A more positive environmental outlook

The question of how religions will look like tomorrow is speculative. But this is not the case with the boundary conditions, or limits, of the future trajectories of world religions. Answers can be found in the intersection of three disciplinary perspectives. The disciplines are anthropology, philosophical ethics (or its political equivalent, international law), and the environmental and climate sciences. Anthropology has gained an understanding of the past development of religions, especially about its shifting functions in successive stages of civilization: among prehistoric bands and tribes, in ancient chiefdoms and medieval kingdoms, and in modern secular states. We know what social purposes religions served in the past, what kind of shifts occurred, and what the trend of religion from prehistory to today had been. Based on the empirical record, anthropology tells us what it means for religion to slide back to a less developed stage of civilization. This is one set of boundary conditions. Ethics discusses the meaning of right and wrong, but its debates cluster around normal, middle-of-the road issues. There is little disagreement over extremes. International institutions (e.g. International Criminal Court), treaties (e.g. Geneva Conventions), and metrics (e.g. Human Development Index) give a clear picture of the limits of right and wrong. As the moral assessment of genocides illustrates, there is no confusion over what counts as evil. We also have a clear idea of what constitutes a life that is safe and dignified. In this way, ethics and international law can tell us whether the social manifestation of faith is acceptable or not, whether it is good or evil. This is another set of boundary conditions. The environmental and climate sciences, finally, have arrived at a conclusion: civilization is maladapted to its environment. The ecological overshoot of humankind has worsened to the point that degradation of ecological integrity is tangible in accelerating extinction rates; that deterioration of environmental services is tangible in climate change; and that depletion of natural resources is tangible in rising prices (compared to incomes) of food, land, and rare earths. Since civilization relies on a global market economy whose stability needs material growth, and since our ecological overshoot makes such growth unsustainable, our species has arrived at a fork in the road. Either we keep doing business as usual and sink into crisis, or we redesign civilization and move towards sustainability. This fork in the road sharpens the anthropological sense of ＂regress＂ and ＂progress,＂ and tweaks the ethical meanings of ＂good＂ and ＂evil＂. Since religion is integral to the fabric of any society, the dimension of sustainability places a fork in the developmental road of religions, too. One future trajectory of faith is a path that is hopeful. Another is a path that is terrifying. The biophysical fork in the road establishes a third set of boundary conditions. Although we do not know what the future will bring, the environmental crisis and the opportunities for mitigating the crisis tell us what a good future will amount to, and what a bad future will boil down to. Anthropology and ethics tell us what it will mean for civilization to move forward or to slide back, to proceed to a healthier, safer world, or to regress to a harsher, poorer world. The purpose this paper is to use the findings of anthropology, ethics, and the environmental sciences to determine the best- and worst-case scenarios of future religion- how faith may look like along an evolutionary, enlightened, and sustainable pathway, and how it would look like if events and people push faith into the opposite direction. I argue that these two scenarios are clear and justifiable. I contend that only the sustainable pathway is compatible with Chinese cultural wisdom, as in Confucianism, Lao-Zhuang Daoism, and Chan Buddhism. And I suspect that Chinese culture and its spiritual traditions will become more influential globally if and only if civilization moves towards sustainability. But if civilization failed at this project, regressed, and suffered collapse, I fear that Chinese culture would be swept away by Middle Eastern creeds.

A machine learning approach to investigate the reasons behind species extinction

Energy conversion‐use is the primary cause of resource depletion and environmental destruction. A necessary step to slow down the rising catastrophe on the horizon is to re‐engineer existing energy...

In the contemporary world, many environmental and social crises such as climate change, pollution, resource depletion, energy waste, deforestation, desertification, extinction of species, environmental racism, forced migration, waste trafficking, hazardous waste dumping, environmental injustice, etc. are cumulatively threatening the existence of humans and the planet itself as a result of irresponsible and immoral natural resources exploitation. Sustainable use of natural resources is a normative approach that advocates for responsible and wise use of natural resources to meet the needs of present and future generations. In Islam, the idea of sustainable use of natural resources is not new as the religious scripture Al-Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) instructed us to use the resources wisely in limits. Islam advocates for a harmonious and respectful relationship between humans and nature. Every element of the universe including humans is created by the Almighty one and only Allah in balance with a purpose. Humans are provided with everything needed to survive and flourish from nature by Allah but as vicegerent of Allah, they bear a special responsibility to take care of His creations. Islam advocates for sustainable use of natural resources so that natural resources can be distributed with justice and equity among generations and the natural equilibrium stays intact. This paper unravels the teachings of Islam regarding natural resource usage and shows how it promotes sustainable use of natural resources for future generations. In this paper, it will be shown that the Islamic perspective on natural resource usage can serve as a foundation to mitigate pollution, resource depletion, energy wastage, and other environmental crises prevailing in the current time and motivate the present generation to be cautious, moral, and responsible regarding natural resource usage. Philosophy and Progress, Vol#75-76; No#1-2; Jan-Dec 2024 P 309-334

