The world is facing major challenges. Climate change and loss of biodiversity are the biggest challenges for the 21st century. The latest IPCC report was cristal clear. Climate impacts on people and ecosystems are more widespread and severe than expected, and future risks will escalate rapidly with every fraction of a degree of warming. The choices and actions implemented in this decade will have impacts now and for thousands of years. The most important message from IPCC as well as IPBES is that it is not too late to act. Limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees C is still possible, but only if we act immediately.
Every crisis is in part a storytelling crisis. This is as true of climate chaos as anything else. We need to leave the age of fossil fuel behind. But what drives our machines won't change until we change what drives our ideas. We need new stories on climate (Guardian, 2023).
It is my mission to show the pathways to the future we want. In my book the 'Only Planet Climate Guide for the 21st Century' I take you in 7 routes on a journey to a hopeful future. The solutions for climate mitigation and adaptation are already available and nature-based solutions are promising climate solutions additional to a rapid shift away from burning fossil fuels. With colleagues I developed a nature-based vision for The Netherlands in 2120. It inspired many professionals, policy makers and citizens to start acting today and cocreate the future we want together!
Let’s explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life together!