A History of the Anthropocene in 50 Objects

The Anthropocene — the suggested Age of Human that our species has initiated — has a complex past, present and future, and there are many versions. ClimateCultures editor Mark Goldthorpe set this challenge for Members: “What three objects evoke the unfolding of human-caused environmental and climate change for you?

“The TippingPoint events I took part in asked each of us to come with an object in mind — any object with a personal significance relating to what climate change meant to us and which we wanted to share with others. Many of us brought the physical object — something discovered on a walk or holiday or bought in a charity shop, a book from our shelves or a family heirloom — while others brought photos that captured a landscape, a moment, something experienced or something lost. Sharing these and the stories behind them in small groups, we built up a store of associations between the personal, the small or the incidental and the larger, unbounded complex of meanings that make ‘climate change’ what it is. Sharing in others’ stories enriched our own.

“Remembering the feelings that this exercise evoked for me every time (I was fortunate enough to experience it with four different groups), I’m also reminded of the groundbreaking Radio 4 series, A History of the World in 100 Objects. Neil MacGregor, then Director of the British Museum, described each object, the stories of the different cultures and times they represented since the beginnings of human culture, and what it meant to the world that came after and to who we are as a species. But what those episodes mostly lacked, for obvious reasons, was the very personal story of us as individuals, here and now. This is what the TippingPoint exercise brought.”

The challenge: your personal Anthropocene

Here is a space to share our stories about any three objects that have that personal resonance: one object from the present, broadly defined; one from the past (any time from whenever you think of as the birth of the Anthropocene right up to just before your own birth); and one from a future time (for as long as you think the Anthropocene might last…). The present object could be something from your own experience; the past object could be something you’ve only heard of, or something that you’ve seen or touched, or it could be imaginary (what might have been the first ever musical instrument, not yet discovered or understood as musical?); your future object might also be imaginary, or a future encounter with a relic of the past. What links all three is your associations with them and that they have meaning and emotional significance for you.

These objects can be anything you choose. Just describe what each one is, how it ‘came’ to you (or you to it) and what it means for you in terms of environmental or climate change or the wider questions of the Anthropocene. If you have an image or sound to share, you can include these too.

The order is up to you. You can start with the present, if you wish, and then move back before you take your imaginative leap into the future. Or start in the future and work backwards… You might connect their stories through an imaginary timeline that connects your versions of past, present and future.

I kicked off the series with my own personal history of the Anthropocene, which you can see below along with new contributions to the series from ClimateCultures authors. For further inspiration:

• We host the Museum of the Anthropocene, a project with Martin Mahony of the University of East Anglia, featuring short object-based essays from a selection of students on his ‘Human Geography in the Anthropocene’ course.
• You can explore the BBC Radio series, A History of the World in 100 Objects, here. Neil MacGregor’s book of the series is published by Penguin.
• You can visit the Museum of Fossil Fuels here at the excellent Happy Museum Project. Submit an object of your own there too, and explore what others have offered. You can see my contribution here.
• The BBC World Service series 50 Things That Made the Modern Economy is also well worth exploring.
• You can also read about BBC Radio 4’s The Museum of Curiosity on Wikipedia, with links to the weird and wonderful mix of objects discussed, and purchase or listen to episodes here.

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Know something we should?

Do you know of a book, article, podcast, video, site, artwork or other resource that explores the significance and role of objects in our understanding of environmental and climate change? Use the Contact Form to send your suggestions and a link and a few words on what about it has inspired you.