The Most Important Topic In the History of Humanity

J.MorrisHicks

Victoria,BritishColumbiaJuly23,2017

Growing List of Problems Threatening the Long-term Viability of our Civilization

and our Species

Andwhatisthattopic?

TheContentsofthisLectureMayChangeYour

LifeForever!

“Weareaninsatiablycuriousspecies—providedthesubjectsareourpersonalselvesandpeopleweknoworwouldliketoknow.Thebehaviorgoesfarbackbeyondourspeciesintheevolutionoftheprimatefamilytree.Ithasbeenobserved,forexample,thatwhencagedmonkeysareallowedtolookoutsideatavarietyofotherobjects,theirfirstchoicefor

attentionisothermonkeys.

E.O.Wilson,PhD,HarvardTheMeaningofHumanExistence(2014)

Whynomediacoverageofthemostimportanttopicinhistoryofhumanity?

ConsiderMeYourReporter

•  Reportingontopicsaboutwhichyouneedtohear,notjuston

topicsaboutwhichyouwanttohear.

•  IwilltellyouwhenIamreportingmyopinion—aftergathering

asmuchdataonthetopicasIcanfind.

•  Mygoaltodayistoinspireyoutodoyourownresearch,decide

whatyouthinkismostimportant,whatyouwilltellyourfamily

andhowthatnewknowledgewillaffectthedirectionofthe

restofyourlife.

LifebeganonEarth…

•  About4billionyearsago

•  Humansemergedasaspecies

just200,000yearsago

Let’sStartattheBeginningEarth,Onesmallplanetamongbillionsofplanetsinourgalaxy,whichisjustoneofbillionsofgalaxiesintheuniverse.

Puttingourtimehereinperspective

•  Ifwecrammedall4billionyearsof“life

onEarth”intojustoneyear…

•  Humanshavebeenhereforjust26

minutesofthelasthourofthatyear

20SecondsSinceChrist

TheSingularImportanceofOurFOODCHOICES

LAND–WATER–ENERGYAFactorofTEN

Finiteamountofland

Theywouldstarvetodeath

Ifeveryoneatetheway

wedointheUnited

States,we’dneedthree

planetEarthstofeedus

all.WeonlyhaveONE

andsheisintrouble.

Ourfoodchoicesgiveus…

HOPESingularpowerofourfoodchoicesto

PromoteHealth,HopeandHarmonyonPlanetEarth

WhatCanWe“Hope”For?

1.  Toslow,stoporreversemostchronicdisease

2.  Effortlessandpermanentweight-loss

3.  Reduceworldhunger,oceanacidification,species

extinction,waterpollutionandmuch,muchmore

4.  Returnmillionsoffarmingacreagetoforests

5.  Greatlyreduceoreliminate#1causeofclimatechange

PROBLEMisthatwemayhavewaitedTOOLONG

FourHugeGrosslyUnsustainableSituations

1.  Overpopulation

2.  Live,work,travel&STUFF

3.  Fossilfueldependence

4.  OURFOODCHOICES

CarryingCapacity

How many humans can the planet sustain indefinitely?

•  AverageEuropeanLifestyle:TWOBillion

•  AmericanLifestyle:ONEBILLION

Source:GlobalFootprintNetwork--footprintnetwork.org

1.OverpopulationHowCanWeSolveIt?

1.  DailyBirthsminusDeaths=220,000(netgain)

2.  380,000Births–160,000Deaths=+220,000

3.  ReduceBirthsto100,000/day(U.N.&Religions)

4.  =Populationdecreaseof60,000/day(160-100)

5.  =Annualdecreaseof22million

6.  45yearstolowerpopulationbyonebillion

7.  We’llneed160yearstohit4BillionMark(yr.2177)

8.  Details?Abovemyjobgrade

2.OverconsumptionSTUFF:GlobalEconomybasedonInfiniteGrowthinaWorldofFiniteResources

1.  NeweconomybasedonSustainability

2.  U.N.DevelopsSustainabilityRules

3.  ViolationsPunishablebyDeath

4.  NewGREENcitiesallovertheworld

5.  Details?Abovemyjobgrade

3.BurningFossilFuelsAspopulationandconsumptiondrops,this

problemwilltakecareofitself.

1.  SustainabilityRuleswillfavorGREENenergy

2.  Theruleswillalsodiscourageforeigntrade

3.  Airtravelwillonlybepermittedforemergencies

4.  GREENmanufacturingandfoodproductionwillbe

mostlylocal

5.  Fossilfuelconsumptionexpectedtodropby90%

6.  Details?Abovemyjobgrade

4.OurFoodChoicesWhySoImportant?

