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Storia dei cambiamenti climatici. Lezioni di sopravvivenza dai nostri antenati
536: per diciotto mesi un quarto del pianeta non vede la luce del sole a causa di un'eruzione vulcanica in Islanda. 1362: una violenta burrasca, ribattezzata Grote Mandrenke – la «grande affogatrice di uomini» – travolge le coste del Mare del Nord, distruggendo più di sessanta paesi in Danimarca. Lungo tutto il corso della sua esistenza l’umanità ha dovuto affrontare, contrastare e prevedere disastri climatici e ambientali ogni volta potenzialmente irreparabili. Quella di Fagan e Durrani è una narrazione che spazia tra i secoli e i continenti alla ricerca delle soluzioni e degli adattamenti che i nostri antenati hanno individuato per sopravvivere agli sconvolgimenti naturali. Dagli antichi egizi che, dipendenti dalle piene e dalle secche del Nilo, ne studiavano i flussi convogliandoli nei campi, alle trasformazioni messe in atto dalla civiltà maya in base ai periodi di alluvione e siccità; dalla celebre eruzione del Vesuvio nel 79 fino a quella del Tambora nel 1815, che provocò «l’anno senza estate», contribuendo così all’ideazione del Frankenstein di Mary Shelley.
Storia dei cambiamenti climatici è uno straordinario racconto corale della relazione tra esseri umani e clima negli ultimi 30000 anni. Un'indagine che incrocia archeologia e dati scientifici, climatologia e antropologia per offrirci una nuova chiave di lettura sulle nostre possibilità di intervento positivo sul pianeta; perché, è vero, di fronte al prossimo uragano non ci basterà un ombrello, ma la soluzione che stiamo cercando potrebbe essere già alle nostre spalle.
Storia dei cambiamenti climatici è uno straordinario racconto corale della relazione tra esseri umani e clima negli ultimi 30000 anni. Un'indagine che incrocia archeologia e dati scientifici, climatologia e antropologia per offrirci una nuova chiave di lettura sulle nostre possibilità di intervento positivo sul pianeta; perché, è vero, di fronte al prossimo uragano non ci basterà un ombrello, ma la soluzione che stiamo cercando potrebbe essere già alle nostre spalle.
384 pages, Paperback
Published April 28, 2022
34 people are currently reading
358 people want to read
About the author
Brian M. Fagan
180 books270 followersBrian Murray Fagan was a British author of popular archaeology books and a professor emeritus of Anthropology at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
December 22, 2025
Climate Chaos may be one of the most significant books on the challenges facing our civilization in the era of climate change. The authors emphasize humanity’s role in feeding CO₂ into the atmosphere, but they go far beyond that, introducing readers to at least six other critical factors that shape climate variability. These include the planet’s shifting axial tilt, the gradual progression of that tilt, and the cyclical alignment of planets every 100,000 years—events that tug on Earth and cool its atmosphere. They also explore the influence of ocean currents, circulation patterns, and convection.
Although atmospheric CO₂ has remained relatively stable over the past ten thousand years, these natural variables have triggered dramatic climate shifts with very extended droughts, ice ages, and flood induces famines —shifts that have toppled civilizations such as the Maya, Mesopotamian, and Indus cultures, among many others the authors examine. Time and again, humans have been forced to adapt, abandoning once-stable regions with fertile land and reliable animal husbandry for more hospitable environments.
If you’re fascinated by climate science, this book is an eye-opening read—one that will deepen your understanding of a topic that is as urgent as it is complex. – Tom L.
Although atmospheric CO₂ has remained relatively stable over the past ten thousand years, these natural variables have triggered dramatic climate shifts with very extended droughts, ice ages, and flood induces famines —shifts that have toppled civilizations such as the Maya, Mesopotamian, and Indus cultures, among many others the authors examine. Time and again, humans have been forced to adapt, abandoning once-stable regions with fertile land and reliable animal husbandry for more hospitable environments.
If you’re fascinated by climate science, this book is an eye-opening read—one that will deepen your understanding of a topic that is as urgent as it is complex. – Tom L.
