The simultaneous wealth and destruction created by humans’ dependence on fossil fuels, the exponential growth of humans as a species, and also the flowering of human creativity are all prominent features of the age many now call the Anthropocene. To geologists, the decision to declare a new age is one grounded in rock. It is a decision now debated worldwide.To those who are not geologists, this new name for the age invites thinking about how humans’ increasing use of fossil fuels has expanded our ability to shape the natural world, in both productive and destructive ways, manufacturing prosperity while at the same time damaging our own health and ecosystems.

Our engagement with these problems can produce responses that act as preventative medicine or healing measures for the totality of life on this planet. History and sociology, literature and dance: the humanities, social sciences, and arts, with the sciences, contribute to humans’ ability to grapple with their eponymous age. Energy Cultures in the Age of the Anthopocene offers participants and viewers a rich array of talent to energize their own engagement with the Anthropocene.

“Anthropocene” YouTube Playlist: