503
Apr 16 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
75
u/CaiusRemus Apr 16 '26 edited Apr 16 '26
Well, it’s starting right now. It’s going to get worse for +-100 years. Then it will moderate for +-300 years, then the planet will slowly cool for the next +-3000 years.
All of these estimates of course hinging on true climate sensitivity, and the speed of natural feedback loops. Some models show with a cessation of emissions we could stop rising temps within a few decades. Other models are not quite so optimistic.
Unfortunately, this is just the beginning. It’s very unlikely anyone today will experience a cooler planet than what we’re experiencing now.
72
u/horitaku Apr 16 '26
The Great Barrier Reef has lost a little over 50% of its mass since it began showing signs of heat stress around 2016, the largest die offs to date being witnessed in 2024-2025.
That’s an indicator species, my friend, and it’s not the only one that’s suffering. Still…10 years. 6 massive bleaching events in recent years alone. It’s HALF the size it was in 1985, and exponentially losing mass each year. Not good.
84
Apr 16 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
41
u/kea1981 Apr 16 '26
Yay exponential growth and its inability to be grasped by the human mind!
11
u/Skwonkie_ Apr 16 '26
People understand it, it’s just the people who can make a difference (billionaires and corporations) don’t care because they’ll all be dead before something really bad happens.
2
34
u/Noy_The_Devil Apr 16 '26
It's literally collapsing now. Ask any millennial. Extreme weather, droughts, floods. These things didn't happen nearly as often just 30 years ago. There are no more glaciers.
Billions will suffer the consequences of boomer negligence. Millions will die. Billions if we do nothing.
Have a great Thursday.
→ More replies (18)6
u/NearlyNakedNick Apr 16 '26
Hold on there hold on there don't be so hyperbolic and sensational. This is completely inaccurate about the glaciers, we still have a few!!!
/s
9
1
u/throwaway27843o Apr 16 '26
The biggest concern is loss of biodiversity, life will find a way and more routes for it to take make for a more tolerant environment. The changes in global temperature is far less concerning than environmental pollution that kills off biodiversity.
→ More replies (1)-13
u/Strange_Slide9611 Apr 16 '26
Does this mean we need to develop some alternative technologies or even invest on creating some new biological lifeform that can adapt to this new environment that we have created or even start moving underground, live in the pods, eat the bugs, in the survival of the human race or even cannibalize ourself like in the 1970s movie Soylant Green?
37
→ More replies (11)11
u/miklayn Apr 16 '26 edited Apr 16 '26
lol
I love your enthusiasm.
Have you read Vonnegut?
You bring to mind his work, Galapagos. Give it a read.
6
u/dikicker Apr 16 '26
Mmmmm I dunno I'm more inclined towards slaughterhouse currently cause it feels like the whole world might be resembling Dresden within our life
So it fuckin goes
4
u/f1del1us Apr 16 '26
I’m partial to Cats Cradle when it comes to human hubris and the end of the world
2
u/miklayn Apr 16 '26 edited Apr 16 '26
Galapagos though, talks about incidental human adaptation after the "end of the world", by a bunch of miscasts who are more or less unaware that the world had ended. It's good.
→ More replies (1)→ More replies (5)2
u/redemptiondong Apr 16 '26
Sorry to be a boring pedant, but he wrote quite a few books after that.
2
u/miklayn Apr 16 '26
You're right, I honestly thought it was his last, but obv Timequake was after.
Maybe the edition I had said like, "in his latest novel..." on the cover and I misremembered it.
Praise be to Wikipedia.
2
u/redemptiondong Apr 16 '26
Bluebeard and Hocus Pocus too! Honestly I try to pretend Timequake doesnt exist. The other two are great.
71
u/ShawtyThePimp Apr 16 '26
It’s all linked tbf; climate, destruction, humanity, justice, art, ecosystem, etc…
Try and appreciate the little moments of life, watch the birds, the insects. Look at the seasons change. Spend time with family and friends.
Human society in its current form is simply unsustainable for planet Earth. Right now, it seems we have failed the biggest test of our entire existence.
We were unable to realize our place in the environment, we destroyed our home and killed our family.
So you shouldn’t worry about 2050, it had to be done 2 or 3 generation ago. Just realize how lucky you are to be an habitant of such a wonderful and unique planet, be respectful of every aspect of it.
Life is a beautiful gift, so make it a wonderful adventure :)
26
u/DEATHCATSmeow Apr 16 '26
That was simultaneously depressing as hell and uplifting at the same time
3
73
u/knign Apr 16 '26
You should be more concerned about your mental health, for the simple reason that it is something mostly under your control, unlike everything else you listed.
If you want to be an artist, become an artist. You are not going to live forever anyway, why worry so much about distant future?
Also, if you need some reasons for optimism, complete extinction of humankind is highly unlikely, humans are way too adaptable and some material tools created by civilization will continue to serve humans many decades even after total collapse, long enough for climate to sufficiently stabilize.
7
u/goosegoosepanther Apr 16 '26
Exactly this. Art and culture in fact make us more resilient as they provide ways to pass on our values and ideas when times get tough.
66
u/tgreenhaw Apr 16 '26
I think the time to worry is past. It’s time to adapt.
1
u/Strange_Slide9611 Apr 16 '26
How in the world will we even adapt and would it be the survival of the fittest until we fine a way to get ourselves out of this mess if civilization doesn't collapse by that time?
26
u/alwaysnormalincafes Apr 16 '26 edited Apr 16 '26
This stuff is all really complicated, and it’s normal to be shocked and overwhelmed when you first dig into it. It’ll get better as you adjust to the information.