May 31, 2023
"The people of the past have bequeathed us priceless lessons about adapting to climate change. But first a fundamental point: we are human beings, just like our forebears, and have inherited the same brilliant qualities of forward thinking, planning, innovation, and cooperation. We are Homo sapiens, and these qualities have always helped us adapt to climate changes. They are a priceless legacy of experience."
"The experience of the past reminds us that adaptations to climate change are, more often than not, local initiatives, based on local experience and understanding."
"The experience of the past reminds us that adaptations to climate change are, more often than not, local initiatives, based on local experience and understanding."
September 5, 2025
I’m a longtime fan of Brian Fagan’s books about ancient climates and how they affected civilizations in various parts of the world. In the afterword Fagan acknowledges that, given rapid advances in both paleoclimatology and environmental history, his former books are “seriously out of date.” And hence, this wonderful tour de force!
Starting with the state of homo sapiens at the end of the last Ice Age, Fagan and Durrani chronicle many ancient civilizations, their agricultural and water management practices, and what changes in climate affected them. They cite research using climate proxies— glacial cores and tree rings were familiar ones, but “speleothems” are new to me. They are layers of mineral deposits on stalactites and stalagmites, and are collected from caves over a wide area so as to account for variations in local groundwater chemistry. I’m excited that there is so much new research, and it’s great to have it explained so well.
The last chapter is called “Back to the Future.” It addresses our current climate crisis and what lessons we can learn from how humanity coped with extremes of drought, rainfall, and temperatures in the past. Absolutely fascinating and timely!
Starting with the state of homo sapiens at the end of the last Ice Age, Fagan and Durrani chronicle many ancient civilizations, their agricultural and water management practices, and what changes in climate affected them. They cite research using climate proxies— glacial cores and tree rings were familiar ones, but “speleothems” are new to me. They are layers of mineral deposits on stalactites and stalagmites, and are collected from caves over a wide area so as to account for variations in local groundwater chemistry. I’m excited that there is so much new research, and it’s great to have it explained so well.
The last chapter is called “Back to the Future.” It addresses our current climate crisis and what lessons we can learn from how humanity coped with extremes of drought, rainfall, and temperatures in the past. Absolutely fascinating and timely!
November 22, 2021
This one disappointed me. I thought it would give real tips on things we could do, unfortunately it does not.
Starts and ends with a bit much hyperbole.
The writing is clearly designed for higher education rather than trying to reach the general public.
Much of the historical stories were quite interesting, there were several I hadn't heard of before.
Starts and ends with a bit much hyperbole.
The writing is clearly designed for higher education rather than trying to reach the general public.
Much of the historical stories were quite interesting, there were several I hadn't heard of before.
August 20, 2025
The book does a decent job making the case that the response to climate change has to be at the local level. While they show how much migration has occurred in countless cases throughout human history, I feel they missed how much migration occurred just in the United States during the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl.
September 1, 2021
A fascinating and informative read.
December 15, 2021
Excellent Look at How Climate Change Has Affected Human History
I wasn’t so sure about this argument when I first began reading the book but I soon became absorbed. This is very enlightening book and well written. I lived reading about the variety of historic cultures.
I wasn’t so sure about this argument when I first began reading the book but I soon became absorbed. This is very enlightening book and well written. I lived reading about the variety of historic cultures.
December 20, 2021
A lot of archaeology and anthropology (subjects I have no real interest in) providing background for human cultures through history set against climate change through the centuries. I could have done with less of the writers recommendations, simplistic in my opinion, of the changes current human society needs to make in order to adapt to ongoing anthropocene climate change. Ultimately, it's just boring.
February 4, 2022
This book was full of information. However, it didn't make a particularly strong case that climate change negatively affected past civilizations -- Don't get me wrong -- he certainly didn't make the opposite case, that climate change didn't affect the course of history. But by his rendering, there were many factors that led to the collapse of past civilizations, of which climate change was just one -- i.e., local climate change (i.e., multi-decadal changes over regional areas that brought droughts famines, or cold and rain) was a contributing factor in the collapse of eariler civilizations and empires, and often not the primary cause Even though it was packed with information, it was a little bit of a slog to finish it.
