Parenting

Compared to great filter events, climate change doesn't even register. Estimates are of a rise of 2-4 degrees centigrade by 2100. (https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/climatechange/science#%3A%7E%3Atext=Global+temperature+is+projected+to%2C7.2+degrees+Fahrenheit%5C%5C)%20by%202100) This will likely result in an increase of arable land. Global mean sea-level rise is expected to be between 0.30 and 0.65 m by 2100, which might affect some Dutch towns during storms but is negligible. As the number of storms are estimated to decrease, the threat vector is slightly increasing storm intensity. Humans can handle storms. We can rebuild homes, change where we settle and live, build with better materials and practises, and improve storm infrastructure and protections. In fact, as the temperature rises slightly, fewer people will die due to temperature extremes. This is because at present, many more people die due to exposure to low temperatures than high temperatures. Approximately 600,000 people die each year from extreme heat, while 4.5 million die from extreme cold.

The global fertility rate is plummeting. If we didn’t have kids, the human race would end. Surely that would be a far worse outcome than the effect humans have on the environment. After all, isn’t the very reason we seek to minimise our environmental footprint in service to other humans in future generations?