Butting Heads Over "De-extinction"

Posted by Pete Shanks January 16, 2014
Biopolitical Times

Paul Ehrlich, author of the 1968 book The Population Bomb, and Stewart Brand, publisher of the 1968 Whole Earth Catalog, have taken to the pages of Yale Environment 360 (e360) to debate the idea of "de-extinction." They have known each other for half a century – Ehrlich was Brand's field work advisor at Stanford – but there is no discussion here, rather a contrasting pair of essays.

That's unfortunate, because they talk to an extent at cross-purposes. Brand presents his usual shtick in favor of de-extinction, but also takes it on himself to define the arguments against. He waves aside what Ehrlich sees as the most important, the "moral hazard" involved in anything that might reduce attention paid to a sixth mass extinction.

Ehrlich, whose wife Anne gets a contribution credit, is skeptical about the entire enterprise, and also raises issues about geoengineering to combat climate change. He closes with a call for "seeking ways to reduce the scale of the human enterprise," especially by promoting women's rights, in part to reduce birthrates.

Taken together, the essays provide an overview of the issue. But it's unfortunate that it's framed as a choice between techno-optimism and zero population growth.

Previously on Biopolitical Times: