and in order to avoid a catastrophic disaster, he says, what matters is "humanity opening its eyes" and seeing the facts clearly.

[Slow Fish Connection Series]