Game Theory, Climate Change & Junkspace

While examining Rem Koolhaas' essay "Junkspace," I observed numerous parallels with Environmental Philosopher Stephen Gardiner's book, "A Perfect Moral Storm: The Ethical Tragedy of Climate Change." Both texts emphasize concerns related to consumerism and its impact on the built environment. Gardiner employs the concept of "Game Theory" to relate real-world complications and challenges associated with the global climate crisis. When people are influenced by limited temporal and spatial perspectives, they tend to act in their immediate self-interest, prioritizing benefits within an observable timeframe and often exclusively for those they support, ultimately leaving behind junk for the next generation. This recurring theme is evident in Koolhaas' essay through various quotes, such as:

"Junkspace will be our tomb. Half of mankind pollutes to produce, the other pollutes to consume. The combined

population of all third-world cars, motorbikes, trucks, buses, sweatshops pales into insignificance compared

to the heat generated by Junkspace."

"Globalization turns language into Junkspace."

"Then Junkspace spreads like a forest fire in L.A… The global progress of Junkspace represents a final manifest destiny; the World as public space…"

"Junkspace turns into biojunk; ecology turns into ecospace. Ecology and economy have bonded in Junkspace as ecolomy."

Gardiner also contends that this issue extends to the realms of economy, business, politics, and government, as individuals and institutions in positions of influence prioritize short-term gains in profits, power, or votes. Gardiner's response to criticism serves as a poignant illustration of the challenges posed by self-referential and time-sensitive incentives, mirroring the tragic structures of agency described by Koolhaas in his analysis of Junkspace architecture.