Welcome to the World’s Revolution
If you’re an author considering submitting to Volume I: Gaia Awakens, use this page to kickstart your worldbuilding!
Overview
The climate crisis looms over the twenty-first century, a knife in the back of all future generations. As we enter 2021, we sit on the edge of a cliff. Many futures await us.
The World’s Revolution is one possible (though slightly improbable) future.
If nations across the world don’t act quickly, climate change becomes a runaway freight train. We run the risk of geopolitical conflict striking across the globe as resources become scarce, storms batter coastlines, and disease runs havoc.
And in The World’s Revolution, heroes rise. The planet fights back. It’s going to take more than one person, though, to stop the rising tide of the climate crisis. It’ll take a generation, working together, to create a world where all live in harmony, both with one another and the planet.
Note: A lot of our worldbuilding centers the continental United States, because that’s where our team is from. Please view our worldbuilding as a framework! We encourage prospective authors to tell stories set in places across the globe. Use what we’ve outlined here to inspire your own creative worldbuilding.
Timeline
2020
COVID-19 throws the global and US economy into disarray.
2021 - 2025
The United States leans heavy into natural gas fired electric generation, plateauing GHG emissions at unsustainable rates. Natural gas exports increase, and in an effort to recover from the COVID-19 economic downturn, many countries postpone solar and wind transition in favor of cheap natural gas from the United States.
2026
The Western Coalition forms, a collective of western state representatives and senators caucusing in response to the United States’s failed climate mitigation efforts.
2034
The United States holds a Constitutional Convention, resulting in the creation of five different nations: The Western Republic of America, The Coastal Republic of America, The Texan Alliance of States, The Southern States of America, and the Midwestern Federation. The Midwestern Federation is the last nation to ratify its own constitution (2040).
2042
UNFCCC summit in Sacramento, first Conference of the Parties to occur in the United States in decades. On the first day on the negotiation floor, a number of delegates die during a freak HVAC accident. A number of countries, including Texas and the Southern States of America, accuse foreign powers for the attack. Global powers use the attack as a pretext for armed conflict.
2042 - 2044
The World Water War. China, Pakistan, and India fight over the few fresh water resources still remaining in the Himalayas. The conflict turns into a quazi-war between a number of other major powers across the world. The rapid escalation of hostilities sees many countries tapping their strategic oil reserves.
2044
Hostilities cease by 2044, with the armistice seeing essentially the same borders as before but with a massive refugee crisis and large swaths of Central Asia effectively not controlled by any one nation. An earthquake rocks the Indian Ocean, the resulting tidal wave exacerbated by sea level rise. Immediately thereafter, a number of particularly powerful storms rock Southeast Asia and India, flooding much of Bangladesh.
The war and following increase in global tensions causes another global recession as countries close their borders and focus on developing individual climate adaptation efforts and plans.
2046
Hundreds of countries pull out of the UNFCCC after the 2046 COP devolves into chaos and in-fighting. International negotiations on climate mitigation and adaptation officially ceases.
2047 and beyond
Nations across the world implement drastic isolationist measures in response to the global recession following The World Water War. Most nations close their borders to immigration and refugees (Canada becomes a haven for many climate refugees). Isolationist economic policies are implemented globally. Extreme weather frequently impacts nations, forcing climate refugee crises. The risk of global pandemic skyrockets, as does future military conflict.
Many countries still rely significantly on coal, natural gas, and oil for energy production, with a number of corporations still continuing to drill (fossil fuel leases locked in through at least 2100).
State of the ClimatE
By 2050, the temperature has risen by 2.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Sea level has risen by ~0.7 meters, impacting approximately 100 million people worldwide. The radiative forcing from greenhouse gas emissions has exacerbated extreme weather worldwide, with droughts lasting for years and hurricane storm surge devastating shoreline communities.
Due to shifting climates, pests and insects and other wildlife are shifting their habitats, and farmland is regularly wrecked by disease and infestation. A number of glacial freshwater sources worldwide have completely depleted, and in some cases has resulted in military conflict (The World Water War of 2044).
State of International Geopolitics
Following the World Water War, the world has entered a state of political tension similar to the Cold War of the 20th century. The European Union has closed its borders to any country still relying on fossil fuels for energy production. The Russian Federation collapsed following the death of Vladimir Putin, fragmenting into a number of smaller nation-states. China, India, and Pakistan have tentatively agreed on a Shared Resources Agreement for the freshwater sources of the Himalayas. The five nations of the former United States have begun placing tariffs upon one another for particular resources.
Canada is one of the few countries keeping its borders open, specifically for climate refugees. Unlike the European Union, Canada has not completely closed its borders, though it does restrict travel from “non-complying” nations (not meeting Canada’s climate goals). Canada banned the production of oil and natural gas in 2040 (after the Alberta Tar Sands ran dry).
Most oceanic pacific island nations are uninhabitable.
Nations in the “Global South” have united in a commitment to industrializing using fossil fuels as long as Europe, China, and the former United States refuse to pay their fair share of the historical burden of climate change.
Major International Political Units
United Nations
European Union
The Unified Global South
Confederation of International Small Island States
US Reorganization
In 2034, The United States held a Constitutional Convention, resulting in the creation of five different nations: The Western Republic of America, The Coastal Republic of America, The Texan Alliance of States, The Southern States of America, and the Midwestern Federation. The Midwestern Federation is the last nation to ratify its own constitution (2040).