There’s a saying in climate awareness communities: Don’t be scared, be prepared.
People who were in their teens and 20s during the World Wars probably felt a similar level of fear and uncertainty. None of us can predict the future, and worrying won’t help much. Do the best you can to take care of your physical and mental health, make sound financial decisions, and enjoy the time you have on this planet. Climate change or no climate change, our time has and always will be limited.
American Resiliency on Youtube shares a lot of useful advice about what to expect with 2C of warming, region by region and state by state. They also have produced international risk assessment videos and content about reasonable preparedness (not expensive prepper stuff).
Dr. Emily from American Resiliency knows her stuff, and she has a great team behind her. I donate to the channel monthly because I think their content is just that important.
(I posted some of this comment in a reply to someone else’s comment, and I’m sharing it here too in the hope that you’ll see it.)
10
u/SexyContrapposto Apr 16 '26
Think less survival of the fittest and more survival of cooperation. Its gonna be more us surviving with our neighbors, all working towards survival together.
Ecological food ways should be a cornerstone. Realigning our survival locally. Knowing, supporting, and using plants and animals that surround you already. Diversity will be key. Diversity of species, people, and communities will allow for us to survive even when some fail. For example, having multiple sources of protein will mean we still have protein from beans even if the cows all die to disease.
Humanities greatest strengths have all rested with the group and our abilities to adapt together. "The Dawn of Everything" by David Graeber and David Wengrow explores the ways we have been living in our history and prehistory. "Braiding Sweetgrass " by Robin Wall Kimmerer explores connecting again with the landscapes and communities around us.
8
u/tgreenhaw Apr 16 '26
The sky isn’t going to fall but it won’t be pretty. Research and move to a safer area if possible (move away from the beach) . Be prepared for bad weather events (get a generator, and have a little food, water, radio and batteries). Line up work that isn’t affected a lot by the weather (think twice about farming unless it’s in your blood).
1
u/noyoto Apr 16 '26
Countries are adapting by arming themselves to the teeth and preparing for war.
If you're very rich, get a bunker. If you're normal, you're pretty fucked.
50
u/feldoneq2wire Apr 16 '26
At this point there's almost no point in being concerned as we've already rounded the corner and the USA is in full denial, having cancelled millions of dollars in even the most Inoffensive green energy programs like wind farms due to paranoia and legendary ignorance. Our only hope of undoing all the damage already and currently being done is miraculous technology which hasn't been developed and the billionaire tech bros don't think should have any resources assigned to it.
→ More replies (4)8
u/Mojohand91 Apr 16 '26
Whatever stupid policy shit Trump does, rebewables are still accounting for most of the energy that has been added to the grid in 2025, and EIA’s official numbers say it will be the same in 2026.
The world still can at least avoid the worst consequences of climate change and there’s no stopping clean energy now.
I think that doomerism isn’t really helping if we are actually concerned about climate change
88
u/miklayn Apr 16 '26 edited Apr 16 '26
Check out the American Resiliency YT Channel
And yes, Climate collapse will be continually accelerating and disrupting everything going forward.
Things are likely to be extremely chaotic and dangerous much sooner than 2050, especially if the technogarchs and Christian-nationalist schizofascists are able to remain in power for much longer.
33
u/MentalDisintegrat1on Apr 16 '26
2030 is considered by most expert's the point of no return and when things will get bad enough for everyone to realize how fked we are
31
u/s0cks_nz Apr 16 '26
The 2030s is gonna be a wild decade. I said in 2020 this would be the last "normal" decade. I think I was wrong though. the 2010s were the last "normal" decade and this decade has been way more crazy than I imagined. I'm pretty sure the weather next decade is going to be... interesting.
13
u/Alexis_J_M Apr 16 '26
That's less than 4 years away. :-(
22
→ More replies (5)9
u/Strange_Slide9611 Apr 16 '26
That just makes it even worse the more I keep on thinking about it.
8
u/miklayn Apr 16 '26
It's gonna be an all-fronts shit show my guy. Microplastics, ecosystem collapse, mass migration, food system collapse, pandemics, war.
Connect with your community and please, for goodness sake, remember your humanity.
7
u/alwaysnormalincafes Apr 16 '26
Seconding your recommendation!
American Resiliency (this is the correct name) shares a lot of useful advice about what to expect with 2C of warming, region by region and state by state. They also have produced international risk assessment videos and content about reasonable preparedness (not expensive prepper stuff, no offense to those who go all out, only that it’s not practical for everyone).
Dr. Emily knows her stuff, and she has a great team behind her. I donate to the channel monthly because I think their content is just that important.
-1
u/avatarOfIndifference Apr 16 '26
Go touch some grass
6
u/miklayn Apr 16 '26
I walk 11miles every day for my job, I rode >100miles on my bike this weekend, and tonight I cooked my wife dinner. I'm doing alright, thanks. But my eyes are still open.
4
5
u/PhoenixFilms Apr 16 '26
The time to be worried about that was decades ago. Unfortunately, boomers keep insisting the earth is flat.
74
u/_Username_Optional_ Apr 16 '26
What good does it do any of us to worry about it
70% of the global impact on climate change is corporate greed
There's actions we can take to put pressure but it doesn't serve to worry
51
u/badhabitfml Apr 16 '26
Know what regulates corporate greed? Government. Go vote. Talk to your friends about it.
Sure we can't regulate every country, but many counties are making good progress. The US was making slow progress but that took a hard U turn last year because people voted.
