George Monbiot’s summary of the planetary science of climate heating, nature destruction and Earth system collapse this century, and the disintegration of civilised society, is excellent (The ‘flickering’ of Earth systems is warning us: act now, or see our already degraded paradise lost, 31 October). My only caveat is his repeated use of the word “could”, which overeggs the possibility of an alternative future where the biospheric tipping points into catastrophe are avoided.
Even if human carbon emissions and destructive developments in primary nature miraculously cease tomorrow, the planet will continue to heat because releases from natural sources will not stop. They include carbon and methane from permafrost and gas hydrates in shallow polar waters, collapsing forests and wetlands, increased water vapour, and the loss of reflective albedo from polar and mountain ice melt, meaning further atmospheric and ocean warming etc. That is the “doom loop”.
Every tenth of a degree less matters. The reason I wake up an optimist is that George’s vanishing possibility to escape the loop can be achieved by four new, interactive global cooperatives:
(1) Scientists, ecologists and their professional associations uniting in repeated condemnation of the global institutions – and political, corporate and media groups in every society – who create this hell on earth, and explaining to populations what must be changed.
(2) Thousands of NGOs uniting to use their multibillion-dollar budgets, and millions of staff and volunteers, to mobilise their memberships as voters, consumers and shareholders to “throw the bums out of office”, back climate- and nature-positive tax, spend and regulatory policies, and patronise green enterprises and investment.
(3) Thousands of idealists behind the artificial intelligence revolution uniting to design non-proprietary, humanity-enhancing solutions to cooling our planet, adapting to unavoidable impacts, and developing extreme-weather-resistant, gene-edited food crops.
(4) Young people everywhere uniting to build a cooperative political economy based on life-enhancing planet management.
Charles Secrett
Brighton
• George Monbiot mentions the Permian extinction 252m years ago. However, there are major differences between then and now:
(1) The rate we are approaching the next one is about 1,000 times faster than the last time, when humans didn’t exist. Nature magazine recognised this years ago.
(2) It was indeed the mother of all mass extinctions so far, but now at the faster rate, it is equal to the IPCC emissions scenario known as RCP 8.5. Though for perhaps obvious reasons climate scientists seem anxious not to refer to this, jaw-droppingly it is the emissions path we are still on at this time.
Aubrey Meyer
Belfast
• It is worth emphasising that, even if anthropogenic global warming wasn’t happening, the Earth would be still facing a sixth mass extinction event purely through our destruction of species, habitats, and whole ecosystems. The rapidity of this wildlife mass extinction event is unprecedented.
Angus Davies
Bruton, Somerset
• In the 2030s, 40s or 50s, when the climate crisis has manifested itself in global catastrophe, some wretched politician will be running round in circles whimpering: “Nobody told us it would be this bad.” We can then all point to this article by George Monbiot and say: “Yes, you were told. You just refused to listen.”
Barrie Dale
Charney Bassett, Oxfordshire
• There are fears that artificial intelligence may take over the world (UK, US, EU and China sign declaration of AI’s ‘catastrophic’ danger, 1 November). Such a switch might save the life of the planet. AI could hardly do a worse job than us humans; as George Monbiot points out, we are well on course to destroy the environment that sustains us.
Adrin Neatrour
Newcastle upon Tyne
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