The Kardashev scale is a method of measuring a civilization's level of technological advancement based on the amount of energy it is capable of using. The measure was proposed by Soviet astronomer Nikolai Kardashev in 1964 and was named after him. The scale is hypothetical, and refers to energy consumption on a cosmic scale.
Type One : Energy produced by the planet, this includes fossil fuels and so called 'renewable energies'.
Type Two : Energy produced by the local star, including (but not limited to) solar, electromagnetic and gravitational. Futurists have theorised that encapsulating a star to control it's energy has been achieved elsewhere in the cosmos. There is evidence to support this theory with the detection of star emissions which are commensurate with that of so called 'Dyson Spheres'.
Type Three: The energy produced in the local galaxy. This implies the harnessing of stars, planetary rotations, solar system rotations and even black holes to fulfill the requirements of the population(s).
Currently the human race (on planet Earth) is perceived be somewhere on the route to becoming a Type One civilisation. Possibly a Type 0.4 or thereabouts. However there is a theory that maintains that the inhabitants of planet Earth are but a miniscule representation of humanity itself. With growing acceptance of consciousness existing outside of time and space, it is entirely likely that there are hominins elsewhere in the Milky Way who are inhabitants of civilisations considerably further along the Kardashev scale. This is the basis of the counter theories to the popular Fermi Paradox based philosophy which basically asserts that interstellar distances are too great for organic life to negotiate. There is indeed evidence to support the momentum behind this more contemporary school of thought. It is however, quite challenging stuff for little round Rhesus Macaque skulls to accept - or even comprehend.