The teenager and the T-G boundary: Why is Greta Thunberg listened to?
The teenager and the T-G boundary: Why is Greta Thunberg listened to?

On 27 october ’18, Sweedish teenager Greta Thunberg announced that “We are in the midst of the sixth mass extinction.” Millions around the world are apparently following her pronouncements. Thinking big in her case means not only thinking on a planetary scale, but also thinking in terms of geological time.

Are we in such a transitional period, as she claims? The last mass extinction geologists speak of occurred during the transitional period referred to as the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary, often labeled the K-T-boundary. Many scientists attribute the K-T-boundary extinctions to meteorite impacts. The impact that teenager Greta is talking about is not due to meteorites but to human beings.

How should we refer to such a claimed transitional period? Shall we call it the Tertiary-Gretaceous boundary?

Greta claims that her calls to action are based on a consensus of scientists; and consensus there is. A majority of scientists agree that the rise in average global temperature is at least partly attributable to a human cause, via emission of greenhouse gases. According to charts available for example at the wiki page https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_warming , we are talking about an increase of about one degree Celsius over the past half a century. So far, the scientific consensus.

Quite beyond the scientific consensus, Greta’s speeches are peppered with dire short-term predictions for which there is much less of a consensus. A recent such dire warning  admonishes us that the temperature in Stockholm this winter was 7 degrees above average, presumably as a result of global warming. If the temperature next winter happens to be seven degrees below this winter’s, will Greta warn us about about global cooling? Unlikely.

Our purpose here is not to analyze the validity of Greta’s predictions, but rather to examine the young activists’ response to them. The response has often been enthusiastic. But has it been helpful? Consider, for example, the phenomenon of the activists pursuing the Credit Suisse bank and the Siemens railroad company. What I find odd about these developments is that their targets are not directly responsible for greenhouse-related climate problems. Their targets are often several steps removed from the stated objectives of the activists, which is the reduction of greenhouse gases.

Company A (say, a Swiss bank) may finance exploratory activities of company B to find new fossil resources, which will then be mined by company C, which will subsequently sell the fossil fuels to company D, which will finally produce greenhouse gases while exploiting the fossil fuels. Thus, pursuing company A is not an environmental action that will reduce greenhouse gases. Rather, it is a political action based on a particular interpretation of the dynamics of the current world market.

Furthermore, attempts to reduce the supply of coal (as in the case of the actions against the Credit Suisse and Siemens) may well have the effect of increasing the importance (and price) of other fossil fuels, such as oil. Therefore such actions may play into the hands of many Arab suppliers (whose teenagers know better than to start up with their governments). Such changes in fuel markets have no benefit for the environment.

In the public opinion polls for the current Israeli elections, the green activists seem to fetch higher percentages than usual. A poll performed on January 14, 2020 places the greens at 2.3 percent of the popular vote   Such results are not sufficient to get them into the Knesset because of cut-off rules. However, it is still a trend that requires explanation: why is Greta’s message appealing to Western teenagers?

In today’s Western world, the teenagers’ lives often lack meaning and focus. Every day there are more distractions competing for their attention. In my classroom experience, every year more of the students are glued to their i-phones instead of listening to the lecture.  Greta gives them an apocalyptic ideology to latch on to. Thus, a media pundit opined, “we should all feel the fire of moral fervor that Greta does.” 

According to the Wall Steet Journal on September 20, 2019, “The revelation of universal truth to an innocent child is an inspiring story that is very effective in both offering role models and propagating the faith.” 

The trouble with such “moral fervor” and “universal truth” is their questionable source. Getting angry at Credit Suisse requires no work on improving oneself (middot) from the teenager; on the contrary. Being upset with Siemens does not teach you to forego temptation, to practice kindness, or to ask yourself what G-d wants from you.

The onset of the Tertiary-Gretaceous may well be upon us, but it may unfortunately furnish additional distractions from the real responsibilities toward one's fellow man and G-d.