The Western Republic of America
California
Oregon
Washington
Hawaii
Alaska
Arizona
New Mexico
Puerto Rico
Nevada
The Coastal Republic of America
Massachusetts
Maine
Vermont
New Hampshire
New York
Rhode Island
Connecticut
Delaware
New Jersey
Virginia
Maryland
Georgia
Florida
The Southern States of America
North Carolina
South Carolina
Kentucky
Tennessee
Alabama
Mississippi
Arkansas
Missouri
Louisiana
Indiana
The Texan Alliance of States
Texas
Oklahoma
Utah
Wyoming
Montana
North Dakota
South Dakota
Idaho
The Midwestern Federation
Pennsylvania
Ohio
Michigan
Wisconsin
Illinois
Minnesota
Nebraska
Kansas
Colorado
West Virginia
So What happened to the United States?
The five nations formerly known as the United States reconsolidated with five separate governments. The Western Republic of America recentralized its government in Sacramento and utilizes a centralized parliamentary democracy with a number of nationalized industries. Out of the five US nations, the WRA is the second closest to achieving net-zero emissions. In 2050, it reaches 80% below 2005 levels.
The Coastal Republic of America has been wrecked by continuous storms and sea level rise, making it the most politically unstable nation of the five. While it has significantly eliminated most of its GHG emissions, the Coastal Republic of America has also instituted a number of incredibly radical policies and approaches to solving the climate crisis that the rest of the world seemingly ignores.
The Midwestern Federation has profited significantly off the natural gas industry that blossomed in the Ohio River Valley. The nation has been mostly insulated from climate impacts of the first half of the twentieth century, barring extreme winter weather, periodic droughts, and overly intense rainstorms that can wash out crop fields. The agricultural heart of the former US has transitioned significant portions of its farms into indoor factory farms. While the region relies on Wind for most of its electricity, it still has a major baseline load generated by natural gas.
The Southern States of America still relies heavily on coal and natural gas for its power, though solar power is slowly taking hold. Its culture takes pride in avoiding the “socialist” policies of the Western and Coastal Republics, and views itself as the heart of “true” America. Its economy relies heavily on commodity crops that are being hit increasingly by pestilence.
The Texan Alliance of States finds its political heart in Austin, Texas, with a radically de-federated approach to its governance. Every member state manages itself fairly separate from the other member states, with a significant mix of wind, solar, and natural gas for its power supply.
The interactions of the five nations
The five nations formerly known as the United States collaborate on one issue of foreign policy: defense. While each nation has its own department of defense, the Constitutional Convention of 2034 resulted in each new constitution including the ability for collective defense between the five nations. If 4 of the 5 nations vote to activate the “United States Armed Forces,” the Departments of Defense will elect from amongst themselves a trio of commanders to coordinate military actions of the five nations.
This power was used once during the World Water War, where the US Armed Forces activated to signal to the world that any nation that used nuclear weapons during the war would be responded to with overwhelming force. Otherwise, the US Armed Forces stayed out of the conflict occurring on the other side of the world (though US corporate interests intervened regularly).
In general, migration between the five nations goes unimpeded, though as the separation continues into the mid-twenty-first century, a number of economic tariffs and non-competitive agreements have arisen on the borders. Tensions have begun to rise as the impacts of climate change aren’t felt equally across the 50 states.
International Organizations
Global Climate Amnesty Center
The World Revolution Fund
IPCC
The Association of Independent Climate Scientists
The Network
PetroInternational
Mercury Fuels
BioEnergy Inc.
SustainAble
Worldwide Wind
Solar Solutions
World Justice United
International Socialist Party
Chinese Power Company
The “Awakened”
Starting in 2040, humans across the world begin uncovering unique powers and abilities impossible in their nature. The first “public” occurrence of such fantastical feats was at the 2042 UNFCCC COP, though the attendees and world didn’t recognize it at the time.
The powers and abilities of these humans vary across the spectrum, from the simple ability to breathe underwater to the power to redirect the wind with a single thought. Something is awakening, the cause unknown. Conspiracy theorists on the internet speculate about the strange stories they uncover, though by 2050, the general public has barely heard of these “Awakened,” nor does any government publicly recognize their existence.
Technology
Due to the relative level of political instability between 2020 and 2040/2050, technological advancement has stalled in some areas while progressing significantly in others. Cyber technology, especially the internet, computers, and virtual/augmented reality have continued to expand their share of the global market.
Clean energy technology is now ubiquitous but has failed to completely overtake fossil fuels, especially in the plastics market. Nuclear power has not provided baseline generation, so many countries rely on natural gas for baseline generation. The transition to energy storage systems stalled during the 2040s during the Water War.
Genetic engineering, especially for plants and animals, has seen a lot of focus over the past few decades, especially as wildlife struggles to adapt to shifting climates. Genetic modification has become ubiquitous throughout the agricultural sector.
Narrative Trajectory
The World’s Revolution: A Climate Crisis Anthology begins with a state-of-affairs that are not particularly happy or hopeful. As the narrative of The World’s Revolution unfolds, readers should see the trials, tribulations, and hardships that will come with the climate crisis. However, the stories should also bring hope in the power of individual and collective action to fix the climate crisis.
Through democratic, political, and cultural reaction to the fight for a healthy climate, we can change the world. So any story written for The World’s Revolution should reflect on the risks of the climate crisis while looking toward themes and narratives that push readers to think about how we can eliminate environmental injustice all over the world.
And of course, the characters, powers, and narratives created should be fun, entertaining, and thought-provoking.