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Global Ecology Not in Dire Straits, Say Futurists Dave Eberhart, NewsMax.com Ronald Bailey, author and science correspondent for Reason magazine, asserts, "Global ecological trends are not nearly as dire as they are often portrayed." Declining fisheries, shrinking tropical forests, the growing scarcity of water, and other great ecological challenges facing humanity in the 21st century are "transitory," says Bailey.
Bailey will soon be sharing this controversial opinion with an international gathering of futurists and a host of other experts. they will gather to dissect and discuss today's major environmental and technological trends at an international conference of futurists to be held at the Hilton Minneapolis, July 29–31.
"Scientific and economic analysis shows that humanity will increasingly withdraw its productive activities from wild nature, enabling ecosystems to heal themselves and to thrive," he opines.
Bailey's analysis can be seen and heard at the Hilton Minneapolis as part of "World Future 2007: Fostering Hope and Vision for the 21st Century," the annual conference of the World Future Society.
Patrick Tucker, director of communications of the World Future Society, tells NewsMax that Bailey is, in fact, giving two talks. The ecology talk is a luncheon keynote, but he's also leading a pre-conference course on Sunday, July 29, 9 a.m. on "Transhumanism."
Transhumanist thinkers happily postulate that human beings will eventually be transformed into beings with greatly expanded abilities.
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Tucker also suggests checking out Gregory Stock's talk — also Sunday — at 7 p.m. on "Biotechnology and Health Care: The Road Ahead." Stock is the author of the book, "Redesigning Humans: Our Inevitable Genetic Future" and is affiliated with the UCLA School of Public Health.
The Bad News Department
"Dr. Marvin Cetron will also be at the event and will give a presentation on terrorism that should prove very interesting — if more than a little frightening," says Tucker.
Cetron has been identified as one of the nation's foremost futurists in the cover story, "The Next 50 Years" in the 50th Anniversary issue of U.S. News & World Report.
Tucker also is touting the nanotech symposium, where researchers will discuss the "Golden Era" of nanotechnology.
Nanotechnology, or the manipulation of objects one billionth of a meter in size, is approaching a "golden era," according to Raj Bawa, president of Bawa Biotechnology Consulting.
"Although the full potential of nanotechnology will ultimately be realized in the distant future, basic research in nano-science is rapidly producing commercially viable products," says Bawa.
"In fact, governments and industries across the globe are investing billions of dollars in research. Clearly, international rivalries are growing and political battle lines are being drawn. In 2005, governments, corporations and venture capitalists globally spent almost $10 billion (U.S.) on nanotechnology R&D while emerging nanotechnology was incorporated into more than $30 billion in manufactured goods. Given this backdrop, the potential future impact of nanotechnology could be huge," Bawa concludes.
With such programs slated, it is no wonder that futurists from across the globe will converge on the Hilton to enjoy nearly 100 unique sessions.
Attendees hail from such institutions and organizations as Kellogg Company, 3M Information Technology, IBM, NASA, Aveda, Rutgers University, Wells Fargo, Sun Microsystems, Saab AB, CSP Japan Inc., the U.S. Army and Air Force, General Motors -- and from countries all over the world. Founded in 1966 as a nonprofit educational and scientific organization in Washington, D.C., the World Future Society has some 25,000 members in more than 80 countries around the world. Individuals and groups from all nations are eligible to join the Society and participate in its programs and activities.
The Society holds a two-day, international conference once a year where participants discuss foresight techniques and global trends that are influencing the future.
Previous conference attendees have included future U.S. President Gerald Ford (1974), Massachusetts Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (1975), behavioral psychologist B.F. Skinner (1984), age-wave expert Ken Dychtwald (2005), U.S. Comptroller General David M. Walker (2006), and scientist and inventor Ray Kurzweil (2006).
Others presenting at this year's conference include Helen Fisher of the Rutgers University; Tor Dahl, founder, president and CEO of Tor Dahl & Associates; Nat Irvin II of Wake Forest University; and dozens more from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, MIT, eBay, the Inter-American Development Bank, and others. © NewsMax 2007. All rights reserved.
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