1.  Theydeterminehowtheplanetisused

2.  Theyhaveahugeimpactonourhealth

3.  #1DriveroftheCostofHealthCare

4.  #1Driverofdeforestation*

5.  #1DriverofSoilErosion*

6.  #1DriverofOceanAcidification*

7.  #1DriverofSpeciesExtinction*

8.  #1DriverofClimateChange*

*Relatedtotheout-of-controlgrowthofourcivilizedpopulation

FoodChoicesTheMostPowerfulStepthatWeas

IndividualsCanMake

1.  Populationcontrolandanewglobal

economyisaboveourjobgrade

2.  ButANYconsumerofanimalproductscan

changewhattheyeatovernight

3.   Win-Win-Win:Improveyourhealth,save

moneyandhelpsaveourecosystem

SpeciesExinction

August2010ReportfromtheU.N.

“Scientistsestimatethat150to200speciesof

plant,insect,birdandmammalbecomeextinct

every24hours…nearly1,000timesthe“natural”

or“background”rate…greaterthananything

theworldhasexperiencedfor65millionyears.”

CouldHumansBecomeExtinct?

Let’sLookatHistoryEasterIsland–BeforeHumansArrived

After1200YearsofHumanControl

Let’sAskSome“BigPicture”Scientists

1.  Mostfocusonnarrowfieldsofstudy

2.  Fewunderstandthe“bigpicture”

3.  Mostgetpaidbyconservativeentities

4.  “BigPicture”viewscanbehazardous

JacquesCousteau

“Humankindmay,ormaynotbe,partoftheplanthatnaturehasfortheEarthinthefuture.Lifewillbereborn,butfirsttheworldasweknowitnowwilldie.”1997at87

Frenchnavalofficer,explorer,conservationist,filmmaker,innovator,scientist,photographer,authorandresearcher

FrankFenner,MD,Scientist,andEnvironmentalist

"Homosapienswillbecomeextinct,perhapswithin100years…It'sanirreversiblesituation.Ithinkit'stoolate."2010atage95

PeterWadhams,ScD

“TheIPCCisguiltyofconspiracyofcomplacency…OuronlychanceistobeginurgentlyremovingCO2fromtheatmosphere.”2016

StephenEmmott,PhD

“Weurgentlyneedtodo—andImeanactuallydo—somethingradicaltoavertaglobalcatastrophe.ButIdon’tthinkwewill.Ithinkwe’ref_____.”

ManagescomputationalscienceatMicrosoftinUK,visitingprofessoratUniv.ofOxford,managesateamofscientistswhostudyalltrendsthataffectourlives.Heendshis2013book…

JamesLovelock,PhD(98)

BBC2012“Whenyouseethewholepicture,itisreallyfearsomelybad…justthemeltingofthefloatingiceintheArcticOceanwilladdasmuchheattotheEarthasalloftheCO2wehaveputintheatmospheretodate…”

Independentscientist,environmentalist,futurist;bestknownforhisGaiaHypothesis,whichpostulatesthattheEarthfunctionsasaself-regulatingsystem.NASAcontractor,winnerofmanyawards,PhDfromLondonSchoolofHygieneandTropicalMedicine.

GuyMcPherson,PhDTenuredProfessorofEnvironmentalStudies,U.ofArizona

“Ourdaysarenumbered…ourcivilizationwillcollapseandhumanswillgoextinctbefore

2030.”Andguesswhat?

BillMcKibben,Activist’82HarvardGrad,Famousforclimatechange

“Tobeentirelyhonest,wedon’tknowforsurethatwecanslowdownglobalwarmingenoughtomatter.We’ve

waitedaverylongtimetogetstarted.”FromApril2017video

Environmentalist,Author,Journalist,founded350.orgin2008andwontheGandhiPeaceAwardin2013

DataSuggestsWe’veNotStarted

CO2NowatUnprecedentedLevels

FoodChoicesnolongerEnough

1.  Tippingpoints:Waterconsumption,climate

change,speciesextinction

2.  Theproblemwith“tippingpoints”isthatyou

don’tknowwheretheyareuntilyouhave

passedthem

3.  Wemustdramaticallyslowthemassiveheat

engineknownasmoderncivilization

Runaway Luxury Train

Faster. More People. More Comforts.

RobertGoodland,PhDWorldBankEnvironmentalSpecialistfor23Years

Sept.2013“Nowthereappearstobeonlyoneremainingpragmaticwaytoreverseclimatechangebeforeit’stoolate–andthat’sbytakingquickandlarge-scaleactionsin

food,agricultureandforestry.”

