The Editor’s Desk

Climates and Adaptation

It’s All About Water

The Editor’s Desk by Samir Shukla

Climate change has almost won.

Those are fighting words. I don’t mean them in a defeatist sense. I’m a logical realist. Human imprints are so pervasive on this planet, that making changes to our destructive natures is a bit like coming to the party as the empty bottles and cans are being cleaned up and most folks have left the building.

Yes, we must work to address the underlying issues, but at the same time adaptation on a global scale is also at hand. Both must be done together.

During a recent summer weekend trip to West Virginia mountains, the sheer beauty of our world was on full display. The lush green mountains and minimal development in a state park showcased the declining grandeur of the planet. A short half hour outside of the park and humanity's sprawl was on full display. Our ability to remake an area's natural balance to our needs becomes almost an afterthought in our daily lives.

Adaptation has been the key element for humans to gain dominance over this planet. It’s about survival. Our ancestors adapted to new environments as they traveled and populated the globe. As a species we have evolved and thrived via adaptation. Of course, in the meantime we have also devastated ecosystems and irreversibly changed the planet in many ways. We have built great cities, but also wiped-out entire species and created environmental troubles for ourselves.

Contemporary threats require continuous finetuning of our innate ability to adapt. Cyber threats, terror threats, virus and disease threats, nature threats, these all require adaptation. They require planning and infrastructure for all contingencies.

Climate change is now a part of our lives. We can make changes on how we do things to help soften this changing climate’s extremes. It is already wreaking havoc on the planet, but along with making changes to mitigate and temper climate change, we must also adapt to its threats. Adaptation is the key to rethinking our lifestyles and building infrastructure to minimize the effects of climate change on our species. Above all else, I believe, water is the prime stuff that will require new adaptations and infrastructure on a global scale.

We must create massive, innovative infrastructure to manage the world’s water. This will be the defining act of our generation in the coming decades. Not only is the world’s weather changing, but the influx of severe storms, increase in droughts and flooding, and rising sea levels beckon us to make changes.

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