Transition Marquette County Reading Group

The Transition Marquette County Reading Group will meet to discuss Earth In Human Hands by David Grinspoon on Thursday, March 8, at 7pm in the Conference Room at Peter White Public Library in Marquette.

By comparing Earth’s story to those of other planets like Mars and Venus, astrobiologist David Grinspoon shows what a strange and novel development it is for a species to evolve to build machines, and ultimately, global societies with world-shaping influence. He suggests that our present moment is not only one of peril, but also great potential, especially when viewed from a 10,000-year perspective. We must become graceful planetary engineers, conscious shapers of our environment and caretakers of Earth’s biosphere. This is a perspective that begs us to ask not just what future do we want to avoid, but what do we seek to build? What kind of world do we want? Are humans the worst or the best thing to ever happen to our planet?

Grinspoon was a student of Carl Sagan, and a colleague of James Lovelock and Lynn Margulis, developers of the Gaia hypothesis, and he intersperses his book with stories about them and the early days of NASA.

Everyone is invited to join the conversation. It would help to have at least started to read the book. For more information, call Charlie at 226-3314 or email mqtchaz@gmail.com