>>The idea that without capitalism we will become less wasteful and more mindful of our global predicament sounds implausible to me.<<
I don't know why 🤷♂️
Unless you really just don't see how capitalism drives so much waste, depletion and destruction, or if you think capitalism is an entirely voluntary system, not coercive.
I mean look at just one tiny and very limited example and think about the potential ramifications: police defending dumpsters of expired food from being utilized by hungry people, and retailers intentionally fouling such food to prevent people from eating it. This is a very simple, direct example. Others are more deeply embedded into the way things work now; the motivations and constraints capitalism injects everywhere.
The narrative you're pushing here is that capitalism is not to blame and removing it won't change anything, but the evidence and arguments you keep presenting are all based on conditions that were created by capitalism and have to be constantly maintained through great effort and violence.
I guess we have a huge disagreement over how capitalism affects people's behavior and circumstances.
As for megafauna extinction, it is not conclusive that humans were the main driver but even if true, it is not by itself a defining picture of our species, in fact there are many counter-examples: