As the reality of global warming starts to hit home, people may ask: “How will it affect my livelihood?”Well, that depends. On your profession, your age, and exactly where you live, among other things. Here, then, are a few scenarios for a climate-altered future, when rising temperatures are closing in on the threshold of two degrees Celsius (3.6 degree Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels which scientists warn we should not cross.
The year is 2030.
The coffee farmer
You are a 60-year old coffee farmer in Nicaragua, selling to an organic wholesaler. Global demand has soared and commodity prices tripled since 2015, but business is not so good.
Scorching temperatures have decimated your output, even after you sold your land to purchase a higher-altitude parcel in search of cooler climes.
Not only yields are down, but also the quality of your beans.Small consolation that many of your 20-million fellow coffee growers around the world are in similarly dire straits.
The high-flying lawyer
You are a 39-year old real estate lawyer in West Palm Beach, Florida.You are flush and life is sweet, despite your million-dollar house having been swept away three years earlier by Hurricane Hillary.
Sea levels have only risen 14 centimetres (5.5 inches) in the last 15 years, but Hillary’s tide-enhanced storm surge caused $500 billion in damages.
Since Washington cancelled federal flood insurance for properties under a metre (three feet) above sea level, you have more clients than you can handle. They are suing private insurance companies claiming bankruptcy to avoid having to pay out, and though your clients may only get 20 cents for every policy-insured dollar, you still get your fees.