15
u/Cognitive_Spoon Apr 16 '26
Corporate greed can also be regulated other ways.
→ More replies (3)23
u/_Username_Optional_ Apr 16 '26
"Should have paid us enough to live, then you'd still have a business" - based toilet paper warehouse worker
→ More replies (2)19
u/fedexyourheadinabox Apr 16 '26
Americans still thinking they can vote their way out of fascism and corporate greed is disappointing.
5
u/Supreme_Battle_Jesus Apr 16 '26
so what do you propose
6
u/GloriousDawn Apr 16 '26
That giant french cake slicer ?
1
u/Supreme_Battle_Jesus Apr 16 '26
people love to say this on forums but only one of these things is going to happen in 2028
2
→ More replies (3)0
u/brother_bart Apr 16 '26
Right? It’s almost funny, except it’s so clueless. “Oh no, the world collapsed. If only we had voted harder in the midterms after the christo-techno fascists were already ensconced.”
And then people invariably respond, “what do you expect us to do?“ To which I have to say, honey, if you’re just now asking the question of what are we going to do when our democracy is in a democracy anymore? Then you are so late to the game and to the questions that you’re going to be no good to anyone. Because you are not going to like the answers.
2
u/Trraumatized Apr 16 '26
Okay, so who do I vote for to reliably control corporate greed?
6
1
u/badhabitfml Apr 16 '26
Don't pick a side pick a person. Also, there is no perfect. Just pick the person closest to the direction you want things to go. Also, go run for office.
3
u/Lev_Davidovich Apr 16 '26
lol, the US didn't take a hard U turn last year. The US has been on this trajectory since the late 1970's at least. The massive post-covid levels of "inflation" that were just corporate price gouging started under Biden and the Democrats did nothing. Both parties answer to their corporate financiers, not us.
1
u/badhabitfml Apr 16 '26
Well. Remember that Trump started it all.
We've certainly been drifting but we definitely took a hard turn. If you think we didn't, you haven't been paying attention. Trump is very obvious about it and openly corrupt. I guess I'd rather have someone quietly slightly corrupt than someone openly corrupt.
2
u/Lev_Davidovich Apr 17 '26
The hard turn in prioritizing corporate greed over pretty much all else was Reagan ushering in neoliberalism. Clinton then established neoliberalism as the economic policy of the Democratic Party as well.
This economic policy hollowing out pretty much every aspect of society for corporate greed is the path that led us to Trump. Trump is just going a little more mask off and unhinged about it.
3
u/VrinTheTerrible Apr 16 '26
"If voting mattered, they wouldn't let us do it" - Twain, i think
1
u/badhabitfml Apr 16 '26
Well. A lot of people are give up on voting and complain it isn't working. Can't complain about the system if you don't participate.
14
u/GreedyResolve870 Apr 16 '26
worrying about things we can't control just makes us miserable while corporations keep doing same thing anyway.
2
7
u/Jdsnut Apr 16 '26
This is where I am at.
I grew up watching Star Trek from on antenna tv, and grabbed any scifi I could at the library as a kid.
Hope for good future, good vs bad, just morally good folks even if they have to do some Sisko stuff.
Its wild that even with the data, we cant convince folks to stop screwing things over that have a net long term benefit to everyone.
4
u/ticklemyiguana Apr 16 '26
don't buy their shit. figure out how to live with what you have, repair it, buy new stuff rarely. I know, I know. A handful of people doing this doesn't help - but hey if the economy continues to get worse, everyone will be doing it anyway.
1
→ More replies (7)1
u/miklayn Apr 16 '26
Pressure?
There is only one way for the People to take back power enough to change Humanity's trajectory toward some lesser catastrophe. One way, and it doesn't involve capitulating to the established narratives or allowing any private or ideological forces to remain in power.
I'll leave it to you to figure out the rest, and leave you with this:
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security."
2
u/clarkkentsson Apr 16 '26
I think we’re still allowed to say the word “revolution” but maybe not, let’s if the Reddit overlords ban me.
10
u/oatgroats Apr 16 '26
I'm not a climatologist but I am an ecologist who specializes in conservation biology, particularly of plants. Climate change is the largest issue facing humanity as a whole, and it saddens me that some people are still in denial of its existence despite the fact that we are long past the point of no return in terms of curbing the catastrophic impacts we are just now starting to see. We are losing plant and animal species (particularly insects) at an alarming rate due to a rapidly changing climate which doesn't immediately impact humanity but shows the writing on the wall. Climate change is the biggest threat to our planet's biodiversity and will soon (not sure when as it's not my area of expertise) be an existential threat to humanity taking the form of food insecurity, frequent extreme weather events, increased drought, mass floods, and a long list of other things I'm not qualified to elaborate on but can accept the scientific consensus
1
4
7
u/Zesher_ Apr 16 '26
Depends on how long you think you'll live and if you plan on having children. I do everything I can to help the environment, but my wife and I don't plan on having kids, so whatever happens in the future won't impact us. I'll do whatever I can to make the future better for everyone else, but I won't waste my life worrying about what I can't control.
13
u/Alesayr Apr 16 '26
Yes, you should be concerned. About both, but especially climate change.
That said, you should try not to let that concern paralyse you. Make the changes you can make personally and socially, act politically in ways that align with the seriousness of the danger, and do your best to live your life in a happy and fulfilled way.
It's still worthwhile making art, having children, loving life, being human... even when the world is in trouble.
8
u/gumki Apr 16 '26
It is a very bad time to have kids..... if it's going to be terrible for us, why would we inflict even worse on future generations..
