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Understanding limits as we transition away from growth towards a steady-state of living

To ensure that Munibung Hill is able to survive and thrive depends to a large degree on how we humans that have her surrounded in suburbia behave and respect her ancient ways of knowing, as expressed in her geological record and the plants, fungi and animals that reside there, as they have for millions of years prior to our invasive ways. The respect needs to be tangible such that we practice the earth science principles required for a healthy landscape to endure beyond our current generation. There are some good signs by way of the Management Plan, but there will need to be more than that. The references included in this post provide some guidance for us as we transition into the next phase of our relationship with Munibung Hill.

First up, we need to The transition to a steady-state economy. Mark Diesendorf, in Pearls and Irritations, 2 Feb 2023 [sustainability; steady-state; overshoot; collapse].

Scientific research shows that the environmental impacts of human civilisation have exceeded several planetary boundaries. To avoid societal collapse and to assist the transition to an ecologically sustainable civilisation, we must transition to a steady-state economy.  Get the full story here ... https://johnmenadue.com/the-transition-to-a-steady-state-economy-a-reply-to-michael-keating/

Second, Why understanding limits is the key to humanity’s future by Richard Heinberg, MuseLetter #358, Jan 2023.

Recent news articles about a breakthrough in nuclear fusion research heralded the potential for “limitless” energy. Whenever I read that word limitless I wince, because I’ve learned to view it as a subtle instruction to readers to “please stop thinking now.” After decades of false promises to deliver limitless energy, we need to start thinking instead, and search for limits both obvious and hidden. Doing so usually leads to a better understanding of how things really work. Full story ... https://richardheinberg.com/museletter-358-why-understanding-limits-is-the-key-to-humanitys-future

Third, the all important connection between human population and ecological diversity, in Linking population growth and biodiversity loss: a new bibliography from The Overpopulation Project, 31 Jan 2023. [biodiversity loss; overshoot]

Excessive and growing human numbers are a leading cause of decreasing biodiversity in many parts of the world. In researching a paper on this topic last year, we became aware of the large amount of good scientific work recently published on it. In an effort to spur more such work, we are publishing an annotated bibliography describing this new literature and helping readers access it more easily.  Link to the full article ... https://overpopulation-project.com/linking-population-growth-and-biodiversity-loss-a-new-bibliography/