A Life on Our Planet: My Witness Statement and a Vision for the Future

Attenborough uses this term, “proposed in 2016 by a group of eminent geologists” (215), to describe the era in which humanity is currently living. It is, indeed, the age of the human, with all of the consequences, both beneficial and tragic, of such dominance. He continues, clarifying the definition: “Dividing the Earth’s history into named periods has long been geological practice. Each is recognised by characteristics that distinguish the rocks of that particular age from all others” (215). This age, the Anthropocene will be different than those that came before it. These rocks will, indeed, be distinguished, marked by human detritus: “Not only will they contain fewer species than the rocks that preceded them but they will contain markers that are completely new—fragments of plastic, plutonium from nuclear activity, and a worldwide distribution of the bones of domesticated chickens” (215). That is, the Anthropocene will be defined, at least in part, by the consumption of humans, rather than by the cyclical regeneration of nature.

Leveling a carbon tax on emissions has long been a part of the struggle to confront climate change. While there are critics who argue that this tax is too easily manipulated or avoided altogether, Attenborough sees its potential: “It is widely acknowledged that the most powerful incentive of all to end our reliance on fossil fuels would be a high global price on carbon emissions—a carbon tax that penalises any and all emitters” (142).