With the Paris climate summit fast approaching, isn’t it a good time to use the insights of Richard Heinberg’s AFTERBURN: Society Beyond Fossil Fuels as a context and starting point for a conversation about what can come next, about what is needed following the current world-wide conflagration? Heinberg’s penetrating understanding of the crises and dilemmas we face precedes suggestions about what we might actually do to respond constructively and cooperatively.

The climate is gushing CO2; the oceans are bleeding acid—tipping points are right around the corner.  Without a U-Turn on carbon fuels we will cook ourselves to death. So, how do we create a viable future amidst all of the grim news? This blog provides a plausible answer, starting from outlining what is needed for us to collectively decide to stop the poisoning.

The great unacknowledged elephant today is our collective inability to respond effectively to the life diminishing and civilization threatening crises well underway. How can we effectively confront these crises?