Part of the reason I found the book less than exciting is that, as in previous books of his, Fagan gets too far into the weeds and doesn't provide clear summaries and conclusions for the reader. Also, he is an archeologist, and archeology, in my mind, doesn't have a clear conceptual framework through which to understand or interpret things -- hence I often find archeology to be a mere collection of facts without. Fagan has written several books dealing with climate change, so he clearly thinks he sees the fingerprint of climate change on the archeological record. I think he would be more persuasive if he stated his conclusions more concisely and clearly.
Part of the reason I found the book less than exciting is that, as in previous books of his, Fagan gets too far into the weeds and doesn't provide clear summaries and conclusions for the reader. Also, he is an archeologist, and archeology, in my mind, doesn't have a clear conceptual framework through which to understand or interpret things -- hence I often find archeology to be a mere collection of facts without. Fagan has written several books dealing with climate change, so he clearly thinks he sees the fingerprint of climate change on the archeological record. I think he would be more persuasive if he stated his conclusions more concisely and clearly.
July 26, 2024
I recently read another book on climate change and the ancient world, but it ended up being about something completely unrelated to climate change... I wish I remembered the title because it was awful, but I guess it's a good thing I don't remember the title because it was awful.
This was much better.
I don't have a lot to say about it in particular praise or criticism. I trust the authors so far as the history goes (it's very broad in it's scope, so I expect there to be some discrepancy with other historians depending on expertise), and I hope their understanding of meteorology and geology hold up, but I do wish that they'd included a climatologist as an author. I listened to this book and couldn't consult the bibliography, but perhaps it shows a thoroughness that this topic deserves. I'll give it the benefit of the doubt.
This was much better.
I don't have a lot to say about it in particular praise or criticism. I trust the authors so far as the history goes (it's very broad in it's scope, so I expect there to be some discrepancy with other historians depending on expertise), and I hope their understanding of meteorology and geology hold up, but I do wish that they'd included a climatologist as an author. I listened to this book and couldn't consult the bibliography, but perhaps it shows a thoroughness that this topic deserves. I'll give it the benefit of the doubt.
Currently reading
May 4, 2021Netgalley
pub date September 21, 2021
publisher PublicAffairs
pub date September 21, 2021
publisher PublicAffairs
July 23, 2024
Pretty based. Just listen to the original people of the land for how to take care of the land you live on currently idiots.
February 26, 2024
“Oggi i migranti climatici sono decine di migliaia e il loro numero non potrà che aumentare in un mondo in via di riscaldamento. Per tutta risposta, l’Occidente innalza muri (metaforici e non) per respingere persone che depreda da secoli. Con quale diritto? È con ogni evidenza il nostro sistema economico ad autorizzarci ad agire in questo modo, posto che il capitalismo ha inscritte in sé le nozioni di povertà e sfruttamento.”
Parlare di cambiamenti climatici è sempre molto utile e non possiamo dire di conoscerne abbastanza, perché c’è sempre qualche aspetto che non viene trattato, qualunque sia il libro o la trasmissione tv cui ci approcciamo. Ad esempio non mi era mai passato per la mente che la questione dei cambiamenti climatici poteva essere anche storica. “Storia dei cambiamenti climatici” mi è venuto quindi in aiuto, per esplorare un aspetto che mi era ignoto.
Il libro sostanzialmente è un testo di storia, dove il focus si concentra su alluvioni, siccità, venti, ere glaciali e riscaldamenti locali e globali, visti in prospettiva della questione odierna: tutte le popolazioni nel corso della storia hanno affrontato disastri e ne sono sempre uscite, principalmente facendo affidamento alle proprie risorse e soprattutto ad una conoscenza dell’ambiente molto più profonda della nostra. Ma noi oggi appunto ci siamo separati dall’ambiente e ci siamo posti anzi in contrasto ad esso, vedendolo solo come risorsa da sfruttare, non da salvaguardare per conviverci. Ecco perché recuperare una certa umiltà potrebbe, per l’essere umano, risultare fondamentale.
Fagan crea un testo molto interessante dal punto di vista dell’importanza a riguardo del tema. Tuttavia per larghe parti è ripetitivo e manca di cartine geografiche e di immagini che avrebbero potuto renderlo più agile e leggibile.
