The Overarching Concept Behind Civilizations’ Collapse

Civilizations are known to collapse from a variety of causes—foreign invasions, internal conflicts, disease outbreaks, etc—but there is a crucial and shared concept that brought many civilizations to the brink of collapse: environmental and ecological impacts. Following Joseph Tainter’s overarching theory, the paper examines the outcomes of unsustainability by using the Roman Empire’s legacy as a representational example. The social and structural aspects of Rome and an illustration of its geographic and climatic circumstances were all discussed intricately to portray a full picture of not only the moment of collapse but also the nescient decisions that led Rome to the brink of collapse. In the end, Rome’s case was brought to close comparison with the global modern civilization that we have today. This historical paper serves not only as an attempt to recapture the lessons of the past but also as a call to action for the future.