Critical review of recent publications on use of natural composites in infrastructure

The 1970s' ecological awareness triggered anxieties on different levels: global (acid rain, Ozone layers, global warming, extinction of species, environmental degradation, depletion of natural resources), national (planning, construction, pollution), local (forests, rivers, roads), and personal (health, quality of life). Germany's unique geopolitical and historical condition added a distinct feature to what may be termed the 'Politics of Angst' phenomenon. Thus, whereas in the Cold War context, the arms-race escalated and nuclear weapons threatened most countries, Germany, positioned on the front-line between the power blocks, with its special ties to the West, was pressurised to remilitarise.1 This generated a wave of anti-militarism, in addition to anti-Americanism, anti-imperialism and an identification with Third World movements, as part of a general condemnation of material society represented by the USA. At the European level, Germany's geographical situation divided it between the West and the East, with a potential war between the two factions of the one nation. Many Germans called for a neutral, unified Germany in the tradition of Mitteleuropa. In the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), the mounting disillusionment with the political system's ability to provide existential security, reinforced by the recession following the oil crisis, questioned the system as a whole and gave momentum to the protest movements. The oil crisis manifested the new salience of the natural limits to economic growth.

In the last few decades, environmental and resource issues such as the extinction of species, toxic spills, depletion of natural resources, climate change, air and water pollution etc., as well as their relationship to the economy have drawn public’s attention. While environmental economics enable us to understand the nature of environmental problems, its tools are vital for applying the concepts of sustainability under scarcity into the current economic models. The following report will look into the ways we can better manage environmental risks by using economic tools in several ways.

Livestock biodiversity is critical for ecosystem functioning and human well-being. The Indian subcontinent is among the 12 mega-biodiversity resource centers in the world where the domestication of flora and fauna took place in antiquity. Although India shares only 2.4% of the world’s land area, it accounts for approximately 11.6% of the global livestock population. The spectrum of bio-diversity is exceedingly vast and varied for the livestock. They not only produce food but also deliver a wider range of goods and services (employment, insurance, social capital), often under conditions of limited feed and water resources. Conservation of farm animal biodiversity has assumed special significance in recent times as the rate of extinction is on the rise. Major drivers of this loss include decreased utility, farm mechanization, depletion of natural resources, climate change, changing consumer demands, and disease epidemics. Livestock breeds are part of the common heritage of humankind, and their conservation is an obligation of signatories to the FAO Convention on Biodiversity. It is critical for maintaining a diverse genetic base to anticipate future changes in climate, market, or production systems. In the future, a broad genetic base will be required for the development of new and improved breeds and varieties. A holistic approach is the need of the hour. This chapter provides a valuable window on the contemporary status, issues, and challenges of Indian livestock biodiversity and will serve as credible material for scientists and students on biodiversity conservation.KeywordsLivestockBiodiversityAccession numbersPoultryCattleGoatBuffaloPigs

Light response of sunflower and canola as affected by plant density, plant genotype and N fertilization

Today, limited resources are decreasing/depleting with the increase in the human population living on Earth. The increased human population brings with it various problems. Different events cause important climate events at the global level, such as the decrease or depletion of water resources with the increase in demand, damage to the ecosystem, health risks, and deterioration of biological diversity. Due to the use of fossil fuels, the formation of GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions and global warming cause significant climate changes. Climate change causes the restriction of environmental and vital activities, the increase of natural disasters, and the extinction of species. This study aimed to evaluate the climate change performance of G20 countries which emit more than 75% of the world’s GHG emissions from 2019 to 2023, using MCDM methods. An objective method, LOPCOW, was used to assign weights while SPOTIS, WISP, and RMSVC methods were used to determine the climate change performances of G20 countries. The findings showed that among G20 countries, the highest performance was found in the United Kingdom and India, while the United States, Canada and Saudi Arabia were found in the last ranks.

