Hello, you're very welcome to Longreads. A new Jackman podcast that will be going out every two weeks, looking in depth at political topics and thinkers, both contemporary and historical. My name is Daniel Finn. I'm the future. and from the Korean War to the Arab uprisings and about thinkers like Albert Camu and Eric Fromm.

In many ways the last year has been a breakthrough for public awareness of the climate crisis.

We've seen a major protest movement spearheaded by young people taking action in many different

parts of the world. We've seen left-wing politicians in countries like Britain and the

United States put forward ambitious plans for ecological

transformation.

And we've seen clear evidence that climate change is not merely something to worry about in the future.

It's already with us.

The terrifying wildfires in Australia and California have been a reminder

that the effects of climate change won't be confined to the global south. Of course, public awareness

is not enough in itself to bring about change.

We've known the basic scientific facts about global warming for a long time.

As a reminder of that, here's a clip from Carl Sagan in 1990, setting out the scientific consensus and calling for governments to act.

We burn fossil fuels like coal and gas and petroleum, putting more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, and thereby... and

there by putting more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, and thereby heating the Earth.

The hellish conditions on Venus are a reminder

that this is serious business.

Computer models that successfully explain the climates of other

planets predict the deaths of forests, parched croplands, the flooding of coastal cities,

the environmental refugees. the

environmental refugees,

widespread disasters in the next century,

...