Let’s get these two arguments out of the way: Our current
ecological predicament defies all common sense. How did we get
here? Following are two common assertions: 1) “Humans are an
inherently flawed species: greedy and destructive.” 2) “Humans
reproduce too much and thus we have to develop expansionist
lifestyles and complex infrastructure to support our growing
numbers.” The problem with both explanations is that they’re
incorrect. 1) We are not inherently greedy. Human nature is
social and tends toward cooperation and collectivity (evolution
in small, nomadic bands selects for empathy), and highly
adaptable to circumstances. For nearly the whole of our species’
200,000-year existence, humans lived sustainably. Some
hunter/forager societies still exist, and they manage to avoid
killing their landbases. It’s only within the last 6,000-10,000
years, roughly corresponding to agriculture and the rise of
class-divided social formations, that individualism and greed
have been rewarded, and human activity has such