地球のリフォームの目的 － 人類圏への道に復帰する

抄録

Recently, so-called geoengineering appears to be championed by some in the fight against global warming as a possible alternative to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Instead, I believe that there is a root cause for the emissions that should be first taken care of. In this paper, I argue that what needed most is not a fix to the global warming and that the current conditions of our environments need to be viewed in the context of Earth system evolution. The terrestrial life began to be present around four billion years ago; however, it only achieved the enduring basis for its continued existence when the oxygen respiration emerged. It, thus, took two billion years to become a sustainable sphere with its own rule, the biosphere. Then, about ten thousand years ago, humans started agriculture, departing from the biological rule. It formed a bud of the humanosphere and kept growing until the 16th century, when the need for larger amount of metals and other goods turned our eyes to underground resources. Unfortunately, these resources are not renewable. Thus, we unknowingly derailed ourselves from the path to the formation of an enduring sphere of humans, the humanosphere. Now we are seeing the end of our way that has lasted for five centuries and some of us might be at a loss in front of the deteriorating environments. During this period, however, our understanding about this universe and its various laws has advanced greatly and it will help us to return to the course to the humanosphere. Some notes to be observed for successfully getting back to the track are also discussed.