ABSTRACT
This chapter approaches climate change as a dynamic process, driven by the interaction of natural and social systems that operate in complex, non-linear ways. After decades of dispute, it is now widely accepted that humanity is acting like a force of nature in contributing to climate change. Over several decades the political, scientifi c, social and cultural domains have all contributed to this recognition, yet Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions have continued to rise. The idea of Modernity as a refl exive project (Beck 1992; Giddens 1990,1991), with the capacity to utilise knowledge and aesthetic resources (Beck et al. 1994) to meet the challenges of globalisation, is confronted by the prospect of a systemic planetary crisis that is human in origin.
