New Philosopher – July 2019

NewPhilosopher

gleamingchains,insideofa mountain

inwesternTexas– symbolisesa reck-

oning with our fate-tempting short-

comings as a species: an investment

inthe impossiblydistant future.This

kind of project renders eternity into

somethingalmostpalpable,therever-

berating tick-tock of a monumental

timekeeperechoingthroughspacefor

eonstocome.

I don’t believe there is a single

cultureinthisworldthatdoesn’tset

store by prolonging the lives of its

dead asa matterof course,honour-

ing national heroes, political lead-

ers,pioneers,monarchs,adventurers,

soldiers,scientists, and campaigners

with statues and plaques, promi-

nently placed in public squares or

outside important buildings so that

their deeds will not be forgotten.

Butit is a species-wideposteritythat

moves memore,especially thekind

thatembodiestheeco-sensibilitiesof

theLongNowandbringsthefuture

intoconversationwiththepresentas

a warninganda cautionagainst our

ownexcesses.Ifeternityinitsmate-

rialdimensionsmattersatall,thenit

is ourendangeredplanetthatmakes

thegreatestclaim.

InthissensetheeternityprojectI

mostadmirewasgeneratedbyBritish

publishingtycoonFelixDennis,who,

whenhediedin2014,leftmostofhis

£500millionfortunetoa re-wilding

project.Hiswishwastoplant30,000

acresofforestin Warwickshire,main-

lyEnglishOak andsilver birch,but

withpatches of glasspools of water

forwildlifeanda richundergrowthof

herbaceousplants,bulbs,and shrubs.

Thisis a projectthatfactorstimeinto

itsveryrealisation.It is notaboutstak-

inga claimonthefuture– ratherit is

workingwithandtowardsthatfuture.

“Whosoever plants a tree, winks at

immortality,”Dennisoncesaid.I like

tothinkthatthefuturemightoneday

winkbackat him.

“As you know, your father could be a difficult man...”

Eternity projects