2009“Livestockandtheirby-productsactuallyaccountforatleast32,564milliontonsofCO2peryearor51%ofannualworldwideGhGemissions.”

LivestockConsumptionbyRegion

Arethingsgettingbetter?

FossilFuelReduction?

Global Sea Ice Area (nsidc.org) Climate Change Tipping Point?

Arctic Sea Ice Volume Through April 2017

3 Times as Many Icebergs!

Antarctic Sea Ice Area Updated 5-8-17

Antarctic Sea Ice Area November Readings from 1978 to 2016

3-22-17SeaIceNews

SeaIceSinkstoRecordLevelsatBOTH

PolesonMarch7andMarch3intheArctic

andAntarcticrespectively.OnMarch3,seaicearoundAntarcticahititslowest

extenteverrecordedbysatellitesattheendofsummer

intheSouthernHemisphere,asurprisingturnofevents

afterdecadesofmoderateseaiceexpansion.

MediaisNOTreportingthe “big picture” about what we NEED to know

1.  Icebergs.Mediareportsabouthumansafety,navigationalbenefitsand

beauty.Failstomentionpossibleclimatechangetippingpoints

2.  ClimateChange.MediareportsoneveryfireinCaliforniabutfailstoreport

onmassivedeforestationandrecordlevelsofCO2inouratmosphere

3.  WaterShortage.Mediareportsonhumanitarianeffortstoprovidewaterfor

thebillionsofpeoplewhodon’thaveenoughbutfailtoreportonthesteady

declineofunderwateraquifersthatbillionsneedforfood

4.  EconomicGrowth.Mediareportsthe“goodnews”abouteconomicgrowthin

ourcountrybutnevermentionsthegrosslyunsustainableindustrialmachine

MyOwnConclusionsAbout saving our civilization and our species

1.  Population.Consumption.FossilFuels.

2.   IFthereisachance,FOODisparamount

3.  Canmovetheneedleinfiveyears

T.ColinCampbell,PhD

“Thecloserwegettoeatingadietofwhole,plant-basedfoods,

thebetteroffwewillbe.”

Cornellprofessorwhodirectedthelargeststudyoftherelationshipbetweendiet

andhealthinhistory

•  FocusingonwhatweDOeat•  Notwhatwe’reavoiding•  Implied“wiggleroom”

The closer we get to eating a diet of whole, plant-based foods, the better off we will be. ---T. Colin Campbell PhD, Cornell University

Notnecessarilyvegetarianorvegan

TheSurvey•  Fruits,Veggies,Starches•  WhataboutOmega-3??

•  3questionsondairy&eggs

•  3questionsonjunkfood

•  Onequestiononflesh

•  Onequestiononoil

•  4leafsurvey.com

•  4leafprogram.com

ProteinMyth&LockedBrains

Preventing incredibly powerful plant-based solutions to our most serious health, hunger and sustainability issues from even making it to the

table for consideration

MoreHurdles

1.  “Humanshavealwayseatenmeat.”

2.  “TheyatemeatintheBible.”

3.  “Whataboutcalciumandosteoporosis?”

4.  “Isimplycan’tlivewithoutmyburgers.”

5.  “Tooexpensivetoeatahealthydiet”

6.  “It’snotconvenienttoeatthisway.”

TooExpensive?Notconvenient?

TimeforSoulSearching•  Howcanwelearntolivesustainably?

•  Adding220,000people/day(Net;birthsminusdeaths)

•  Unbridledconsumption—inaworldoffiniteresources

•  Whatwillittaketostopthemadness?

•  Whatrealprogressdoyousee?

•  Whatareyougoingtodo?Yourownresearch,career?

•  Overpopulation?Greenenergy?MonetizingCO2

removal?Sustainablehousing?Greenglobaleconomy?

LeveragingthePoweroftheEconomythatbroughtushere

“AutomaticallyReducingtheCostofHealthcare”

AsthefirstwaveofCEOsbeginstotakeadvantageofthemanybenefitsthatcomefromahealthierworkforce,othercorporationswhodon’tundertakesimilarinitiativeswillhavetroublecompetingwiththosewhodo.”–J.MorrisHicks

A.R.C.H.bySystem

•  4LeafSurvey

•  DynamicDatabase

•  ElaborateMessagingSystem

•  ManagementReportingSystem

Dowehaveachance?

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful,

committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed,

it is the only thing that ever has. — Margaret Mead

People who are crazy enough to think that they

can change the world—are the ones who do.

— Steve Jobs 

Blog:hpjmh.com

4leafprogram.com

4leafsurvey.com

archby4leaf.com

J.Morris(Jim)Hicks

jmorrishicks@me.com

917-399-9700