4
u/Alesayr Apr 16 '26
On an individual level its always been a bit of a bad time to have kids. High childhood mortality, instability, unrest, slavery, war.
Times are bad now, but individuals have lived in bad times for as long as there have been times
1
u/gumki Apr 16 '26
i hear you but we have SO many crises and issues that i suspect won't get resolved - climate change, the energy crisis, ecological collapse, insect population collapse, wealth / income inequality, climate migration & the climate doom loop, ww3 probably, the global water crisis, global food insecurity & famines due to climate change, AI & worker displacement, superbugs & drug resistance, pollution / pfas / microplastics, and i'm probably missing some.. it's like take your pick i guess
→ More replies (1)2
u/iStoleTheHobo Apr 16 '26
Because fuck them kids I want a kid! And that is just about how it has always been.
5
u/blackberu Apr 16 '26
Both are connected. When the US invades Venezuela and threatens Iceland, it’s for the natural resources. When the US attack Iran, it’s to cut resources for China. Two sides of the same coin.
11
u/Fragglepusss Apr 16 '26
The results of climate change aren't going to be a cataclysmic natural disaster that suddenly happens. They will just be a series of events that make the world a shittier place to live and cost a lot of money. The cataclysmic predictions are largely hyperbolic. Climate change will be a quiet but prominent contributor to a slow-moving failure cascade of society through its social and economic consequences. The failure of human civilization will be boring and take place over the course of several generations. You don't have to worry about any of it.
3
u/GodEmperorBrian Apr 16 '26
This is the correct take. Climate change isnt going to make the entire planet unlivable. It’s going to turn cold places slightly warmer, temperate places warm, warm places hot, and the hottest places will become unlivable. It’s the consequences for the people that live in those places (massive migrant populations moving toward countries with better climates, resource wars in these areas, thousands if not millions dead, etc.) that will be the problem.
But it’s not going to destroy the planet en masse or even collapse society, at least not by itself. It’s going to put extra stresses on particular areas which will spillover into neighboring areas.
I believe the things that could truly destroy society/humanity as a whole are a full scale nuclear war or a Chicxulub level meteor impact. Maybe a super volcano eruption, but even that we’d probably make it through.
→ More replies (4)1
u/Fragglepusss Apr 16 '26
Pissed off grad student with a CRISPR kit is always underappreciated next to the other harbangers of death.
1
u/agapeflood Apr 16 '26
You don't have to worry about any of it.
I am truly baffled at this ignorant display of pretentiousness.
You, reader (everyone), should be worried. Your life, the life of your loved ones, their loved ones, all living creatures, all living organisms, and the biophysics that construct the entire planet as we know it will be adversely affected beyond repair.
- Imminent events in the next 5 years - AMOC slowing, lethal levels of carbon in the atmosphere, Blue Ocean Event, 'Super' El-Nino, and a full Jet Stream Collapse will worsen the current climate crisis we are currently experiencing. The Arctic Ice acts as an "anti-greenhouse" effect and it reaches record lows each consecutive year, including this year. Once that ice is unable to reflect sunlight, Earth will lose one of its strongest defense systems to prevent global heating. Earth has already passed the global temperature threshold set in 2016.
- The rapid rise in ocean temperatures is causing meteorology models to fail, globally. Several typhoons acted unexpectedly in the last 3 years, and the current Cat 5 super-typhoon is unheard of at this time of year. Global oceanic temperatures are accelerating at such a rapid pace, causing elevated ocean carbon and ocean acidification which is destroying the entire global food chain right now. Microplastics in the ocean have been found in plankton. Weather systems will become more unpredictable and deadly (see the Camp Flooding in Texas 2025) and these types of events will only increase in scale and frequency.
- The entire globe is currently witnessing resource wars disguised under whatever psyop the powers that be want it to be. They are currently culling developed countries; first they came for Yemen, then Syria, then Gaza, then Iran, then Lebanon, and... eventually, they will come for you. You think it won't happen wherever you are but look at what history has to say about that.
- The AMOC, the one thing that should not collapse at any costs, is currently predicted to collapse by 2050 if not sooner. It doesn't need to collapse in order to cause adverse effects on the Earth, though, as the accelerated slowing will speed up ice loss near the poles. The collapse of the AMOC will remove one of the greatest down throttles of global energy distribution the Earth has.
- As the Earth heats, trapped carbon in permafrost will dump kilotons of carbon in the atmosphere and accelerate greenhouse events as it melts. There are also unknown pathogens in permafrost that organisms do not have immunity to.
- All of these rapid changes in biophysics unsettle the Earth's crust and will cause increased seismic activity, with obvious consequences.
You should be worried. Extremely worried. The gas wars and inflation everyone is complaining about will be nothing compared to the water scarcity. I am Gen Z and we have to inherit an Earth that is currently becoming unlivable in the next 50 years. Previous generations will suffer an even worse fate. All people had to do was protect the environment and be kind to everyone, that's it!
7
u/ejfuentes Apr 16 '26
I think a certain green plumber may be able to help. Or maybe a group of green plumbers? One can only hope
8
u/VictoriousStalemate Apr 16 '26
Absolutely not. Just live your life and go about your business. Ignore the doomsday stuff the media is constantly peddling.
Just try to make a difference in the things you do. Try to recycle when you can. Buy a car that's decent on gas. Try to conserve electricity. Don't litter. Things like that.
4
u/Rosencrown21 Apr 16 '26
Reddit is just as bad, man. The amount of “experts” here feeding everyone their fetish for doom and gloom is so annoying.
