As the new millennium has just begun, humanity is being confronted by the consequences of its success as the dominant species on planet Earth. As its numbers increase as never before, its home planet has begun to experience the effects of its overwhelming occupation: environmental degradation, resource depletion, loss of bio-diversity and uncontrolled climatic experimentation. The news is packed with alarming new statistics and dire predictions:

• 10 Billion People in 30 Years?

• Population Growth Predicted to Soon Outrun Food Supply

• Oil, Are We Running Out? Have Already We Peaked?

• Scientists: Earth Can't Support Current Lifestyle

• We Must Act Now. Insurance Companies Warn of Coming Climatic Change

• The Crises of Our Time: The UNO Warns of Mass Migrations

• 100 Million People Have Left Homes Because of Poverty

The alarm has been sounded and scientists and environmentalists are propagating a variety of "Down to Earth" prescriptions to meet these impending crises in an effort to restrain and reform humanity's careless ways. Their solutions for humanity are generally stated as: learning to live within our means, curbing our insatiable appetite for consuming resources, regulating economic and technological progress before this leads to further environmental problems, controlling the birthrate, and suggesting that the richer countries not only reduce their demands for more resources, but also that they share their existing wealth with the less affluent nations. Their headlines read:

• Start Easing the Rich-Poor Divide Now!

• 600 Billion Dollars From the Industrial Countries for Environmental Protection.

• Man Must Foster Greener Ways.

As sensible and practical as their prescriptions may sound, and as necessary as some of them are in any case, taken to their conclusion many of them go against human nature by requiring people to accept a lower standard of living by denying them of any hope for a better future. Now that democracy and a market economy appear to have become the political standard for joining the global community of nations, the accompanying standard of living is expected as a reward for doing so. Taking away the possibility for a better life just as masses of people have glimpsed that they may be on the threshold of prosperity is a prescription for further catastrophe. Is this the price of success?
 
Unfortunately, planet Earth, once assumed to be the entire Universe (and still is by many), is indeed finite. It has become obvious that its livable area as well as its available resources cannot perpetually sustain the current lifestyle of the present 6 billion people let alone the needs of almost twice this number of people which is expected within the next 50 years. Thus, the only real "Down to Earth" solutions which may have the desired effect are: retreating from an energy intensive market economy, reducing the present quality of life for everyone, and/or radically reducing the world's current population in the most efficient (and horrible) way. Neither option is very optimistic.
 
However, there is another option to these dismal predictions about the future. Called THE SPACE OPTION, it takes into account human nature and still offers an optimistic approach to meeting humanity's needs. It is an option that also appeals strongly to the human spirit by offering a creative approach to solving many of our impending problems. As pointed out by space pioneer Krafft Ehricke:

"While civilization is more than a high material living standard, it is nevertheless based on material abundance. It does not thrive on abject poverty or in an atmosphere of resignation and hopelessness. It needs vigor as well as vision. Therefore the end objectives of solar system exploration are social objectives in the sense that they relate to, or are dictated by, present and future human needs."

THE SPACE OPTION is an elaboration of these arguments that leads to the formulation of an evolutionary plan to meet the basic and anticipated needs of humanity through the utilization of near Earth resources - especially that of energy from space. The implementation of THE SPACE OPTION not only contributes to the restoration of the global environment by its reliance on unlimited, clean space solar energy to maintain and stimulate the global economy, but by also offering future generations a sufficient supply of material resources. Thus, THE SPACE OPTION provides hope for the less fortunate societies on the planet to aspire to reaching a living standard substantially beyond their present situation - an approach to the future that none of the current scenarios for "sustainable development" realistically provide for.

As such, THE SPACE OPTION could and should become the primary motivation for continued space exploration and development - perhaps even becoming a more powerful driver for space activities than national prestige and scientific exploration have been. If implemented in time and with sufficient commitment, the ultimate reward would be a prosperous and dynamic planetary civilization living in a healthy environment and the creation of an infrastructure in space upon which the expansion of the human species throughout the solar system and beyond could be realistically anticipated. In the words of visionary Arthur C. Clarke: