Thomas Turnbull: "Entering the Philanthropocene: Planetary Sciences in the Age of Rich Men"

Abstract

What does it mean that Earth’s richest men have begun to turn their benificent gaze toward the management of the planet’s critical ecosystemic pressure points? Are their actions an act of altruistic largesse, an attempt to delimit distinct and self-serving pathways to our collective survival – or, are they simply involving themselves in yet another tax avoidance scheme? This talk will introduce yet another anthro-geological neologism, the Philanthropocene, an age in which it is clearly the mores, appetites, and intentions of the planet’s richest men that are recognised as not only the most damaging for the environment but also the most assertive and agentic in attempts at planetary rectification and modification.