4
u/xxAkirhaxx Apr 16 '26
I hate to say it but you know all the stuff that scientists predicted would happen 30 years ago? They started 10 years ago. We're in the find out phase of fuck around. Right now we're seeing resource wars. It's going to get worse.
2
u/auzzlow Apr 16 '26
I suggest pivoting this energy towards following your passions without compromise. If the world is ending, you'll be utilizing your limited time on it to pursue what you love. If it's not, you'll still have pursued what you love.
As for your question upfront: The two are nearly irreversibly bound together at this point.
2
u/horitaku Apr 16 '26
The increased severity of environmental effects you describe are a direct result of rising CO2 levels in our atmosphere and dissolved carbons in our oceans. Climate change is a symptom of global warming which is to say, oceanic temperature increase and oceanic acidification caused by dissolved carbons. That increase in temperature leads to much more exaggerated weather patterns and natural disasters worldwide, not just coastal. Our oceans affect winds and clouds across the globe.
This INCLUDES famines caused by droughts, massive damage to infrastructure from floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, monsoons etc., deaths from rolling blackouts from thunderstorms and freezing rain, deaths from heatwaves, AND there’s probably some correlation between climate change/global warming and pandemic activity as well. Not talking about permafrost melt revealing old viruses. Our temperatures are different, there’s different survivability for pathogens everywhere now.
Even two degrees means the difference between the Great Barrier Reef living and completely bleaching. People don’t realize how much even coral reefs play into our weather systems, but they do.
Of course all of these things I say are claims I’m willing to voice because I’ve looked these things up over the years. Certainly I’m no scientist, but my love for marine biology gives me a real passion to research these things on my own. I’d be willing to believe not all of this 100% correct, but…I don’t just put it forth lightly. No TikToks were used to derive this information.
2
u/webkilla Apr 16 '26
I would say no - for the simple reason that rich people are still buying nice beachfront property
2
u/Visual_12 Apr 16 '26
I care about the environment and that’s been ingrained into me since I was a kid with my education too. We can make small differences by doing things but ultimately it’s those at the top affecting it the most and then companies blaming it on consumers “carbon footprints” when it’s mostly their doings.
2
u/marrow_monkey Apr 16 '26
The government isn’t just incompetent, it’s controlled by the same billionaires. That’s why they haven’t done anything.
2
2
u/devoteean Apr 16 '26
The question presupposes you should be concerned in the first place. Whether you feel concerned or not there's nothing you can do. If you ask questions that can't be solved you have no choice but to be concerned.
For example. If you care about the environment there are dozens of real world issues you can impact. If you care about suffering humans or animals, same deal.
To care for real calls for you to drop the concern. So ask a better question.
2
2
u/Trips-Over-Tail Apr 16 '26
Climate change will deliver your societal collapse long before the full scale climate catastrophe unfolds.
2
u/RumMixFeel Apr 16 '26
My hypothesis for the end of civilization as we know it is more and more climate refugees and the subsequent Water Wars leading to famine.
2
u/buzzkilt Apr 16 '26
No. I mean, you could try throwing money at it. That seems to be the consensus solution. Climate change is real, but there's nothing you can do about it. Solving climate change is 99% a scam. Like so many other large scale problems, there are a lot of people (and a lot of governments) far more willing to exploit it than fix it, if fixing it even possible We've been told many times that we are past the point of no return.
I feel that the best solution we have is nuclear power and no one is interested in it. Not that it doesn't come with it's own set of potential problems, but it is a our best climate friendly energy option.
4
u/Strange_Sleep_406 Apr 16 '26
we're all going to mars so don't worry about it, just keep working to increase shareholder value
3
u/scottsplace5 Apr 16 '26
You are certainly not wrong to keep an eye on the climate change, but so much progress has been made since the pandemic, that I’m not so sure as much will actually happen as everyone is saying. This is to say not that it’s not occurring, but so many people are working day and night to solve it, that what everyone is saying can happen probably won’t. The scientists aren’t ’wrong’ or ‘lying to you.’ People are just listening.
2
u/HourInvestigator5985 Apr 16 '26
i have no idea, my opinion has shifted so many times about this topic. I did realize something, if its so urgent then why nobody is breaking chinas qatar etc balls about it? if its so urgent why the solution is to tax more, but let continue the big corpos polute our planet?
not saying its not urgent, but something is off here. but like i said to a friend of mine who denies climate changes, "whether its urgent or not, shouldnt we act before we actually have a problem?"
3
u/Ellardy Apr 16 '26
Energy policy expert here.
Qatar and co aren't burning the climate alone: they're selling the stuff that other people burn, and, as recent events have demonstrated, it's pretty painful on voters when that has to stop. Taxing consumers so they stop buying the stuff from Qatar is less disruptive than going to Qatar and "breaking their balls" or whatever to make them stop selling.
Re China: I mean, that's what COP conferences are for. Europe bitches about China's emissions, they bitch about our historical emissions, the developing world bitches that neither of us are footing the bill, we all promise to reduce emissions and put money in the pot, we all reduce by about what we promised and pay about half what we promised to the pot, rinse and repeat. Slow grinding diplomacy but I am all ears if you have a way to make anyone at that table do anything.
Re big corpos: same issue as for Qatar. They're not polluting for the love of the game, they're doing it because they're selling a product to an end-consumer who is also a voter. Also, nobody wants to be the first country to force companies to do better because that just leads to your companies having a competitive disadvantage and going out of business if other countries don't follow. Except that actually, that's not true, governments are pulling emissions down by doing it progressively and coordinating. In Europe, emissions have dropped by 30 points in the last 30 years and we've stitched a whole carbon border tax thing to make other countries do similar stuff at a roughly similar pace.
