"Collapse of Industrial Civilization to Begin from 2040"

Due to Overexploitation of Earth's Resources... "Will Greatly Harm Food Production and Quality of Life"

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[Asia Economy Senior Reporter Jinsoo Lee] It has been claimed that the modern industrial civilization we are part of will begin to collapse around 2040.

In November last year, a new report titled "Update to limits to growth" was published in the Journal of Industrial Ecology, an online scientific journal issued bimonthly by Yale University in the United States. Recently, the American digital channel Motherboard highlighted this report again, bringing renewed attention to the theory of the collapse of modern industrial civilization.

In 1972, a research team at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) predicted that industrial civilization would start to collapse within the 21st century, attributing this to the overexploitation of Earth's resources. The report, titled "The Limits to Growth; a report for the Club of Rome’s project on the predicament of mankind," faced significant criticism at the time. However, according to a new report analyzing it, the MIT researchers' predictions have proven to be very accurate to date.

Gaya Herrington, an analyst at the global consulting firm KPMG and author of the new report, evaluated that "the 1970s MIT research report was very accurate," and forecasted that "according to it, modern industrial civilization will begin its path toward collapse by 2040." She added, "This does not mean humanity will be extinct by 2040, but that our way of life could change forever thereafter."

In the current climate of high expectations for economic recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic, Herrington's new report raises urgent issues that must be addressed before returning to pre-pandemic normalcy.

She predicted, "Starting from 2040, economic and industrial growth will halt and enter a decline, which will significantly harm food production and quality of life."

However, there is not no way to stop the decline of industrial civilization. Herrington advised that we must stop the overexploitation of Earth's resources and change direction. Considering how vaccines were developed and distributed at an unprecedented speed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Herrington believes that if we decide to act, we can respond quickly and constructively to the anticipated collapse of industrial civilization. But there is little time left.

Herrington's report is currently available for viewing on KPMG's website.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.