NOMAD CENTURY: HOW TO SURVIVE THE CLIMATE UPHEAVAL

In Nomad Century, science writer Gaia Vince argues that as climate change makes parts of the world increasingly difficult to live in, large-scale human migration will become inevitable. Rather than viewing migration as a crisis, she suggests it may be humanity’s greatest survival strategy — one that has shaped our history from the beginning.

This interactive session builds on earlier CWEA discussions inspired by History for Tomorrow and explores Vince’s provocative ideas about the future. Could planned migration help societies adapt to climate change? What challenges and opportunities might this create? And what could it mean for Aotearoa New Zealand and Canterbury?

Together we will examine the key arguments of Nomad Century and discuss the social, political and ethical questions it raises for our collective future.

Mark Sheehan (PhD) is an historian and has been a teacher/researcher in the school/university sector for over 50 years. Derek Wallace (PhD) taught at Victoria University of Wellington for 25 years and published research on how post-war New Zealand governments have attempted to manage the future.