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.
The paper examines whether the aggregated effects of climate change and modes of climate variability affect the propensity for infectious disease outbreaks through an extreme value statistics approach. The analysis…
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),…
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.
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…
Solutions to single problems are never enough when crises stem from flaws in their hosts systems. The New Systems Reader brings together thinkers and activists to propose strategies for systemic…
Starting from the premise that society will collapse in the near-term, Jem Bendell argues that rather than debating the inevitability of that collapse we should consider what to do when…
This article examines network models to better predict tipping points, defined as “a critical threshold (tipping point) at which a tiny perturbation can qualitatively alter the state or development of…
Pablo Servigne and Raphaël Stevens confront the possibility of civilizational collapse within our lifetimes, examining scientific evidence of growing systemic crises. They connect abstract scientific findings to everyday experiences, linking…
This guide defines global catastrophic biological risks (GCBRs) as “risks that threaten great worldwide damage to human welfare, and place the long-term trajectory of humankind in jeopardy… [and are] broadly…
The Polycrisis Resource Library includes resources that:
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…