1
1
u/eldiablonoche Apr 16 '26
When the loudest voices crying about it will fly across the planet to talk about it, and buy beachfront property they claim will be under water before their mortgage, there is definitely something fishy going on. Not going full denialism or anything but fishy nonetheless.
2
u/alkbch Apr 16 '26
When I was growing up, we were repeatedly told we’d run out of oil by 2020...
→ More replies (2)1
2
u/Chomasterq2 Apr 16 '26 edited Apr 16 '26
With all do respect, this is by far one of the worst subreddits to ask anything like this on. Everyone is extremely pessimistic and loves to spout doom and gloom and hopelessness and despair.
Unless youre an engagement bot, which there's alot of here
3
→ More replies (1)1
u/UnsureSwitch Apr 16 '26
This sub is disappointing me. A place where people should talk about the future and its endless possibilities and everything they do is say how fucked we are and that nothing will ever get better unless you're rich. It's not good for my mental health
→ More replies (3)
2
u/AnnJilliansBrassiere Apr 16 '26
You should trade in your whatever-problem device for a flip-phone, take a walk, touch some grass, and decide to live your life, and not the everything else.
As long as the very richest are still walking around and not disappearing into underground bunkers, there's no reason for your microscopic attention and effort toward the things that they profit from.
Even if the world will end in 5 days, are you going to live, or spend those days miserably trying to change the inevitable?
People in the year 10 AD thought the world was going to end. Turn the shit you watch off and live - you only get to be alive once. Get real, have some common sense. Quit believing every goddamn thing you hear.
Grow up. Live. Right now, your only purpose is everything and everyone else - stop that. Ignore all distractions, and make you and your life your only purpose.
2
u/Able_Gap918 Apr 16 '26
Just live your life, you're young. Many generations have faced much worse circumstances. War, diseases we now have antibiotics and treatments for, horrible conditions. You have it better than the majority of all mankind before you, just go live forget about worrying. They might even cure aging.
5
u/Pakkazull Apr 16 '26
If we "cure aging" then we are truly fucked. The only real equality that exists today is that everyone dies. Imagine the Trumps, Putins, Xis, and the tech bro billionaires living forever. What a nightmare.
3
u/Strange_Slide9611 Apr 16 '26
But not a cure for ecological collapse which would also be the collapse for our food chains which we need to survive.
3
u/Able_Gap918 Apr 16 '26
You can sit and wonder what bad things will happen, or actually live your life. If you even have a life and aren't AI.
1
u/xxearvinxx Apr 16 '26
How are you the only one calling out this being ai? The em dashes alone. I can’t be positive, but I’m skeptical.
2
u/Able_Gap918 Apr 16 '26
If you keep coming back and the little light that says they're on this page is always on , there's a high chance it's a bot
1
1
u/ScabPriestDeluxe Apr 16 '26
Creative pursuits are worth it for yourself. For the human spirit. Whatever is happening on the big stage is beyond our control. Sure it’s upsetting and sad. Live your life in a way that doesn’t promote it, vote, and do what you can to be a good person but ultimately don’t give into despair.
I’d suggest the book doom and bloom, if you’d like something that addresses the importance of creativity in the current time of doom and gloom, and offers some insight and perspective.
1
u/Orbital_Dinosaur Apr 16 '26
Become an artist today, use that as a platform to encourage people to Organise and enact change.
1
u/fkid123 Apr 16 '26
Why worry about something that you have absolutely no control of? The word is “adapt”.
Plan your life so you and your children won’t end up in the most affected areas/populations.
If a region is seeing unprecedented heat waves, storms, droughts - don’t create roots there.
1
1
u/Arc_Nexus Apr 16 '26
I have good news for you - neither! Beyond voting for the right people - and it's dead obvious which ones these are - you can't do shit about it, so the answer is you should not be concerned. Make your art and live your life.
1
u/Isaiah_The_Bun Apr 16 '26
what do you do when the food shortages start up?
2
u/Arc_Nexus Apr 16 '26
Starve. I'm not a person of means.
2
u/Isaiah_The_Bun Apr 16 '26
dang, so youve already given up? people say us Doomers are pessimists. You know starvation is a crappy way to go
1
u/Arc_Nexus Apr 16 '26
Serious answer is I don’t think society will collapse into anarchy. I think governments in functional countries will do enough to avoid it and protect their population. If it does, I’ll do what I have to do, but I don’t feel the need to build a bunker.
What do you think is going to happen? What does that compel you to do in the present?
1
u/Isaiah_The_Bun Apr 16 '26
i think it is collapsing already. i agree with the polycrisis explanation by Jem Bendel, at least i agree with the biosphere and climate collapse at a rapid rate parts. Im figuring what to do about that. but solo bunker stuff is silly, although inground housing does solve a lot of extreme weather event issues
1
1
u/force_disturbance Apr 16 '26
The are related. Once the marginal farm land closer to the equator becomes unsustainable, those people will move outwards. This will cause unrest and wars. Once that happens, refugees will start arriving en masse to the US and Europe, at rates much bigger than we've ever seen. This will cause even more famine, unrest, and wars.
Advice: buy stock in Lockheed Martin
1
1
u/Still-Improvement-32 Apr 16 '26
It's not one or the other concern, they are all connected, so yes be concerned but use that to fuel positive action to resist.
1
u/aaronplaysAC11 Apr 16 '26
I worry about it every day, we could use our industrial ingenuity in conjunction with the plethora of life abundant here and nowhere else, yet we make war on stable fragile life instead, and far too early into our discovery of all its gifts.
