What will the world look like in a hundred years if we do or do not start living sustainably?

Answer

What will the world look like in a hundred years if we choose not to live more sustainably?

The answer is not easy because there are many elements at play. Sustainable development would by definition lead to an improved status quo and thus not be very interesting.

I myself am a climate expert specialized in the influence of the sun on the climate. In a recent report from the IPCC on “Extreme Weather and Climate Change” we see indications of extreme weather situations in contrast to 2007.

For Belgium, for example, global warming would lead to warmer summers with heavy rain and colder winters with heavy snow storms. Disastrous storms like those of 1953 on the coast could be more frequent. The sea level would not rise as much (less than ten meters) in the next century, but extreme storms could allow for waves of thirty meters high. River flooding could also occur more frequently.

Other parts of the world would become too dry and deserts would increase, resulting in massive emigration to wetter countries, such as Western Europe. Animal species could also disappear if they cannot adapt quickly enough to global changes.

The disappearance of man is certainly not possible in a span of a hundred years, because today’s man can adapt very well. Humanity has shown in the last 50,000 years that it can cope with environmental change. The biggest problem for humans if nothing is done against global warming will lie with the future climate refugees, the thousand million people who now live close to the coast…