Planetary boundary 3: biosphere integrity
Microplastics, radioactive materials, and overfishing threaten the oceans. What about the rest of Earth’s biosphere?
A new GPT showed up in my ChatGPT4 called “Automated Writer,” by Matthew Schlicht. Decided to give it a try, to see if it could write this article for me. ChatGPT4 generated the research, I fed it into a prompt to “Automated Writer,” and got an 800-word article back. The entire process took about ten minutes. It uncovered facts about the perilous state of biosphere integrity, the players mobilizing for change, and several brands leading the charge toward corporate accountability and innovation. Pretty amazing. Will I rewrite that article and post it here? No.
That process highlighted a trend. There’s a lot of content out there, published by NGO’s and Nonprofits, talking about how we need to do something. The content includes research-backed reasons for the organization’s calls to action. Yet, I only find a handful of examples of people and companies that are taking meaningful action.
You might be wondering what all of this has to do with biosphere integrity. The health and stability of Earth’s ecosystems depend on biodiversity and genetic diversity, functional and resilient ecosystems, and habitat integrity. We’re asked daily to join the race to build an AI-driven world where we can do everything faster and more efficiently, with little accounting for the ecological impact of doing so. In parallel, we hear urgent cries that we address climate change.. and now plastics use. Yet the resources, the processes, and the energy required to build this glorious AI-powered future only degrade our biosphere integrity further.
Consider the biosphere impact of standing up the capability to generate an article in ten minutes. I happen to know a lot about the materials mining business, much more than I can share due to NDAs. All I can do is to ask you to think about all the materials, water, and energy it took. How many tons of earth and rock were moved to mine the metals and other elements? How much material and water used to build and operate the semiconductor foundries? How about the computing and data center components? And the transportation systems to move it all through the supply chain? How many trees and plants were cut down in the process? How many animals, birds, and insects were killed or displaced in the mining and construction processes? How much fossil fuel energy was expended to refine the materials and transport the materials and finished goods? How much CO2 and other toxins where exhausted into the air? Where does the waste water used by refineries and foundries go? And how will we recycle all the e-waste resulting from swapping out “obsolete” computing equipment for AI-powered upgrades?
Maybe it’s time for a pause.
I do want to call out that ChatGPT4 brought some great resources to my attention. There are many nonprofits leading the charge to address biosphere integrity. The Climate Store and the Classy Blog are two destinations where you can find a nonprofit that speaks to your soul.
ChatGPT4 also made me aware of four corporations — McKinsey, Starbucks, L’Oreal, and LVMH — taking meaningful actions to curtail their impact on biosphere integrity. The materials mining interests I’m involved with are taking steps as well.
This platform discourages link-aways, so it’s up to you, dear reader and fellow human, to do your own research. Besides, I’m not in the mood to spoon-feed anyone. I leave it to you to take action.
Love, Aventurine
Aventurine is a fictional character from a forthcoming novel series by Author Jeffrey Griffith.
