Would the world actually be better without us? For most of human history, the question was inconceivable.
But now, anxious over climate change and elated at technological breakthroughs, a growing chorus of thinkers is heralding the end of humanity’s reign on Earth.
On this episode, poet and critic Adam Kirsch, author of The Revolt Against Humanity: Imagining a Future Without Us, analyzes these ideas with Commonweal senior editor Matthew Boudway.
For further reading:
- Eugene McCarraher critiques the ‘technocratic paradigm’
- An interview with ex-environmentalist Paul Kingsnorth
- Santiago Ramos on the perils of the metaverse
“Is the existence of homo sapiens an absolute value? This question, once theoretical, is now becoming increasingly practical”—Adam Kirsch