“Every day, I hear that predictions are unwise. “Climate science is too complex,” people say. As if Thales of Miletus did not receive the same criticism upon correctly predicting a solar eclipse in…

“Closer to home, Homo sapiens mammals cannot evolve fast enough to escape the current extinction crisis. Humans are vertebrate mammals. To believe that our species can avoid extinction, even as non-human vertebrates and…

“Finding one’s meaning in an ambivalent universe is one thing. After all, one’s authentic purpose must come from within and it might take years to discover. Finding one’s meaning on an indifferent planet…

“I, myself, doubt that many people reading these words have three years to live. Habitat for humans on Earth will disappear shortly after the Arctic ice is gone, which is likely to occur…

“Live large. Be you, and bolder than you’ve ever been. Live like you’re dying. Because you are. No guilt. We were all born into the captivity of industrial civilization. No blame. No shame.…

“One result of my abstemious existence, as we venture into the darkest of days ahead, is that I spend considerable time reflecting on my life goals and evaluating—constantly re-evaluating—what I live for. I…

“More than 15 years ago, while editing a book about climate change, I concluded that habitat for humans would be coming to an end soon due to abrupt planetary warming. I knew we’d…

“It is not at all clear that humanity can be saved (or, for that matter, is worth saving). Evolution drives us to breed, drives to procreate, and drives us to accumulate material possessions.…

“We want it all, and we want it for a very long time, and preferably forever, a concept that our deep-seated faith in technology, our fear of death, and our uniquely American vanity…

“Occasionally, I see this question, usually in a social-media forum: If you were to eliminate one thing, what would it be? For me, there is no question: ownership. The living planet faces many…