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18 April 2024 LESSON environment, anthropology, biology Today we are in the midst of what scientists call a “polycrisis”, that is, a perfect storm, a conjunction of different and interconnected crises. Hoping to find exclusively technical solutions for each crisis (from geoengineering to CO2 capture) risks revealing itself as an illusion. New technologies alone will not be enough, without a change in development, consumption, transport and food models. Without realistic utopias that indicate a far-sighted direction and favor unexpected serendipity. From an evolutionary perspective, what is happening is a “niche construction” (that is, a species that alters the environment around itself to adapt it to its purposes, as beavers do) that risks derailing and turning into an “evolutionary trap” (subsequent generations inherit from previous ones an environment to which it is more difficult to adapt). On the one hand, it is unrealistic to think of returning to original situations and virgin natures that no longer exist, and perhaps never existed. On the other hand, imagining new co-evolution between the human species and the environment exposes us to unprecedented difficulties. In this regard, the case of the gene drive to intentionally extinguish species harmful to us and the visionary project “Predator Free 2050” of New Zealand will be discussed. Institutional greetings by: Stefano Corgnati, Rector of the Polytechnic of Turin Alberto Cirio, President of the Piedmont Region Stefano Lo Russo, Mayor of the City of Turin