If I had a vote on the commission, I would vote for accepting this new epoch to our geographic calendar. The transition of an epoch is usually defined by the changes preserved in sedimentary rock; what fossils are discovered and which disappear. (Kolbert). Since the Industrial Era began, human beings have done things that would seem unimaginable one hundred years ago: construction of skyscrapers, bridges, etc… Steffen labels the Industrial Era as the first stage of the Anthropocene. In agreement, labeling the beginning of the Industrial Era as the beginning of the Anthropocene would seem most logical.
Climate Change is facts and evidence. It does not matter what your culture is or what you believe. Climate Change is science, and It is a threat. For someone to say it’s not serious or that it’s a natural cycle is to be ignorant of what’s really going on in the world. Anthropogenic Climate Change began at the beginning of the Industrial Era, warming the world’s oceans and polluting the air with greenhouse gases. This wasn’t intended by mother nature, nor was it a part of the natural cycle that the earth goes through. It happened because of human beings. I think often times, it’s tough to accept the blame. Instead, we should focus more on coming up with solutions, rather than arguing whether or not climate change is as serious as some believe and some don’t.
References:
https://www.nature.com/news/why-we-are-poles-apart-on-climate-change-1.11166
https://mountainsandminds.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Steffen-et-al.-2007-The-Anthropocene.pdf
https://mountainsandminds.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Kolbert-2011-Enter-the-Anthropocene.pdf