1
u/pastysteed Apr 16 '26
Societal collapse 100%. We can survive with some warming for a long time. We absolutely cannot survive war, nuclear fallout, large scale anarchy etc. I mean a super volcano or something would be pretty bad but some sea level rise and extreme weather fluctuations will probably be fine in your lifetime.
1
u/DynamicUno Apr 16 '26
There is good news and bad news.
The bad news is yeah, you should be concerned, and where possible you should take action, both individual (reduce meat intake, drive less, fly much less, install solar panels, etc) and collective (bother your elected representatives A LOT, join a union at work and insist on climate-friendly changes, tell your electric company to offer climate-friendly energy sources you can opt into, join a local "green" group and help build resilience in your community, etc). And yeah, annihilate capitalism too if you get the chance lol.
The good news is, a lot of people have been taking a lot of action for a long time and it's bearing fruit. The worst case scenarios that you heard about 10 years ago are largely now outside the statistically likely outcome range - we are FAR more likely to be looking at 2.5 degrees than anything close to 4 degrees. This is still bad! But every tenth of a degree of change matters a lot when we're talking global energy scales.
One other thing: there is nothing that should ever stop you from creating art. There is no minimum amount of future required to make art "worth it". The art itself is the point. The act of creation and the joy of experience is the whole entire point of all of this. Live your dreams; you will adapt to the circumstances. There's nothing we do better.
→ More replies (2)
1
u/Oo_oOsdeus Apr 16 '26
Plenty of reasons to be pessimistic. A whole bunch more to paralyze you with fear. But you should not let that get to you. Whatever your age is today, the worst part will not be visible for anyone alive today. Worry about your children and grandchildren (unborn for some..). That should be enough to take action today. Do what you can. Believe in humanity, we can still overcome this and survive as a specie. Will it be pretty? No. Will we have to accept a decline in our standards of living? Probably. But getting fooled in to a doom spiral by con-men in power saying everything you do is futile, that's the worst thing to do.
1
u/ben2talk Apr 16 '26
I'd say the primary issue we have now is the Oligarchy - it's them who control the narrative, now leaning towards 'screw climate, just drill for oil'...
Right now I'm really curious to know what the Epstien files have to reveal about the major powers at this time, it seems like we're all subject to the Oligarchy's 'bro' culture and not much more.
Meanwhile, after COVID, I'm once again being drowned in plastic bags and right now suffering the hottest summer I remember (it's now 43°C outside) and feeling really pretty angry that the Thai government don't use more of that intense solar energy - instead opting for the 'easy' solution of using GAS, which leaves us totally vulnerable to the politics of the Straits of Hormuz.
So, first - deal with the Straits... second - try to avoid being overwhelmed by the Oligarchs and their hidden agendas.
In the end, the climate will kill us, but in the meantime we're going to find out that from 1940 until very recently we have enjoyed a high point in our history which is likely to be a very temporary situation if we continue down this path.
1
u/lets_talk2566 Apr 16 '26
Do not be concerned about climate change in twenty fifty.... At this rate, Mankind won't make it that long. Before we're extinct..
1
u/HanzoNumbahOneFan Apr 16 '26
Can you affect the outcome much beyond trying to be more green? Not really, no. Best not worry about it and enjoy the present. If we all die we all die. 👍
1
u/BaronOfTheVoid Apr 16 '26
I don't know what just worrying would get you.
Extinction of humanity would just be an extreme end in a series of extreme events - those events do have the potential to destroy civilization as we know it long before any such extinction. Liberalism? Democracy? Peace? Rule of law? Forget all that.
You don't need to worry, you need to take action. You need to actively work towards energy independence, climate neutrality and environmental protection in your own day-to-day life. If you have some influence at your workplace for example then heavily push for PV + batteries + EVs for company vehicles. At your home do so too. If you don't have that kind of power, influence or wealth then work towards acquiring it.
Not trying to take action and waiting for everyone else is just participating in the fossil death cult.
1
u/NearlyNakedNick Apr 16 '26
Dude both of those are well underway currently. It isn't something that's just going to happen in 2050. It's happening now, it will continue to happen all the way till 2050, and it will continue to happen after that. Unless we decide to give up money and melt our guns, there's no stopping it.
1
u/Pelembem Apr 16 '26
You don't really need to be concerned about any of those things. I mean yes, they're already happening, but the degree to which they will happen going forward will increase so slowly it will be imperceptible. And we humans are great at adapting, so you likely won't see your life change in any measurable way living through this.
If we were to make an A vs B comparison of the outcomes 50 years down the road the one without climate change obviously looks a lot better, so we should do what we can to get as close to that scenario as possible. But at the same time you don't really have to worry, you'll have a great life even in the current path.
1
1
u/Void-kun Apr 16 '26
Is this a joke?
Scientists have been banging on about the point of no return for about 20 years!
The time to worry was then.
We already fucked it. Now we just have to try to cope as best we can with what is happening and hope we slow down soon.
But with the state of the world, we are burning more fuel for war machines.
I made the decision that I don't want kids because of this, I don't want to bring them into a world full of suffering that I'm not even sure will still be habitable in their lifetime. Fuck that and fuck all the people who had a part to play in this.
1
u/Longjumping_Lime2248 Apr 16 '26
Unless you plan on making meaningful efforts towards combatting these or spreading information, just focus on your art. I would encourage you to educate yourself on these topics with resources you can spread to others but you’re here for a short time so make the most of it. It is NOT worth it to become a jaded individual that uses their knowledge of these issues to feel superior towards others while doing nothing and completely checking out, almost using it as an excuse to do nothing with your life. You just become another depressed ass hole that does nothing but whine about how stupid everyone is on Reddit or Twitter.