Parlare di cambiamenti climatici è sempre molto utile e non possiamo dire di conoscerne abbastanza, perché c’è sempre qualche aspetto che non viene trattato, qualunque sia il libro o la trasmissione tv cui ci approcciamo. Ad esempio non mi era mai passato per la mente che la questione dei cambiamenti climatici poteva essere anche storica. “Storia dei cambiamenti climatici” mi è venuto quindi in aiuto, per esplorare un aspetto che mi era ignoto.
Il libro sostanzialmente è un testo di storia, dove il focus si concentra su alluvioni, siccità, venti, ere glaciali e riscaldamenti locali e globali, visti in prospettiva della questione odierna: tutte le popolazioni nel corso della storia hanno affrontato disastri e ne sono sempre uscite, principalmente facendo affidamento alle proprie risorse e soprattutto ad una conoscenza dell’ambiente molto più profonda della nostra. Ma noi oggi appunto ci siamo separati dall’ambiente e ci siamo posti anzi in contrasto ad esso, vedendolo solo come risorsa da sfruttare, non da salvaguardare per conviverci. Ecco perché recuperare una certa umiltà potrebbe, per l’essere umano, risultare fondamentale.
Fagan crea un testo molto interessante dal punto di vista dell’importanza a riguardo del tema. Tuttavia per larghe parti è ripetitivo e manca di cartine geografiche e di immagini che avrebbero potuto renderlo più agile e leggibile.
March 7, 2025
***.5
This is a book about paleoclimatology, which lies at the intersection of anthropology, archeology, history, and relies on the underlying science of climate and paleontology.
As we currently face unprecedented challenges as the result of anthropogenic climate change, it behooves us to understand how our ancestors dealt with their own experiences with changes in climate, and hopefully learn enough from the exercise to apply to our situation.
By zooming out to examine the tenuous survival of homo sapiens during the ice ages, and zooming in to see the role that climate played in the fall of the great empires, we see that we are not alone in having to deal with an often pesky and mercurial environment. It's sobering to realize that more often than not we lost the battle, either by slowly and voluntarily ceding ground, or by more cataclysmic and painful failures when things went horribly awry more quickly.
I downgraded the book a bit because although it generally followed a chronological outline by location, it also jumped around quite a bit, which often made it feel like a recitation of historical facts rather than a cohesive narrative. I was also hoping for a bit more of a tie-in to our current struggles, but it turns out that our modern society is so different from ancient Egypt or Medieval Europe that much of it just doesn't apply.
TL;DR: an interesting look at history through the lens of climate change, with some valuable lessons learned the hard way about the folly of not taking it seriously.
This is a book about paleoclimatology, which lies at the intersection of anthropology, archeology, history, and relies on the underlying science of climate and paleontology.
As we currently face unprecedented challenges as the result of anthropogenic climate change, it behooves us to understand how our ancestors dealt with their own experiences with changes in climate, and hopefully learn enough from the exercise to apply to our situation.
By zooming out to examine the tenuous survival of homo sapiens during the ice ages, and zooming in to see the role that climate played in the fall of the great empires, we see that we are not alone in having to deal with an often pesky and mercurial environment. It's sobering to realize that more often than not we lost the battle, either by slowly and voluntarily ceding ground, or by more cataclysmic and painful failures when things went horribly awry more quickly.
I downgraded the book a bit because although it generally followed a chronological outline by location, it also jumped around quite a bit, which often made it feel like a recitation of historical facts rather than a cohesive narrative. I was also hoping for a bit more of a tie-in to our current struggles, but it turns out that our modern society is so different from ancient Egypt or Medieval Europe that much of it just doesn't apply.
TL;DR: an interesting look at history through the lens of climate change, with some valuable lessons learned the hard way about the folly of not taking it seriously.
