Climate change has slowly but steadily taken prominence in news headlines for some years thanks to the efforts of different activist groups, namely Fridays for Future and Greta Thunberg, among others. However, climate change is not something new from the scientists’ perspective. Climate has changed many times and for several reasons, since Earth’s beginnings just as continents have moved, appeared, and disappeared. All of this has been demonstrated by different scientific disciplines (i.e., geology, climatology, geography, among others).
But, what makes this point of time so relevant for us and the Earth? Temperatures have steadily increased since the beginning of the industrial revolution, but the speed and dimension of temperature changes during the last 30 years are very alarming. Scientists have observed and closely researched these changes and their consequences.
Furthermore, they have warned policymakers and society about climate tipping points, beyond which change will accelerate and cannot be stopped. Have we reached this climate tipping point? Can we still do something? Whose responsibility is to take action?
These and other questions are currently being discussed during the next days at the Glasgow Climate Change Conference (COP 26, 31 October – 12 November 2021).
However, as citing Heraclitus 535 B.C. “There is nothing more constant than change”, the reality is that despite what is decided in Glasgow, climate change is happening before our eyes. This year, we have seen its devastating power in different parts of the world. People across the globe have experienced unprecedented heat, extreme rainfall, floods, failed harvests, and unseen wildfires. Thus, climate change is not about polar bears or distant pacific islands. It is affecting everyone. We need to tighten the belt and be ready to adapt. A big change is needed in Glasgow, but not only there. Also at a small scale, we need and must act, we must be aware of our daily behavior, our consumption choices, and be ready to change using all our resources.
Intending to open the door for imagination, Visuals in Science LAB together with Dr. Christian Bunn started the project “Osterholz on the Weser Bodden – When the flood comes we go surfing? – 500 years harbor Osterholz” or its original German title “Osterholz am Weserbodden – Wenn die Flut kommt gehen wir surfen? – 500 Jahre Hafen Osterholz”. We sought to visualize possible scenarios about the future related to temperature rises, sea level rises, and landscape transformation. For this, we approached the region “Osterholz-Scharmbeck” in the North of Germany.
Osterholz-Scharmbeck might not be as glamorous as Barcelona[1], or cosmopolitan as New York[2] (places among others for which visual projections of sea level rises have been done) but it is also a place where people live and develop their livelihoods. And it is also a place that very likely will change in the coming years. What will this change look like? It depends on many and complicated factors (global changes, local changes, and social actions taken). For now, we have focused on the 1-meter sea-level rise. This is when science meets art to tell us about possible future realities.
Saying this we invite you to travel to Osterholz in the future: Osterholz on the Weser Bodden
[1] https://urbannext.net/2100-climate-change-scenarios/ (2100 Climate Change Scenarios: Barcelona’s Coastline | urbanNext
[2] https://www.6sqft.com/what-would-nyc-look-like-if-sea-levels-rose-100-feet/ (What Would NYC Look Like If Sea Levels Rose 100 Feet? | 6sqft)
