Ambivalence, irony, and democracy in the Anthropocene

In ideal-typical terms, there are two ways that the current crisis of environmental sustainability can be resolved, either (1) through the development of advanced technologies that would allow humanity to transcend its planetary boundaries or (2) through the political and economic enforcement of those boundaries. The first option is likely to require massive investments in both people and technology. The second option appears to demand near-absolute epistemological and ethical homogenization in a world as populous as ours. Both options seem to require political determination at a scale far remote from present-day realities which are characterized by a deep-felt ambivalence about the modern condition and irony about the prospects for radical change. This ambivalence is not surprising but its implications for environmental politics are both formidable and under-theorized. Instead of unintentionally slipping into an acute state of unsustainability, this paper aims to make explicit the macro-level choices implicit in the Anthropocene.

► Highlights the need for a macro-level social choice with regard to sustainability.
► Discusses the need for more radical strategies for sustainability.
► Points out the possible role of social investments in achieving sustainability.