The Revolt against Humanity: Imagining a Future without Us

THE REVOLT AGAINST HUMANITY: Imagining a Future without Us by Adam Kirsch. New York: Columbia Global Reports, 2023. 104 pages. Paperback; $16.00. ISBN: 9781735913766. *In Eden, the serpent lied to Eve about the forbidden fruit. She was told that disobedience would allow her to "be like God." Already bearing God's image and likeness, Adam and Eve swallowed the serpent's lie, together with the forbidden fruit. Wanting to be more than mere creatures, wanting life on their terms, they sinned against their creator. Likewise, their son Cain wants his way. God rejects Cain's sacrifice but does not reject Cain. Instead, God points to the root cause of Cain's sin and lays out the path to restoration. Cain's response? He kills his brother. *Throughout humanity's long rebellion against God, these two aspirations have persisted, together with their common result. The first, the desire to "be like God, knowing good and evil," goes beyond intellectual assent to intimacy with evil. And just as "Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain," intimacy with what God forbids gives birth to death. Then, unable to sin without consequences, the second aspiration is to destroy, to deface the created order and kill, to embrace death as an escape from God. *The Revolt against Humanity presents and analyzes the latest versions of these longstanding evil choices: transhumanism and Anthropocene antihumanism. Adam Kirsch well describes the heart of the transhumanist vision: the aspiration to transcend our creaturely status. Ray Kurzweil, Max More, and others seek release from all human suffering through science and technology. By human reason alone, they would obtain godlike powers, but not to please God, not to love God and neighbor. Instead, they would overturn God's decree, summarized in Ezekiel 18, that "the soul who sins shall die." *What do transhumanists think of God? Well, most have no use for the holy God of the Bible. Instead, they would create "spiritual machines," to use Kurzweil's term, or they would "create God" as members of the "Terasem transreligion," founded by Martine (formerly Martin) Rothblatt, whose disdain for traditional accounts of humanity and human limitations is expressed in her book, From Transgender to Transhuman: A Manifesto on the Freedom of Form. With such a god, transhumanists believe that even the heat death of the universe is not an obstacle. Science will surely reveal ways to alter the very laws of the universe, won't it? *Ready to join the transhumanist movement? Few believers would. Instead, they would agree with Christina Bieber Lake's analysis of transhumanism, including the claims of so-called Christian Transhumanism. Her plenary address at ASA's 2021 virtual annual meeting--with responses from John Wood, William Hurlbut, and Brent Waters--shows how its eschatology fails. Technoscientific hyper-postmillennialism presumes that salvation is achievable by human effort. It has no use for Christ's sacrifice for our sins, destroying fundamental Christian doctrines, such as hope in God and divine grace. *Kirsch is no transhumanist. Instead, he sees transhumanism as an optimist's escape from the problems of this world. Yes, those problems may, at least in part, be traced back to science and technology run amok: the depletion of natural resources, pollution and climate change, species extinction, and the broader degradation of nature. These ills threaten what matters most to transhumanists: the mind, with its ever-expanding knowledge, driven by science. *What is the transhumanist solution? Acknowledging that science and technology can be problematic, they still believe more will do the trick, especially as they produce advances in computers and information technology. After all, though minds have emerged from our brains, they see no reason why they must be biological; artificial intelligence will serve just as well, nay, even better. After the singularity, when computer intelligence exceeds that of human beings, biological life will be obsolete. In its place, life will continue in computational systems, human minds being uploaded, either from the living or the dead, their brains preserved through cryonics. *Is transhumanism too optimistic? Perhaps, but Kirsch is concerned about a darker alternative: Anthropocene antihumanism. It sees humanity as an unfortunate and unnatural infestation of Earth. Rather than enhancements to human life, it believes eliminating humanity is the answer. Nature, interpreted as inherently good and robust, would recover. Its wonders would thrive, even if no humans were around to observe it. Indeed, antihumanists seek to eliminate human perspectives of what it means to thrive; anthropocentric definitions got us into this mess, so it is critical to move past them. *Kirsch concludes with a quick survey of the spiritual dimensions, broadly defined, of the rebellion by anti- and transhumanists. He mentions the apocalyptic elements of Christianity and other religious traditions, the hopelessness of H. G. Wells as he anticipated the extinction of human life, Nietzsche's nihilism, Foucault's concerns about "biopolitics," and the general loss of meaning that has accompanied the rise of godless modern experimental science. With this background, Kirsch looks to the future, but not with confidence. "We can only hope that we don't have the bad luck to be born into the last generation, the one that sees humanity as we have known it disappear." *Kirsch does not offer a Christian response to the revolt he describes; his spiritual commitments are not clear. Still, The Revolt against Humanity offers a provocative look at where progress has taken us, one Christians should consider. Advances in science and technology offer new ways to fulfill the first and second great commandments, respectively. However, apart from faith in God as their source, they cannot address the despair of a frustrated world. *I recommend Kirsch's book to Christians that view science and technology as inherently good and beneficial. Its few pages are thought-provoking, giving believers many opportunities to reflect and check their Bibles for God's answer to human sin: the gospel of Jesus Christ. I also recommend a "Thinking in Public" interview by Albert Mohler: "The New Religion of Artificial Intelligence and Its Threat to Human Dignity--A Conversation with Adam Kirsch," recorded April 12, 2023. It is available online at https://albertmohler.com/2023/04/12/adam-kirsch. *Reviewed by David C. Winyard Sr., Department of Engineering, Grace College & Seminary, Winona Lake, IN 46590.

