This book explores the significance of human behaviour to understanding the causes and impacts
of changing climates and to assessing varied ways of responding to such changes. So far the
discipline that has represented and modelled such human behaviour is economics. By contrast
Climate Change and Society tries to place the 'social' at the heart of both the analysis of
climates and of the assessment of alternative futures. It demonstrates the importance of social
practices organised into systems. In the fateful twentieth century various interlocking high
carbon systems were established. This sedimented high carbon social practices engendering huge
population growth increasing greenhouse gas emissions and the potentially declining
availability of oil that made this world go round. Especially important in stabilising this
pattern was the 'carbon military-industrial complex' around the world. The book goes on to
examine how in this new century it is systems that have to change to move from growing high
carbon systems to those that are low carbon. Many suggestions are made as to how to innovate
such low carbon systems. It is shown that such a transition has to happen fast so as to create
positive feedbacks of each low carbon system upon each other. Various scenarios are elaborated
of differing futures for the middle of this century futures that all contain significant costs
for the scale extent and richness of social life. Climate Change and Society thus attempts to
replace economics with sociology as the dominant discipline in climate change analysis.
Sociology has spent much time examining the nature of modern societies of modernity but
mostly failed to analyse the carbon resource base of such societies. This book seeks to remedy
that failing. It should appeal to teachers and students in sociology economics environmental
studies geography planning politics and science studies as well as to the public concerned
with the long term future of carbon and society.
