About: Greatest Issues Facing Civilization

Mission Statement:  Greatest Challenges Facing Civilization in the 21st Century

 The Center for Global Reasoning focuses research on the greatest issues facing civilization:  (1) managing global warming, (2) governing the planet when China becomes the dominate country, and (3) reducing intolerance (religious, racial, ethnic and other), which has contributed to the deaths of 100 million people over the last  millennium.

1. Global Warming:  Climate change has occurred through earth’s history, but changes in the last 50 years have taken 5,000 years or more to occur in the past. allowing many living organisms to adapt.  CO2 is now at the highest level in 800,000 years.  In the Pliocene Epoch, three million years ago, temperatures were 2 to 3 degrees centigrade higher and ocean levels were 85 feet (25 meters) higher.  Global warming will produce massive suffering.  Unfortunately, most humans place their focus on issues that have a high probability of occurring in the near future, but place little focus on issues that have a high probability of occurring decades in the future.
2. Global Governance:  When China’s per capita GDP reaches half the per capita GDP of the U.S., China’s total GDP will be double that of the U.S. because China has four times the population of the U.S.  The World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the Economist Intelligence Unit all predict this will happen in the next 30 to 40 years.  How should the U.S. and the rest of world prepare for the time when China will dominate the world?
3. Intolerance – Religious, Racial and Ethnic:  An estimated 100 million people have been killed by religious intolerance in the last 500 years, beginning with the Christian Reformation, which killed an estimated 30 million.  The Nazi Holocaust killed 17 million. Racial and ethnic intolerance has also contributed to many deaths.  Homo Sapiens have been an intolerant specie dating back to the elimination of the Neanderthals 40,000 years ago.

Three other great issues face civilization, but the Center for Global Reasoning lacks the capacity to make contributions in these areas.

1. Nuclear and Biological Weapons:  How do the governments of the world ensure that these weapons do not get into the hands of terrorists & unstable leaders?
2. Artificial Intelligence, Biological Engineering and Quantum Computing:  In 30 years, half or more of today’s jobs will be eliminated and life spans may double.  Change will occur faster due to quantum computing.  How should civilization adapt to the combined impact of the changes created by these sciences?
3. Catastrophic Natural Events: Three natural events could have a devastating impact on civilization.  The first is a geomagnetic storm on the sun, like the Carrington event in 1859, that penetrated the earth’s magnetosphere.  If that storm were to occur today, it would take out communication satellites and the electric grid on earth.  Humans would be unable to communicate or pump water or fuel.  Prevention of damage is possible, but governments have no active plans.  The second is a volcanic super eruption like the Yellowstone eruption 630,000 years ago.  Glass-particled ash covered half of the U.S., eventually killing virtually all oxygen breathing animals.  Preparation for eruptions is the key to survival.  Border walls inhibit escapes.   The third is a large asteroid striking the earth.  The 10 km asteroid that struck the earth 66 million years ago caused the extinction of the dinosaurs.  Steering an asteroid off course might succeed.

The Center for Global Reasoning is a non-profit organization [501(c)(3)] engaged in research on global issues.  Contributions are accepted at PO Box 146, Evergreen, CO 80437