Like all actors in Society, engineers and technologists must contemplate their responsibilities towards the Tree of Life. The commercial and political systems of the world are too short-sighted to really act in the interest of Life in a time-scale of thousands of years. Each engineer must take a personal responsibility, based on what is often called ecological insight. This responsibility includes an ambition to influence commerce, politics and public awareness, when necessary.

The term Tree of Life is used both as a metaphor for all living organisms, and as a reference to the tree of species. The latter tree is a conceptual structure connecting all species to their more primitive roots. In specific, we will focus on the Zoology branch of the Tree of Life. The term Botany is sometimes used as a metaphor and synonym for Tree of Life, then including zoology and even physical anthropology.

Humans are by nature industrialists in the literal sense, entrepreneurs. Our species has unique mental capabilities. We have unique abilities for describing and controlling structures and processes. Evolution has given us exceptional abilities for exploring the unknown and handling the unexpected. Let us use those capabilities to tend the Tree of Life, cautiously join Evolution, and happily enjoy Engineering!

We must play the game of Industrial Evolution with great awareness, because we have made our tools so sharp. Mankind is on the verge of bringing about a sixth extinction! (The first five extinctions had cosmic or geologic causes.) Evolutionary awareness seems to be the most urgent prerequisite for shaping the future of Earth and Mankind, now that we have those sharp tools.

Biological Evolution made dozens of major innovations along the branches leading to the leaf named Modern Human. Examples of such innovations are: sensory organs, closed loop control, mirror symmetry, the central information processor, four moving members, multi-tier memory. Those terms were chosen right here to indicate that simple organic functions are already taken for granted in advanced industry products.

It is important to accept that Evolution has no special purpose with Humans as a species. Man is not the best species, because there is no total index for comparison. We are far from best in navigation or speed. We envied the birds and had to invent flying machines. The human species seems to be superior in one respect: our ability to handle information, create new solutions and promote experience across generations. Through speech we gained the ability to negotiate decisions in a group or family. It is far less natural for us to make collective decisions in the best interest of Mankind and the whole Tree of Life.

The term "Industrial Ecology" has been used elsewhere with limited scope: sustainable development for "future generations [of Humanity]". So far, much emphasis has been put on keeping pollution figures below rather arbitrary limits. That is far from enough. The goal must be to maintain the richness of the whole Tree of Life, while also making life more enjoyable for everybody - Man and Beast, now and for many generations to come.

The Swedish botanist Carolus Linneaus invented a system for classification of plants and animals. This tree is essentially what we refer to as the Tree of Life. At that time, however, the concept of evolution was too controversial to be formulated. As we all know, one hundred years later, Charles Darwin had great difficulties to gain acceptance for the idea of stepwise spontaneous evolution, a growing Tree of Life.

The work of Isaac Newton became an important base for mechanic engineering during the industrial revolution. Today, each engineering student gets a basic training in mechanics. The work of Charles Darwin deserves a corresponding role in education, in what we may call evolutionary ecology.

Unfortunately, biological concepts were badly misused by political systems during the first half of the 20th century. In the wake of Holocaust, it became controversial to make any reference to humans as biological beings. Still today, the political systems are staining biology through cynical construct like "biological weapons" which means "using Life for bringing Death". Evil products have been given even more cynical names. One of the worst examples is "Agent Orange" - a term obviously coined to mislead the public during the Vietnam war. The dioxin of Agent Orange is still causing immeasurable suffering to people, 25 years after its use.   

As "biology" became a stained term, "ecology" was invented as an euphemism for biological systems (seen as a convenience for humans, at some distance, and subject to good political control). Such "ecology" and the hinted understatement make things less clear. The word "biology" means "knowledge about life" while "ecology" literally means "knowledge about house(hold)" and is dangerously close to "economy" which is "control of house(holding)". There is more to Life than numbers and measurements.

We all have a responsibility for preserving biodiversity. If Industrial Evolution is carried out with the right attitude and the right perspective of time, there is no conflict with biodiversity as established by the Biological Evolution. If objects designed by engineers are called artefacts, we can gladly enjoy diversity of artefacts too. But before that, we must identify and stop the on-going crimes against biodiversity. The extinction of apes, elephants and big cats continues every day. There is no strong forum representing the Tree of Life. Yet, fifty years from now, it is no excuse to say "We did not understand what was going on."

Modified 2000-11-17