Living through the Age of Consequences

Yesterday, I listened—twice—to Rupert Read's remarkable speech at the Leadership Summit in Portugal.

I cried.

This marks the third time this week that I’ve been brought to tears, and if you watch his talk, you’ll understand why.

Rupert Read clearly articulates the reasons for the accelerating climate crisis and the urgent need for all of us to face the truth and adapt to what’s coming.

He calls this vision Thrutopia, a concept of navigating the challenges ahead with responsibility and transformation.

He says: 

"Thrutopia is about getting through what is coming responsibly, transformatively, in the best way we can."

It’s about doing more with less, living more locally, and rethinking how we shape our world.

Every day, we’re reminded of the impact of climate change. Indeed, by the time you read this, we may have already witnessed the devastating impact of Hurricane Milton in the US.

Talking of Hurricane Milton, on Monday I was brought to tears while watching Florida meteorologist John Morales become emotional during an update on the storm's rapid intensification.

But the moment that truly broke me came from a recent message from UNICEF. Children and young people in Africa, bearing the brunt of climate impacts, are calling on leaders for urgent action.

I urge you to watch the video here—it’s just over a minute long, but it speaks volumes.

Now, please don’t think I’ve turned into an emotional wreck! That’s not the case.

My tears are born of frustration, sadness, and anger at how little is being done, and how slowly we’re moving to secure a better world for our children and future generations.

I’m determined to change that.

As Rupert Read said in his talk, when we come to the end of our lives, our children will ask just one thing that truly matters:

“What did you do when you knew? What part did you play?”

The question is now in front of all of us.

Let’s step up together and create the future our children deserve. We’re ready to help you—are you ready to act?

BBC Video illustrating could 'Less is More Save the World'

So what can we do?

Could less is more be the answer?

Reading 'Less is More' by Jason Hickel was a real eye-opener for me.

Jason Hickel asks how might we live in a world where we "scale down aggregate resource use, energy demand and emissions, focusing on rich, high-consuming nations, and to do this while improving people's well-being.?"

Sounds so simple doesn't it.

The great news is that we have the knowledge and resources to do just that.

This BBC video is a great introduction. Let us know what you think.