The Anthropecene and Six Beneficiaries of Man

My story in Earth Island Journal's fascinating new package about the Anthropocene, the age of man, covers six species whose range and population have been most heavily impacted by human activity: carp, cows, and rats, oh my! The title is "A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Planet Earth" (the hitchhikers are the critters) and it may make your skin crawl. Or it may just lead you to be impressed by the adaptability and ingenuity of the natural world -- humans included.

The issue also features work by fellow SEJers Jane Braxton Little and Winifred Bird, who report from the forests near Fukushima and Chernobyl, and Elizabeth Grossman, who explains how synthetic chemicals have altered the chemistry of the environment. And it includes essays by local journalist and author Nathanael Johnson, Mark Hertsgaard, Raj Patel, Alan Weisman, and others. Find the whole package here, for the time being.