A momentary lapse of reason?

Abstract

What did the person on Easter Island say when cutting down the last tree? That was a question posed to US academic Professor Jared Diamond by a student in a lecture on how societies appear to knowingly overshoot their resources. He referred to the incident in his book Collapse: why civilisations choose to fail or survive, which describes a string of societal collapses as a result of failing to address environmental problems. Professor Diamond’s book ought to be compulsory reading for all the negotiators and politicians and their advisers involved in the climate negotiations because they are repeating errors Diamond identified in his book: wrong values, poor strategic choices and denial.