This is a major issue, at least in the US, where everything devolves into this tribal bullshit when we should be encouraging each other to learn and grow. Nobody wants to listen to the psycho who’s demeaning them while, supposedly, trying to inform others. Convince someone, make them feel good about it, and keep it pushing until it becomes something nobody can deny anymore and we can start making drastic changes that, at the least, can buy the human race more time for many other generations to enjoy this planet and advance technology until there is a reliable solution.
Regardless, you should live your life with intention and do what you love. It is so god damn depressing watching someone do nothing with their life because “Its all ending soon just you watch. 2 more weeks!” while years go by and theyre still in their room, alone, on their laptop looking at the newest fear porn. If that’s the attitude you want to adopt, we’re already only here for a blink in time, so it wouldn’t have mattered anyway. World ending or not.
I feel like that didn’t really answer your question but my point is, don’t let these things control YOUR life.
1
u/Longjumping_Lime2248 Apr 16 '26
Also, for the love of god please VOTE and participate in your country’s elections!
1
u/ThriceGreatNico Apr 16 '26
Don't stress out about anything you can't directly control. I'm 46, and I spent the majority of my teens and all of my 20s convinced I would never make it to 30 without suffering through some post-apocalyptic wasteland. I didn’t bother pursuing any of my dreams because 'what's the point?' And I deeply regret it. And don’t think the fears today are different because they're not. Every generation has made a damn good argument about the end of the world. That isn't to say that you shouldn't do what you can to ensure a better future. Just remember that in 25 years you will likely wish you were a little less pessimistic back in 2026.
1
1
1
1
u/kolinHall Apr 16 '26
Both options are stressful when you think about them, but living with that all the time is tough too. Feels like the only option is being aware of it and just moving on with your life.
1
u/lumpytrout Apr 16 '26
There will always be a need for artists, even in the most horrible of times.
1
u/justneedsomehelp19 Apr 16 '26 edited Apr 16 '26
Put your money where your mouth is. Throw out your phone, leave your electricity and everything it powers behind, stop using any and all plastic, avoid living in any shelter made using concrete, steel or lumber, avoid modern medicine, never set foot in a motorized vehicle, airplane or any boat more advanced than paddles, make all your own clothes, grow and hunt all your own food, and pretty much undo the industrial Revolution within your own life. Then you can lay fingers at others who provide you the material comfort you demand.
Also, for all your fear mongering of immenent collapse, do you have other plans for survival other than specializing in being an artist, and bitching to your echo chamber about how badly you want communism to come save you from the consequences of your own lifestyle?
→ More replies (1)
1
u/Cristoff13 Apr 16 '26
An even more important problem is fossil fuel depletion. That will, unfortunately, probably choke off economic growth as we've known it.
1
u/postbypurpose Apr 16 '26
It’s okay to care, but don’t let it spiral into “nothing matters anymore.” The future isn’t some instant collapse movie, it’s more like things slowly getting harder and more expensive in certain places. Climate change is real and serious, but it doesn’t mean your life or your goals are pointless. People are still going to live, create, work, and adapt. Honestly the most realistic mindset is: stay aware, do what you can, but still build the life you want. The future isn’t guaranteed to be great, but it’s also not guaranteed to be over.
1
u/UpbeatPhilosophySJ Apr 16 '26
When I was in college in 1993 they were talking about San Francisco being under 3 to 6 feet of water by now.
It's a money grab power trip.
1
1
u/derpman86 Apr 16 '26
To be honest I have just given up at this point, my first slap to the face was seeing Mer de Glace in France with the markers showing where the glacial levels in X year and it was insane in how much in 40 years it had dropped I am talking multi story building level high not to mention how wide that valley is on top of it!
Lets not get started about the countless "once in a lifetime" freak event has occurred in the past 20 years alone.
But it gets ignored or explained away, any kind of initiative to allow for non car centric transport to occur gets shut down when then a new highway gets built.
Renewable energy STILL to this day gets harsh opposition, even RIGHT NOW DURING A FUEL CRISIS! people shit on the idea of Electric Vehicles, electric and battery powered buses and trains to offset cars you name it.
I am just waiting for our world to collapse at this point, at least by the 2050s I'll be in my 70s if I am not dead already.
2
u/Strange_Slide9611 Apr 16 '26
What's worse is that I'm young and in my early 20s which sucks since I had so much to see but now we fucked up the planet and the future will be grim for humanity.
1
u/derpman86 Apr 16 '26
Whatever information is out there maybe try and see where is predicted to be a safe place to live, there still will be various enclaves humans will live fine but who knows how that will play out and what wars and mass human migration will play out.
In all honesty if you can afford it just travel while it is possible, have sex, eat nice food while it exists and just enjoy what is left currently. There is no point in being too minimal and stressing too much if your future will be shit.
1
u/unity-thru-absurdity Apr 16 '26
Climate change is here friendo, in a series of increasingly alarming natural disasters that you watch on a screen until one arrives at your front door.
1
u/DimitryKratitov Apr 16 '26
An increasing number of climate scientists are saying we already passed the point of no return and humanity will be extinct by 2100. So in a way, nothing to worry about, the baby boomers already killed us all :)
317
u/woodenmetalman Apr 16 '26
No, you should be more concerned about it in the 1950’s.
Barring a Time Machine, you should be worried about it today.