Why 2020 to 2050 Will Be ‘the Most Transformative Decades in Human History’

A crisis like this will require proactive harm reduction on a civilizational scale. We will need to establish policies that encourage, rather than restrict, freedom of movement. And we must establish robust social safety nets so that families are less likely to abandon their homes in search of a place where they can simply live. Also, even before w... See more

Until we build a world that works for everyone, we’ll continue to have people whose survival is systematically erased by those in power. That’s the dystopia for the rich and powerful: a world where the rest of us finally realize the power we had all along to fight for a justice-focused society.

When Titley talks about migration, though, even he struggles to put the stakes in context. In the 2040s, if global sea levels rise by three feet and droughts, fires, heat waves, and floods continue to worsen, we could see around 250 million people forced from their homes. That’s about four times as many people as are currently displaced and about 5... See more

A study from researchers at the University of California at Berkeley found that higher temperatures and shifting patterns of extreme weather can cause a rise in all types of violence, from domestic abuse to civil wars. In extreme cases, it could cause countries to cease functioning and collapse altogether.

The 30 years from 2020 to 2050 will be among the most transformative decades in all of human history. Collapsing ice sheets, the aerosol crisis, and rising sea levels will force more people to leave their homes than at any other point in human history. In some places, that means conflict is inevitable.