Update his statue, Eternesia's project -
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Grail of transhumanists, eternal life makes humanity fantasize as much as it disturbs it.
But if by life we mean the memories we leave for those who remain, it would seem that the digital age may finally bring us closer to a semblance of immortality.
In any case, this is the certainty of Dominique Pon, general manager of the Clinique Pasteur in Toulouse and of his Eternesia project.
Behind this name without too many ambiguities hides a real humanist design which would allow each of us to leave a digital imprint of our passage on earth.
As part of our series in connection with the program “La mort, si on en parlait?
»Organized by the Maif, we asked you what you think ...
Our dossier on digital death
A work of art
At the origin of Eternesia, a conviction: each human life is a unique work of art.
“So why is the only memorial heritage we have left is that of the elites?
"Asks Dominique Pon.
“In 50 years, Hitler and Stalin will probably be remembered more than the millions of people who disappeared in the camps and gulags,” the trained engineer cites us as an example.
And for Dominique Pon, yesterday as today, there has never been any reason whatsoever which justifies sorting out the value of a human life.
According to him, each of our lives must therefore, without being ashamed, be able to find its place within the world heritage of humanity.
To do this, he therefore imagines a new human right, that of the right to memory and digital posterity, articulated around a single project, Eternesia.
Store our life
This technology is not and should never take the form of a start-up, believes the CEO of the Clinique Pasteur.
“It is absolutely not a for-profit project,” he says firmly.
Taking the form of a foundation, “his” Eternesia would thus be managed by an ethics committee and financed exclusively by sponsorship.
Concretely, the platform will thus allow us to store throughout our life what will constitute our digital memory.
An idea that echoed with Fanny, one of our Internet users.
"I am quite seduced by this process because perhaps it will help alleviate the pain of mourning", explains the young woman.
More than relieving the pain of mourning, for Dominique Pon it is even a question of reappropriating the rites of mourning, which have disappeared from our modern societies: "Eternesia would come to register mourning in a more ecumenical dynamic", spiritual but detached from the religious framework. .
Relieve
For Guillaume too, the approach of the director of the Institut Pasteur in Toulouse makes sense.
“It seems to me to be a good thing, especially for our children or grandchildren.
They could see a missing loved one as if that person was still alive.
Eternesia, according to its founder, would effectively alleviate the pain of the leftovers by removing this burden of oblivion.
But it's also about relieving the pain of people at the end of their life.
“Thinking about our transmission helps us stay alive and gives meaning to the time we have left”, adds Eternesia's father.
Meaning for eternity
Some people doubt.
Sofiane, one of our readers, is thus moved by this eternity of facade.
“Life is interesting because it ends one day,” he wrote.
Against all expectations, Dominique Pon agrees.
“Precisely, Eternesia is part of the acceptance of our end.
I would even say more, the generous and positive acceptance of our own finitude.
It is the reverse of the utopia of the Gafa and of a kind of eternal life, ”he explains.
While the issue of digital memory is undoubtedly one of the major challenges of our century, the possibilities are ultimately quite simple, says Dominique Pon: “Either we continue to be passive on this issue, or we create the digital enlightenment.
If Eternesia remains a complex project both ethically, technically and structurally, one thing is certain, for this tireless humanist it will make sense for eternity.
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