I’ve been thinking and researching a lot about what the Earth’s environment might look like in the year 2259 (which is when my new novel is set). It’s both depressing and optimistic in turns. Mostly depressing. When I was in the thick of some pretty depressing enviro research a couple months ago, my book coach commented something like “writing the apocalypse isn’t as fun when you’re living in it” and that comment has really stuck with me. Granted, there were other outside factors stressing me out, but just reading the environmental news some days was – and still is – enough to put me in a deep funk.

I’ve continued down this path because I think it is important. Both for my book, and for myself. I really dug into the emotional side of it one day and asked myself some hard questions and landed on this: my protagonist (Naia) and I both need HOPE. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the bad news, the worst-case scenarios, the doomsday projections. BUT… if you look and imagine, you CAN find good news and create a better picture. Sure, we may eventually lose huge swaths of coastlines and entire island nations, and probably even the latitudes immediately along the equator, but maybe… maybe the middle and northern latitudes will find ways to absorb populations in environmentally friendly cities. Maybe some of the areas that are less-habitable now will be oases in the future. Maybe we humans will surprise each other with our scientific creativity and find new uses for byproducts of energy and food production. Maybe we’ll find ways to be kind and supportive of all life, all over the world.

No doubt that things are going to get tough and ugly, but we (Naia and I, at least) choose to cling to HOPE. I have to imagine a future where, eventually, we will get our collective shit together and turn the ship around. Things will look very different, but the science and imagination are out there.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on the matter. What HOPE do you have for the future of nature and humanity on Earth?