The evolution revolution

Did you know, we share a common ancestor? Four billion years ago — Earth is 4. 6 billion years old — a microbe termed ‘Luca’ or the ‘Last Universal Common Ancestor’ lived deep underground in hydrothermal vents, turning hydrogen, CO2 and nitrogen into organic compounds. This was the beginning of all life.

Phylogenetics — the study of the tree of life — reveals that with Luca at its base, eukarya, bacteria and archaea formed. Eukarya have cells holding a nucleus, a genetic code and mitochondria enabling metabolism — two billion years ago, eukaryotes created all animals, plants, protozoa and fungi.




Life diversified — humans diverged from apes seven million years ago. The first humans to walk upright emerged 3. 2 million years ago. As we developed, using fire to cook, clearing land to farm, decorating caves with art and parchment with words, a brilliant species emerged. But this species remains interlocked with every other being, our lives enabled by bacteria making oxygen, plants creating food, soil microorganisms powering plants and animals and birds transporting seeds. This awareness makes evolution such a revolution — we are not alone. We are one among Earth’s gigantic and gifted family.



Today, this tribe faces danger. As humans evolved, we assumed a superiority and grew blinkered by greed — 1750 onwards, the Anthropocene saw industrialisation destroying forests, oceans and ozone. Humans now impact 83% of Earth’s land and 66% of its seas while our atmosphere holds the highest ever CO2 concentrations from fossil fuels. As habitats decline, one million animal and plant species face extinction. Land-based species have declined by 20% while 40% amphibians, 33% corals and 30% marine mammals could be permanently lost.

Wrapped in rhetoric, tinsel and tin, humans may think ourselves invincible — but without these species, there will be no fresh air, clean water, ripe crops or humanity. Solutions are still possible — as Times Evoke’s global experts emphasise, recognising the interdependence of all life is key. Multiple adaptations, from reforesting to rewilding and renewable energy, can revive endangered beings. But these involve another revolution in evolution, where humans must adapt to survive. Join Times Evoke in this extraordinary journey, tracking where we came from — and where we must travel.