Hanrahan was right?
By Greg Spearritt
Between 1970 and 2020, according to the World Wildlife Fund’s 2024 Living Planet Report (where they monitor population trends of 5,495 species worldwide), there’s been an almost 75% decline in the size of wildlife populations.
We must surely be sleepwalking into eventual disaster (biodiversity interlinked with climate), though many NSW towns and outback Queensland communities probably feel the disaster is already here. The devastating floods, droughts and bushfires we’re becoming so much more familiar with in Australia in the 21st century were all grist to Hanrahan’s mill. But maybe Hanrahan was right.
In the 1970s it was possible – in spite of oil crises and the nuclear threat – to feel positive about the future. I fear ignorance is the only quality nowadays that will permit such an outlook.
Those on the front line – the scientists who gather the data and who understand its import – are among the most affected by anxiety over biodiversity and climate (also here).
Yet shreds of hope must remain. Climate dread is one factor hindering positive action. The Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility includes doomism as one of the many strategies employed by the fossil fuel lobby to prevent genuine action on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. (See also here.)
In spite of the evidence, then, can we resist Hanrahan’s assessment? I don’t think we have a choice. If there’s a serious chance that we’re actually doomed, failing to act won’t change that. Acting is the only hopeful path.
Disclaimer: views represented in SOFiA blog posts are entirely the view of the respective authors and in no way represent an official SOFiA position. They are intended to stimulate thought, rather than present a final word on any topic.
Photo by Wes Warren on Unsplash.
