Thread: EWB International Conference 2009

Originally Posted by sycld

Well, of course... and if we had the technology in place, we could also be mining on other planets, have colonies on the bottom of the sea, etc.

Hah, exactly. But that technology isn't in place, so we can't do those things. Just as the technologies needed to sustain a good living standard for 7 billion people aren't in place, so we can't yet do that either. I'm not trying to say that the needed technologies exist but haven't been implemented, or that they're right around the corner. I recognize that they're still in the future. If I gave the impression that I was saying "Don't worry guys, everything will be okay soon because of technological improvements", then that was a miscommunication on my part. My point is, though, that the globe's carrying capacity depends entirely on our technologies; it's not fixed. As various technologies improve, we will see a corresponding increase in the planet's ability to support consumptive populations. Just because we don't yet have the technology to support 7 billion people at a first-world living standard (or the technology to take advantage of resources in space, or to colonize the sea floor, or anything) doesn't mean we never will.

Originally Posted by sycld

I'm just saying that I have my doubts as to how fast these technology will or can be developed, but maybe I'm just being overly pessimistic.

I guess it depends on your definition of "fast", but yeah, it will definitely take many, many decades. I'm certainly not saying that I think technological improvements are going to give the whole world's population a high living standard anytime soon! I expect that there will still be plenty of poverty and human misery for the rest of our lifetime. In fact, even if all the needed technologies were in place right now, I'd still expect that, because technological deficiencies aren't the only stumbling block here--there are also obvious social and economic and political issues to be addressed.

Originally Posted by sycld

And is it just a matter of energy production? I think it's also a matter of material supply, which probably can't increase very markedly even if we are eventually able to harness more abundant and "renewable" energy supplies. If the rest of the world's standard of living increases, I don't think we Western (or Western-like) nations will be able to maintain our extremely wastful lifestyle.

Totally depends on the material resources you are talking about. Aside from fuel resources (fossil fuels, etc.), most of the important ones are plentiful enough that we can probably rely on them lasting at least until we're able to take advantage of extraterrestrial resources. I don't think there are any material resources that are both so scarce they are going to be entirely depleted before that happens, and so crucial that civilization can't get along without them.