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1、Unit5Humanity,SocietyandEcology:GlobalWarmingandtheEcosocialistAlternativeEcosocialismismuchmorethananewlabel,orarevampingofanoldperspective:itisanewprojectfortheemancipationofhumanity.Humanityproducesitsownlife,throughlabourasaconscioussocialactivity.Thisbas
2、iccharacteristicofourspecieshastwoimportantconsequencesforadiscussionofecology.Thefirstisthathumanitydoesn’tjustevolvebiologically,asotherspeciesdo,butalsodevelopsitselfthroughhistory.Asitdevelops,passingthroughdifferentmodesofproduction,itchangesitsrelations
3、hipwiththeenvironmentandchangestheenvironmentitself.Thatiswhyourspecieshassuchanimpactontheenvironment.Thenatureofourimpactisnotfatedinadvance:moredevelopmentdoesnotautomaticallyimplymoreenvironmentaldestruction.Forexample,insomeregionsagriculturalcommunities
4、probablyputlesspressureontheenvironmentthanhuntingcommunitiesthatusedfireasameansofproduction.Therelationshipbetweenhumandevelopmentandtheenvironmentisdialectical.Wehavechoices.Developmentdoesnotnecessaryimplymaterial,quantitativegrowth.Withincertainlimits,we
5、candevelopwhileprotectingtheenvironment.Thesecondconsequenceisthatknowledgeofhomosapiens’sbiologicalcharacteristicsdoesn’thelpustounderstandanyparticularproblemintherelationshipbetweenhumanityandnature.Onthecontrary,thedecisiveroleisplayedbysociallyandhistori
6、callyconditionedformsofdevelopment.ToseekanexplanationorsolutionsformodernenvironmentalcrisesbystudyingthehistoryofEasterIsland,ortheMayancollapse,asJaredDiamonddoesinhisbestsellerCollapse,ispurenonsense.TheNeolithiccivilisationonEasterIslandhadnonuclearpower
7、,didn’tusepesticidesanddidn’tburnfossilfuels.Ignoringhistoryandtheconcretemodeofproductioninadiscussionofhumanityandnaturecanonlyleadtoaseeminglytritebutverydangerousconclusion:that,otherthingsbeingequal,themorehumanbeingsthereareonEarth,themoreecologicalprob
8、lemswecreate.Thatinturnleadstojustonequestion:Howmanypeopleshouldtherebe?JamesLovelock,authoroftheGaïahypothesis,says500million,otherssay3billion.Whowilldecide?Aboveall:withthatdiagnosis,