October 26, 2023
Fagen describes a lot of examples of how changed climate conditions affected civilizations around the globe. He notes that most cultures could easily one or two years of poor harvests caused by both drought and flood. However, human societies over millennia have experienced repeated cycles of prolonged drought alternating with other periods of prolonged benign conditions resulting in plenty of food. People most frequently adapted to the adverse conditions by mass starvation, mass migration or by breaking up into smaller units (dispersed villages instead of highly packed cities.) Many civilizations collapsed entirely while others managed to survive in a greatly changed form. Though the cycles of climate change were not "caused" by humans, people often exacerbated the effects by their actions (deforestation for example.) And though many civilizations developed advanced technology for water storage, conservation, or movement for irrigation, such complicated and massive constructions often made the society more vulnerable when catastrophic climate change occurred.
January 26, 2025
I was excited about this book and the potential clarity it could bring about pathways we could take to face todays climate crisis but I spent most of the book confused. I am not a historian or archeologist so I was like maybe I’m in over my head but the book isn’t really written in a way that suggest the authors only wanted archeologists and historians to understand it. At least not in how they address the reader, from a tone perspective and a structural perspective this book is written in a way to completely overwhelm the reader. I was excited that the book repeatedly made a point to say that we as human beings have generally resisted climate events through local change, migration and kinship. Those ideas were interesting to me but other times in the book the authors were talking about “strong authoritative charismatic leadership” being a necessary solution to climate events and I didn’t feel resolved in how those two ideas came together. Maybe in a year I’ll understand what they were talking about more.
July 2, 2022
Brain Fagan was one of the two major anthropologists we studied in my anthropology classes at the university, so I expected this to be a bit of a slow read and it was. With each of these civilizations the story is mostly repetitive: small grouping grows due to favorable conditions, becomes a village, becomes a city, farms becomes exploited and supports the elite, when 1% rules all and population outgrows carrying capacity of the land environmental change of any length destabilizes its foundation and the remaining population disperses to seek survival. For real solutions to todays impending doom I suggest reading “Grain by Grain” by Bob Quinn and Liz Carlisle.
January 29, 2024
Catching up on reviews so... Thanks to NetGalley and PublicAffairs for access to this book in exchange for my honest review.
Although I enjoyed this I don't know how approachable it is for the general public. It reminded me of books I read in anthropology courses in college, which doesn't mean it is bad - just maybe not exactly something that the average person would read and/or enjoy. It is informative, educational, and enlightening but if you're looking for some tips for what we can take from the past to use now this isn't exactly what you'll get from this book and there are a lot of books out there that will give you tips if that's what you want.
Although I enjoyed this I don't know how approachable it is for the general public. It reminded me of books I read in anthropology courses in college, which doesn't mean it is bad - just maybe not exactly something that the average person would read and/or enjoy. It is informative, educational, and enlightening but if you're looking for some tips for what we can take from the past to use now this isn't exactly what you'll get from this book and there are a lot of books out there that will give you tips if that's what you want.
November 16, 2022
The author presented us with many facts about how climate and civilization reflect each other. The book goes back 30,000 years and that’s up in the present. The author has many examples of how civilizations have risen and fallen through the effects of climate change throughout history. I found the book very interesting and I would recommend it for those who like to see the correlation between climate and civilizations.
April 24, 2022
we need the lessons of history
We need the lessons of history to help inform how we deal we the challenges before us. This sweeping historical account offers an important perspective on those lessons.
We need the lessons of history to help inform how we deal we the challenges before us. This sweeping historical account offers an important perspective on those lessons.
January 8, 2022
Excellent record of historical chaos.
July 27, 2022
A slog to read due to the choppy writing.
December 10, 2023
Certainly a good primer on the history of climate change, but fails to deliver well on the promise of offering solutions.
May 5, 2024
Estremamente interessante e avvilente
October 24, 2021
A must read book as it goes through history of the world and shows how climate has affected mankind and what lessons we can learn in order to deal with the future effects of Climate Change. I wish I knew much of this back when I was a History teacher along with the book Guns, Germs, and Steel by Diamond as you see how our environment has really affected what has happened over time. This book shows us how to deal with the future and it is hopeful that we will be able to adjust to our new environment in the future.
January 1, 2022
At the end of every chapter, summing up what happened to each and every previous civilization discussed, there is a sentence or two which essentially say, "this is exactly what is happening to us now, but unlike ______ culture, it's happening to the whole world, and there is nowhere to escape to to start a new one." Fascinating, but depressing.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews