Another world

Earth’s climate system is what makes Earth habitable. Industrial climate disruption is putting at risk the everyday habitability of our cherished homes—not just our planet, our hometowns and regions.

The 2023 State of the Climate report included this stark warning:

“By the end of this century, an estimated 3 to 6 billion individuals — approximately one-third to one-half of the global population — might find themselves confined beyond the livable region, encountering severe heat, limited food availability, and elevated mortality rates because of the effects of climate change (Lenton et al. 2023).”

Confined… beyond… the livable… region…

Confinement will be a routine part of life for up to half of humanity, confinement that is also exile—from all places that are habitable for human beings.

Smoke from wildfires in Canada’s Boreal Forest, seen in the skies over New Jersey, in July 2026, the Sun appearing like a dim red ball, with almost no glare. Wildfire smoke is not only harmful because of particulate pollution; it also carries novel pathogens, including bacteria, viruses, and fungi, for which those breathing the smoke likely have no immunity. Photo: Joseph Robertson.

Securing the future means working to eliminate these degrading threats from our everyday experience. That means valuing cooperative innovation, open civics, and the salience of unenumerated rights and undiagnosed risks.

the Geoversiv Notebook

Geoversiv Notebook entries are short notes, observations, and meditations. In as few words as possible, they examine facets of the complicated landscape of challenge, crisis, innovation, and disruption, that surrounds us as we move into the second quarter of the 21st century.

Recent Insights