Human Origins and Humanity's Future: Past, Present and Future of the Anthropocene
Leslie Aiello, University College London (Professor Emerita)
Charles Kennel, Scripps Institution of Oceanography and Cambridge University
Access to the live webcast for this symposium will be provided here on Saturday, March 5 starting at 10:00 AM (Pacific Time). Viewers will need to be logged into their user account to gain access, but are not required to register for this symposium.
This is an online-only event. Please email carta-info@anthropogeny.org with any technical issues. Talks will be recorded by UCSD-TV and posted on this page in the weeks following the event. Follow this event page, as well as CARTA’s Facebook (@ucsdcarta) and Twitter (@CARTAUCSD) accounts for updates.
Summary:
CARTA public symposia typically begin by emphasizing that the primary goal of Anthropogeny is to explore and understand where we humans came from, and how we got here. Consequently, we usually limit discussion of current day implications, and the question of where we are going as a species. This time we will focus on the long and short-term impact of humans on the planet that we inhabit, and the consequences for the future of our species. This also gives us the opportunity to celebrate the memory of the late Paul Crutzen, who coined the term “Anthropocene”. It is relevant to ask how a single species evolved the capacity to completely alter the surface of an entire planet and dominate its governing environmental and ecological processes. This symposium will bring together experts regarding human impact on the planet and also address the current and future implications for our species.
Event Sessions
| Session | Speakers |
|---|---|
| Honoring Paul Crutzen, A Personal Appreciation | Veerabhadran Ramanathan, Scripps Institute of Oceanography, UC San Diego |
| How Humans Evolved the Capacity to Change the Entire Planet | Leslie Aiello, University College London (Professor Emerita) |
| The Co-evolution of Humans and Domesticated Plants | Michael Purugganan, New York University |
| Ants and the Anthropocene | Mark Moffett, Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History |
| The Coming Crisis of the Anthropocene | Charles Kennel, Scripps Institution of Oceanography and Cambridge University |
| The Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases | Vanessa Ezenwa, Yale University |
| The Oceans and the Anthropocene | Nancy Knowlton, Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History |
| We Alone | David (Jonah) Western, African Conservation Center, Nairobi Kenya |
| The Long Future | Martin Rees, University of Cambridge |
REGISTRATION FOR LIVE, ONLINE EVENT: As always, this online-only event is FREE and open to the public, however, please register to express your interest. To register, go to the bottom of this event page.
LIVE WEBCAST: This is an online-only event. Pre-recorded talks will stream beginning at 10:00 AM (Pacific), followed by a live-streamed Q&A where our speakers will answer audience questions beginning around 1:30 PM (Pacific). The Q&A will be also be recorded and posted along with the talks on the event page for viewing soon after the symposium has concluded.
AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION: Questions for our speakers may be submitted prior to or during the event by sending email to carta-info@anthropogeny.org (please indicate the speaker(s) that your questions are directed to, if applicable).
We hope to answer as many of these questions as possible during the event, but are considering options to deal with possible overflow questions and discussion. Watch our CARTA social media and emails for updates.
Support Opportunities
- Gifts: We invite you to partner with us in CARTA’s quest to explore and explain the human phenomenon. CARTA connects us all – scientists and philosophers, students and teachers, people with questions and others with answers. The global CARTA community grows with each lecture that is experienced and passed forward via FREE access to UCSD-TV broadcasts and archived videos on multiple websites. Please email khunter@ucsd.edu for support opportunities, which have been modified due to the virtual format. Your gift to the CARTA Symposium Fund enables these valuable resources to remain free for everyone to attend and access online.
- Insights: We understand that you may not be in a position to make a monetary contribution at this time and invite you to please share with us your insight! Your feedback is invaluable in terms of improving our offerings both in impact and reach. Please take a few moments to provide comments in CARTA's Public Feedback Survey.
