At Home on An Unruly Planet: Finding Refuge on a Changed Earth by Madeline Ostrander

 

At Home on an Unruly Planet by Madeline Ostrander discusses the effects of climate change on our sense of home, community, tradition, and history.  As it is often difficult to follow all the dominoes that have been set off by a warming planet, Ostrander looks at a few places specifically to illustrate the larger picture.

Many of us have recognized, if even in a vague way, that there will be more climate refugees as people lose homes and/or an economic base to the changing climate .  In some regions, especially in coastal regions, the movement away from the encroaching sea and more frequent and powerful storms has been recognized for years.  

The damage to the coastal areas of our country and to the livelihoods of people who, for generations, have depended on the sea (and who have lost homes and possessions many times)--for these people, the recurring losses can create a sense of homelessness that is beyond housing.  It is the loss of a way of life that includes family history, community, culture and hope for the next generation.   

By looking at a few places in greater detail, Ostrander lets readers extrapolate that information to apply in varying degrees to all  disaster prone areas.  The country and the world is confronting climate disasters, experiencing higher tides, more frequent and severe flooding, drought, and wildfires.  These catastrophes result in the loss of local histories, traditions, culture, historic buildings, and communities as well as individual homes.  Ostrander examines instances in which communities struggle to prepare for more change, but there are also places where continuing the fight is no longer feasible; where individuals and entire areas have accepted that they have to let go.  

Ostrander looks at an Inuit village in Alaska lost to the sea and thawing tundra that must relocate an entire village (there are more since Ostrander visited and researched Newtok); the fires in the Pacific North West that burn hotter, faster, and more frequently;  the effect of pollution on the local population from a refinery in Richmond, CA; and the loss of historic buildings in St. Augustine, FL.  Her writing is personal and reflects on predictions of how and when the warming climate will make changes in our lives, what is being done to prepare for the changes, and what must yet be done to ease the transitions that are required.

Individuals can and should plan and prepare (as those in wildfire areas and in areas threatened by flooding know--having a go bag with important papers, water, food, flashlights, etc. can make a huge difference in case of a disaster). Communities are often more effective working together as a unit, harnessing the talents and knowledge of its citizens when an emergency occurs.  Individuals and even communities, however, cannot prevent or mediate climate change emergencies on their own.  It is imperative that local, state, and national government be involved in planning for the changes to come.   

Highly Recommended.

NetGalley/Henry Holt & Co

Nonfiction/Climate Preparedness.  Aug. 2, 2022.  Print length:  352 pages.