Focus collapse

Newly established commission identifies 17 catastrophic threats to human health but says ‘realistic route to act’ on each exists

A la hausse constante des prix alimentaires s'ajoutent les effets de plus en plus dramatiques du changement climatique et un monde de plus en plus instable. Serons-nous réellement capables de nourrir une population qui devrait bientôt atteindre 10 milliards. Le professeur Tim Benton, l’un des plus grands experts mondiaux des systèmes alimentaires, estime que notre modèle économique de croissance infinie sur une planète aux ressources finies est voué à s’effondrer. Mais quand cela se produira-t-il ? Qu’est-ce que cela signifie concrètement ? Et enfin, entrons-nous réellement dans une ère de famine ?

Tim Benton, expert reconnu en sécurité alimentaire mondiale, afin de comprendre les causes de l'effondrement de nos systèmes alimentaires et les conditions nécessaires à la construction d'un système véritablement régénérateur. – Pourquoi le système alimentaire actuel est fondamentalement insoutenable – Que signifie concrètement le concept de « limites planétaires » – Le mythe de la croissance verte – Comment nos régimes alimentaires et nos systèmes agricoles doivent évoluer – Les 3 mécanismes qui nous empêchent d'avancer

What places on Earth are most resilient to global catastrophic risk (GCR)? We provide the first study of what locations are more resilient against the impacts of nuclear war, near-Earth objects, large-magnitude volcanic eruptions, large-scale cyberattacks, high altitude electromagnetic pulse, geomagnetic storms and pandemics. This shows there is no place on Earth which is resilient against all kinds of GCR. Australia shows resilience across the widest range of GCR scenarios in the literature we reviewed, but even for it, continued international cooperation and trade are essential. Across the different risks, common resilience factors that show up most are geographic isolation (e.g. islands), self-sufficiency (especially in food production), high governance quality (more democratic and lower inequality) and decentralization to mitigate single point catastrophic failures (e.g. impacting trade or food supply). Many of these factors stand in tension with each other and trade-offs are required to balance between d

Increasing instability of the ocean, ice and atmosphere threatens farming, finance and society. We all need to wake up to that fact.

And why when we do see it, we fail to act.

The climate and nature crisis threatens all aspects of British life, from national security to the food supply. Despite the scale of the risks now facing the UK, there has been no comprehensive national emergency briefing delivered to the public by the Government.

Four months into US oil blockade, Cubans see island drained as state electric company fights to provide even a few hours of power a day Ruaridh Nicoll in Havana - The doctor called from the darkness, a shadowy figure sitting on the stoop of his apartment building. “I want to tell you we’ve been four days without light,” he said. “And without electricity, water is also a problem. And there are mosquitoes everywhere.”

Cet article rapporte la difficulté du secteur manufacturier en Grande Bretagne à faire face à l’augmentation du cout de l'énergie. Dans l'ombre de cet article apparait ce qui sera la réalité à un moment donné, sans pétrole bon marché, l'industrie manufacturière ne peut pas fonctionner dans les conditions actuelles. Le contrat social sera rompu et il faudra réinventer une manière de vivre ensemble. La situation en Grande Bretagne est peut-être exacerbée par le Brexit et la situation insulaire mais elle est l'avant-poste de ce qui attend une bonne part du monde industrialisé, à moins de relancer le charbon avec toutes les conséquences sur le dérèglement climatique et la santé des personnes que nous connaissons.

While the term “Anthropocene” is well established across scientific disciplines and social spheres, interpretations are diverse. Taking account of the 2024 rejection by a geological commission to accept the Anthropocene as a geological epoch and the related scientific debate, here we offer a future-oriented perspective from the viewpoint of Earth system science. We describe different pathways in the Anthropocene up to the year 3,000, systematically characterizing them according to impacts and causes. We discuss the enormous global consequences of anthropogenic pressures on the Earth system and quantify the corresponding long-term commitment to change. Regarding the causes, we conservatively explore best-case and middle-of-the road emission scenarios, in combination with climate sensitivities drawn from within the IPCC likely range. We also discuss implications for Earth system resilience that could result in what we call worst case scenarios for Anthropocene outcomes. We conclude that, beyond the slow pace of

We must confront two stark realities about the end of our era. First, the collapse of our industrial civilization is already underway, manifesting as a slow, agonizing process of structural decay, economic exhaustion, and ecological overshoot. Second, this descent is terminal. We have permanently exhausted the physical prerequisites for any future technological reboot.

A Letter to the Newly Awake. I know exactly where you are sitting right now. You are staring at a chart of North Atlantic sea surface temperatures, watching a red line spike into uncharted, terrifying territory. Yet another horrible data point proving what you already know. You feel a familiar, hollow drop in your stomach as you register the biophysical reality: the planet’s systems are unraveling.

The fragility of the global food system fills me with dread – and the war with Iran has exposed just how close to collapse it is

Le philosophe de l'environnement Rupert Read dit à Ella Whelan la panéliste Moral Maze pourquoi nous ne pourrons peut-être plus profiter du même niveau de vie pour le bien de la planète et des générations futures.

Ten million people left without power in latest of outages that sparked violent protest last weekend

I know it’s almost impossible to turn your eyes away from the Trump show, but that’s the point. His antics, ever-grosser and more preposterous, are designed to keep him in our minds, to crowd out other issues. His insatiable craving for attention is a global-threat multiplier. You can’t help wondering whether there’s anything he wouldn’t do to dominate the headlines.

Global biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse and national security - A national security assessment

Ecosystem destruction will increase food shortages, disorder and mass migration, with effects already being felt

We are living in a time of polycrisis. If you feel trapped – you’re not alone. I hadn’t fully grasped how the idea of a better future sustained me – now I, like many others, find it difficult to be productive

The global collapse arrives piecemeal. Germany is going first.