Jeremy Rifkin Quotes

A collection of quotes by Jeremy Rifkin.

Jeremy Rifkin is an American economist, author, and social theorist known for his work on the impact of technology and economic development on society. Born on January 26, 1945, in Denver, Colorado, Rifkin has emerged as a prominent thinker on issues related to the future of work, energy, and sustainability.

Rifkin gained recognition for his book "The Third Industrial Revolution: How Lateral Power is Transforming Energy, the Economy, and the World," published in 2011. In this influential work, he outlines his vision of a sustainable society powered by renewable energy and interconnected communication technologies.

Throughout his career, Rifkin has advocated for the implementation of a collaborative, sharing economy, and has been a vocal proponent of green energy and its potential to transform society. His ideas have influenced national and international policymakers, as he has advised various governments and institutions on energy and economic development strategies.

In addition to his work as an author, Rifkin is the founder and president of the Foundation on Economic Trends, a nonprofit organization focused on exploring the impact of emerging technologies on the global economy. He has also served as an advisor to the European Union, helping shape policies related to climate change and renewable energy.

Jeremy Rifkin's theories have sparked both enthusiasm and debate, earning him recognition as a leading thinker on the future of the economy, technology, and sustainability.

The American public is not aware that there might be potenti

The American public is not aware that there might be potential allergenic and toxic reactions. With regular food, at least people know which foods they have an allergy to.

We were making the first step out of the age of chemistry an

We were making the first step out of the age of chemistry and physics, and into the age of biology.

The antitrust litigation currently in the federal courts in

The antitrust litigation currently in the federal courts in the U.S. against Monsanto will be the test case in the life sciences, just as the Microsoft case was the test case in the information sciences.

Life Science Tests Information

The public should know that the liability issues here have y

The public should know that the liability issues here have yet to be resolved, or even raised. If you're a farmer and you're growing a genetically engineering food crop, those genes are going to flow to the other farm.

It may be that everything the life science companies are tel

It may be that everything the life science companies are telling us will turn out to be right, and there's no problem here whatsoever. That defies logic.

Many of the mainstream agricultural scientists, especially a

Many of the mainstream agricultural scientists, especially at the agricultural schools, but at all of our major universities, are tied into all sorts of contractual relationships and consulting relationships with the life science companies.

What the public needs to understand is that these new techno

What the public needs to understand is that these new technologies, especially in recombinant DNA technology, allow scientists to bypass biological boundaries altogether.

Back in 1983, the United States government approved the rele

Back in 1983, the United States government approved the release of the first genetically modified organism. In this case, it was a bacteria that prevents frost on food crops.

The interesting thing is, while we die of diseases of afflue

The interesting thing is, while we die of diseases of affluence from eating all these fatty meats, our poor brethren in the developing world die of diseases of poverty, because the land is not used now to grow food grain for their families.

I wanted to make sure that this be the first scientific and

I wanted to make sure that this be the first scientific and technology revolution in history in which the public thoroughly discussed all the potential benefits and all the potential harms, in advance of the technology coming online and running its course.

The position I took at the time was that we hadn't really ex

The position I took at the time was that we hadn't really examined any of the potential environmental consequences of introducing genetically modified organisms.

What I'm suggesting to you is that this could be a renaissan

What I'm suggesting to you is that this could be a renaissance. We may be on the cusp of a future which could provide a tremendous leap forward for humanity.

They're now turning those seeds into intellectual property,

They're now turning those seeds into intellectual property, so they have a virtual lock on the seeds upon which we all depend for our food and survival.

In this country, the health concerns and the environmental c

In this country, the health concerns and the environmental concerns are as deep as in Europe. All the surveys show that. But here, we didn't have the cultural dimension. This is a fast-food culture.

We now have an opportunity, though, to do something we didn'

We now have an opportunity, though, to do something we didn't do in the industrial age, and that is to get a leg up on this, to bring the public in quickly, to have an informed debate.

We are already producing enough food to feed the world. We a

We are already producing enough food to feed the world. We already have technology in place that allows us to produce more than we can find a market for.

What's different here is that we have now technologies that

What's different here is that we have now technologies that allow these life science companies to bypass classical breeding. That's what makes it both powerful and exciting.