The suggested approach to the task of restoring Earth's surface ecosystem while greatly expanding civilization, is first to do intense research and development on three areas at the same time, beginning ASAP: 1) to quickly build and utilize an efficient prototype 1,000-person space habitat, prefabricated on the ground and wet-launched as a series of segments to be docked in the wheel-like configuration on-site in orbit, to do R/D on the myriad interacting systems of machines and lifeforms in the operational environment; 2) to build a knowledge base of the key transportation system technology, the "Kinetic Energy Supported Transportation Structure."; and 3) to greatly increase the well-being and balanced competancy level of human beings so that we can accomplish this enormous task.

The majority of humanity would hopefully choose to move into this new, grander, home high above the equator, the GOHRC, with plenty of room to expand on from there later, built initially from Earth materials and later mostly from lunar and asteroidal raw materials by robotic manufacturing of the basic habitat structures. The interior environment of a GOH would feel much like it feels on the earth's surface, with gravity, sunshine, trees, animals and all, plenty of room inside. Thus freed of the burden of supporting mankind's civilization, an ecological balance of great biodiversity of species would be restored down on the earthsurface, greatly assisted by humanity in wisdom... like a vast "international park" to be nurtured and visited on summer camping trips, winter ski trips, and whale watching excursions; yet also a pampered wholesome treasurehouse of great genetic biodiversity for future milleniums. Such a vision must be maintained throughout the extraordinarily difficult and dangerous task of manifesting this goal's achievement, through the drudgery and the setbacks and the clamor for utility to replace live-ability in the name of cheapness. Because to succeed, its extreme similarity to earth surface ecosystems will enable the use of the vast diversity of biosystem organic recycling systems already developed by "Mother Earth", as well as make it an attractive environment for humanity to move into.

There will be plenty of opportunity to experience and utilize the zero-gee, hard-vacuum environment, as it awaits just outside each orbiting habitat. And the resources of our moon, the asteroid belt, and the other planetary moons, await just beyond that.

Thusly we can turn around the scenario of a resource-starved imploding civilization, to a civilization of robust lifesite construction almost without end, while at the same time coaxing the earthsurface ecosystem to heal itself from the wounds we already have so grieviously have inflicted on her, our "Mother Earth", "Gaia", ensuring maintenance of our "home away from home."

Perhaps we can do our best to make it happen, YES!

But aren't we doomed to earth resource depletion, burning of the rainforests, massive accumulation of unreclycable garbage, population reduction and endless conflict over what yet remains?

A more constructive viewpoint is that Mother Earth (some have named her 'Gaia") is 'ready to give birth' to her wonderful creation, mankind... it is time for partuiting, birth, to live a more independent life, growing beyond the nurturing confines of the 'womb'. In this metaphor, Mother Earth is now very pregnant with mankind, birth must happen or both will be severely injured. This web pagesite points a possible way for that birth to happen.

[No, it isn't necessarily so, that mankind is doomed to overrun the planet, pillaging Earth's resources and trashing the rest into mounds of garbage, resulting in tyrannical population control, famine, wars, endless gladiatorship and pestilence. Us being couch potatoes nursing on the boob tube until such depictions as "Mad Max" and "Soylent Green" become real, seems headed that way. But there is another choice, at least one very significant alternative: there is a possibility of restoring the earthsurface ecosystem while also greatly expanding human civilization at the same time. It involves courageously planning and building very big and very fast.]

Greatly expanding human civilization, while also restoring the earthsurface ecosystem at the same time?

The technology and interpersonal cooperation required for this concept may seem impossible or ridiculous to some people; and some others may be so inured to upsmanship gladiator-consciousness as to think they can "win" in the long-run battle for dwindling resources.

However, restoring much of the earth ecosystem while also greatly expanding human civilization does at least seem technologically possible in the scenario being described here. And although very much interesting technological development needs to be done, the necessary scientific discoveries have already been made. If humanity took on the task right now, each of the key structures could be being tested on site within 25 years from now, merely one generation's time; much of human civilization shifted to the new site within the generation after that, with Earth's ecosystem well on the way of being healed by then. Mother Earth will have given birth to life beyond herself in the solar system. The task is a worthy one for humanity, no more to war to make, but instead to take on far greater adventures instead, resulting in nurturing both humanity and earth's ecosystem. The achievement of this project will soon require a major boost to the balanced harmonious functionality of every individual human being, as the task is very enormous and intense. Surely this is a worthy task.

The expansion of civilization while also restoring the earthsurface ecoystem, could be achieved by building a multi-billion-person self-sustaining civilization, as an extention of the earthsurface ecosystem. Its location would be the entire geosynchronous orbit, 22,300 miles circling above the Earth's equator. It would be directly connected to the earthsurface by rail transportation structures supported by kinetic energy circulating within those structures. The concept's purpose is to enable a great expansion of human civilization while removing much of the load on the earthsurface ecosystem, thus enabling earth's restoration.

To create short names (acronyms) for the key parts of the concepts here: the new extention of human civilization is the Geosynchronous Orbiting Habitat Ring Civilization = "GOHRC". GOHRC is composed of individual Geosynchronous Orbiting Habitats = "GOH"; each GOH provides residential-agricultural-industrial needs for 10,000 to 1,000,000 people, and millions of GOHs are strung around the earth in the geosynchronous orbit above the equator. This orbital location is necessary because relatively unmoving entrances and exits are needed by the transportation system linking the GOHRC with earthsurface, called Kinetic Energy Supported Transportation Structures = "KESTS". These KESTS are structures which are supported by the internal circulating kinetic energy of their ElectroMechanically Coupled Orbital Mass Streams "EMCOMS". Boosting individual human functionality enough to achieve this task is called Increasing Balanced Individual Human Functionality = "IBIHF". And the earth's restoration is named the Restored Earthsurface Ecosystem = "REE".

The majority of humanity would hopefully choose to move into this new, grander, home high above the equator, the GOHRC, with plenty of room to expand on from there later, built initially from earth materials and later mostly from lunar and asteroidal raw materials by robotic manufacturing of the basic habitat structures. The interior environment of a GOH would feel much like it feels on the earth's surface, with gravity, sunshine, trees, animals and all, plenty of room inside. Thus freed of the burden of supporting mankind's civilization, an ecological balance of great biodiversity of species would be restored down on the earthsurface, greatly assisted by humanity in wisdom... like a vast "international park" to be nurtured and visited on summer camping trips, winter ski trips, and whale watching excursions; yet also a pampered wholesome treasurehouse of great genetic biodiversity for future milleniums.

Latest page construction upgrade was on 19960809. Copyright C © 1996 James E. D. Cline, right to copy freely given to all, provided that credit is given to the author,James E. D. Cline.

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It is said of environmentalists, that "when you are up to your ass in alligators, it is hard to remember you came to save the swamp." Yet both will perish, unless you do remember and respond appropriately.