Environmental justice: the role of epidemiology in protecting unempowered communities from environmental hazards

EditorialThe 8th International Symposium for Sustainable Humanosphere (The 8th ISSH 2018) was held at Hotel Grandika, Medan (Indonesia) on 18-19 October, 2018. The forum was organized by Research Center for Biomaterials – Indonesian Institute of Sciences (RC Biomaterials – LIPI), and co-organized by University of Sumatera Utara (USU), Indonesia, and co-hosted by Research Institute for Sustainable Humanosphere (RISH) – Kyoto University, Japan. The symposium was also hugely supported by Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) through Japan-ASEAN Science, Technology, and Innovation Platform (JASTIP) program; JST – JICA (The Japan International Cooperation Agency) collaborative program through SATREPS (Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development); and also National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN), Indonesia.The Symposium was held in conjunction with Humanosphere Science School (HSS) 2018, an important and prestigious scientific forum organized by RC Biomaterials – LIPI and RISH – Kyoto University, since its first initiation in 2006. HSS provides learning experience by sharing knowledge, science, and technology delivered by prominent scientists and experts specializing in the field of humanosphere. The forum was also marked as The 384th Symposium on Sustainable Humanosphere for RISH – Kyoto University, Japan.The present symposium captured a tagline of “Sustainable Humanosphere: On the Verge of Global Challenges and Human Security”. Humanosphere has always been an important field of interdisciplinary science, as we are facing many issues threatening humanity and our very survival such as global warming, resources depletion, energy and environmental issue, etc. Humanosphere is a concept describing the human living environment and the sphere that covers us, including the forest sphere and atmosphere.List of Chief Editor, Guest Editor, Section Editor, Secretariat and Processing, General Coordinator, Advisory Board, Chairman, Vice Chairman, Secretariat, Treasury, Programme Coordinator, Conference Program, Proceeding Processing, Documentation, Accomodation and Transportation, Logistic, Sponsorship are available in this pdf.

The study aims to investigate the energy conservation behaviour of owners and managers of small hospitality firms by incorporating social norms into an extended Value-Belief-Norm (VBN) model. In addition, the study examines the mediating effects of causal chain of the VBN model in the context of energy conservation behaviour. The world faces serious environmental challenges such as loss of biodiversity, pollution, depletion of natural resources and global warming. One of the causes of these environmental challenges is the production and consumption of energy by households and firms. The hospitality sector uses a significant amount of energy in its operation leading to negative environmental impacts. Reducing energy use will improve environmental and financial sustainability of hospitality firms. Energy conservation behaviour is one of the significant ways to reduce energy consumption. The study adopts the survey method for data collection and the respondents are conveniently sampled. The Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modelling is used for data analysis. Based on a dataset of 360 respondents, the study finds that the extended VBM model that includes social norms is applicable in explaining the energy conservation behaviour of owners/managers of small hospitality firms. The mediating effects of the causal chain of the VBN model are significant. The theoretical implication is the applicability of an extended VBN model that includes social norms to predict energy conservation behaviour. Recommendations on how to improve energy conservation behaviour include improving the level of awareness of ecological problems caused by energy consumption. The study aims to investigate the energy conservation behaviour of owners and managers of small hospitality firms by incorporating social norms into an extended Value-Belief-Norm (VBN) model. In addition, the study examines the mediating effects of causal chain of the VBN model in the context of energy conservation behaviour. The world faces serious environmental challenges such as loss of biodiversity, pollution, depletion of natural resources and global warming. One of the causes of these environmental challenges is the production and consumption of energy by households and firms. The hospitality sector uses a significant amount of energy in its operation leading to negative environmental impacts. Reducing energy use will improve environmental and financial sustainability of hospitality firms. Energy conservation behaviour is one of the significant ways to reduce energy consumption. The study adopts the survey method for data collection and the respondents are conveniently sampled. The Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modelling is used for data analysis. Based on a dataset of 360 respondents, the study finds that the extended VBM model that includes social norms is applicable in explaining the energy conservation behaviour of owners/managers of small hospitality firms. The mediating effects of the causal chain of the VBN model are significant. The theoretical implication is the applicability of an extended VBN model that includes social norms to predict energy conservation behaviour. Recommendations on how to improve energy conservation behaviour include improving the level of awareness of ecological problems caused by energy consumption.