Capitalism and the Environment

James Hansen, one of the leading scientific authorities on global warming, warns: “Planet Earth, creation, the world in which civilization developed, the world with climate patterns that we know and stable shorelines, is in imminent peril. The startling conclusion is that continued exploitation of all fossil fuels on Earth threatens not only the other millions of species on the planet but also the survival of humanity itself and the timetable is shorter than we thought.” All ecosystems on the planet are now in decline. The economy and the earth are headed for a fateful collision if we don’t change course. The roots of the environmental crisis lie in capitalism’s relentless and rapacious expansion. Can a viable system evolve in time to preserve our precious home?

Recorded at the University of Southern California.