Future on Fire: Capitalism and the Politics of Climate Change

by David Camfield

Climate change is already affecting millions of people. Governments talk about taking action to limit global heating to 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, but the greenhouse gas emissions allowed by their policies have the Earth on track to heating far more than that by the end of the century—a level of heating that will have truly disastrous consequences. Visionary plans for how to slash emissions and make society better at the same time abound, including various Green New Deals. But how can we make the changes that are so urgently needed?



Future on Fire argues that a just transition from fossil fuels and other drivers of climate change will not be delivered by businesspeople or politicians that support the status quo. Nor will electing green left leaders be enough to overcome the opposition of capitalists and state bureaucrats. Only the power of disruptive mass social movements has the potential to force governments to make the changes we need, so supporters of climate justice should commit to building them. Confronting the question “what if heating above 2 degrees becomes unavoidable?” and refusing to despair, David Camfield argues that even a ravaged planet is worth fighting for—and that ultimately the only solution to the ecological crisis created by capitalism is a transition to ecosocialism.

Genres: Nonfiction, Climate Change, Environment, Ecology

121 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 11, 2022

Reviews

[anai · Rating 4 out of 5]

i had to read this for a class, but it's an extremely quick read! while it left a desire to go more into depth about social movements and anti-capitalism, i think this book does a wonderful job of introducing these topics to readers who have begun to dip their toes into these topics.

[C · Rating 5 out of 5]

An accessible and concise introduction to the social dynamics of climate change—why mass social movements are the key to climate justice, and how ecosocialism is a necessary transition from capitalism if we want to sustain our physical home planet and society. A great handbook and must read if you are a climate activist, anti-capitalist, care about social justice, want to see a better future, all of the above (spoiler: they are all connected)…

[Nate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helpful read in parsing the climate crisis. Nice overview of the politics of oppression and exploitation. And how the struggle against capitalism under the climate crisis is parallel to the historic and ongoing struggle of native populations against imperialism.

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, I read this one in one sitting, and found it generally disappointing. I agree that mass mobilization/disruption is likely the only way to combat climate change, but I don’t feel like it progressed much farther than simply putting that statement out there, and pointing out how and why governments either fail or are co-opted by capitalist driving forces. I also thought that it failed to point out how mass mobilization/disruption can be sustained, as most of the mobilizations that the boom references were very brief flashes in a pan, and some, such as the most recent George Floyd movement failed to cause any systemic change before it was smashed. It also doesn’t address how it is possible to shift societal attitudes towards such movements that are curated by mass media, a tool of the capitalist class. The book seemed like an introduction to a number of topics that were only mentioned, but never addressed and were not in themselves forceful or convincing, which would be necessary for such a short text. The only parts that were convincing was how obviously dire the situation is, and how impossible it is for existing institutions to tackle the problem.

[Maxwell · Rating 2 out of 5]

Says nothing. I have pretty low standards with these types of books, and ive been able to enjoy some rough ones, but no matter how charitable i am here i cant say anything good about this. Some of the absolute worst argumentation ive ever seen in any text to the point that idt you can even call them arguments. literally shit like "this line of thinking is bad because it is not good" over and over again, aimed at every type of solution to the issues the book is concerned about, just so it can be as vague as it wants to be while gesturing towards a "mass social movement"

[Chloé · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pros: provides an extremely accessible outline of the interactions between capitalism and our climate crisis, and how mass social movements play a crucial role in terms of shifting the needle.

Cons: claims to make a case for ecosocialism but instead glosses over it and provides very little substance for readers to actually understand the subject matter.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting discussion of climate change, without being a total downer. Worth reading.

[Javier · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brief and highly utopian.

[Lucas Tittle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a clear and concise argument for both caring about climate change and for joining social movements generally. A good read to understand more about capitalism’s relentlessness and connection to all other forms of oppression. Camfield gently nudges his audience to join social movements, even if they’re not explicitly about the climate (as they’re tangentially related anyway). Probably a good thing to read for anyone wondering why the same activists care about BLM, climate change, Palestine, and other related issues.

[Mel Stead]

Reviewed in the March 2023 issue of the Socialist Standard:

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