How the World Really Works
Vaclav Smil
Against those who anticipate a smooth, timely transition to renewable energy and net-zero carbon emissions, Vaclav Smil argues that we are much more dependent on fossil fuels than we recognize…
Polycrisis Resource Library
The Polycrisis Resource Library is a growing collection of media that help to understand polycrisis, develop strategies to address polycrisis, and build a field of polycrisis analysis.
Decline and Fall, Growth and Spread, or Resilience? Approaches to Studying How and Why Societies Change
Daniel Hoyer
Daniel Hoyer examines qualitative, case study, complex system, and societal dynamics approaches to explain “historical precedents of collapse, growth, and resilience.” He explains drawbacks to each method, and stresses “the…
Global Catastrophic Risks 2022: A Year of Colliding Consequences
Kajsa Waaghals (editor-in-chief)
The report provides an overview of several catastrophic risks that are potentially global in scope: weapons of mass destruction, pandemics, artificial intelligence, asteroids, climate change, super-volcanic eruptions, ecological collapse, population…
A Deeper Dive into the Meta Crisis
Camille Carlton and Maria Bridge
Camille Carlton and Maria Bridge argue that technology can amplify the metacrisis in two ways: by creating a centralized dystopia in which governments use technology to control citizens, or by…
Power: Limits and Prospects for Human Survival
Richard Heinberg
Richard Heinberg examines humanity’s unprecedented power over the planet, exploring the consequences of its overuse, which he argues has led to ecological and social crises. He questions how humanity’s dominance…
Shutdown: How Covid Shook the World’s Economy
Adam Tooze
Adam Tooze examines the impacts of the covid-19 pandemic on finance and business, highlighting just how unprepared and vulnerable economic systems were to the crisis. He highlights the ways in…
Interacting Tipping Elements Increase Risk of Climate Domino Effects under Global Warming
Nico Wunderling, Jonathan F. Donges, Jürgen Kurths, and Ricarda Winkelmann
The authors use Boolean and dynamic network models to investigate how the the interactions of climate tipping elements (Greenland Ice Sheet, West Antarctic Ice Sheet, Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC),…
Assessing Climate Change’s Contribution to Global Catastrophic Risk
S.J. Beard, Lauren Holt, Asaf Tzachor, Luke Kemp, Shahar Avin, Phil Torres and Haydn Belfield
The authors seek to build an analytical framework to help explore climate change’s contribution to Global Catastrophic Risk, including the role of its indirect and systemic impacts.
Tasting the Pickle: Ten Flavours of Meta-Crisis and the Appetite for a New Civilisation
Jonathan Rowson
Jonathan Rowson reflects on the many ‘flavours’ of meta-crisis, framing them through personal anecdotes, emotions, and spirituality. “There is a broader crisis of civilisational purpose that appears to necessitate political…
About the Resource Library
The Polycrisis Resource Library includes resources that:
- Comment on the polycrisis as a concept and as a present global reality
- Undertake similar analysis using different—but related—concepts
- Analyze crisis interactions among multiple global systems
Though not exhaustive, the Library strives to present a diverse representation of views on different aspects of the polycrisis discussion, and will be updated as that discussion evolves. Search for resources with the keyword search bar, or by using the drop-down menus to filter for type of resource, global systems addressed, and key themes.
The World’s Cascade of Disasters is Not a Coincidence
Niall Ferguson
Niall Ferguson proposes that “Superficially… [it’s] no more than a very nasty coincidence that the latest wave of the pandemic should happen at the same time as so many extreme…