Cli-fi refers to the expansion of climatic fiction. Which involves the plot of that features climate as a major point or backup of a story. The term was originally coined by dam bloom in the 2000s. Cli-fi fi a new genre term for novels, short stories, and movies that stands for works and art of storytelling. This genre is usually categorised under science or speculative fiction, depending on how close the story is set to the present-day reality. It usually has some kind of dystopian element as well.
Plays with the idea of how humanity will deal with the climate disaster in a world similar to our own, or in the near future, often includes technology that has been built to combat climate change, the disintegration of our technological advancements as a consequence of climate change, or both.
We as humans have been studying the greenhouse effect since the 1800s, when Eunice Foote described recreating the effect with glass jars in 1856. The idea that we are polluting the earth so that one day it will cause massive climate disasters is not a new one. However, the term climate fiction is relatively new. It started gaining prominence around 2010. In light of our more recent knowledge on the seriousness of climate change, it makes sense that more and more books would be surfacing about the topic. There are some pretty epic stories to be told here. Credit for who coined the term climate fiction has been given to journalist Dan Bloom from multiple sources. Who used it for the first time in the late 2000s?
Why is climactic fiction important?
Climate fiction is a growing wealth of information about greenhouse gases that scientists are studying all the time. Not only that, but socially, the world is growing to be more knowledgeable on climate change as changes are happening right before our eyes. And when a large number of people speak up and create unrest, things change. Polices change when we work for it, and when we work to educate ourselves on the issues and fight for growth. They are examining critically the way we interact with the earth, so that we can have an idea about how to think creatively about what to do about climate change.
The term cli-fi fi generally credited to freelance news reporter and climate activist Dan Bloom, who coined it in either 2007 or 2008. Pioneering 20th-century authors of climate fiction include JG Ballard and Octavia e butler, while dystopian fiction from Margaret Atwood is often cited as an immediate precursor to the genre's emergence since 2010, prominent cli fi authors include Kim Stanley Rabin son, Richard Powers, Paola Bacigalupi, and Barbara Kingsolver. The publication of Robins's Ministry of Future in 2020 helped cement the genre’s emergence; the work generated presidential and United Nations mentions, and an invitation for Robinson to meet planners at the Pentagon.
These narratives humanise the impacts of climate change by weaving personal stories into the broader context of environmental crises. Readers connect with characters who grapple with the challenges posed by a changing world, making the issue more relatable and personal.
Many cli-fi authors are also environmental activists, using their works to advocate for environmental conservation and climate action. Those novels often serve as a call to action, inspiring readers to get involved in environmental initiatives.
The most important cli-fi novels
The Sea and Summer by George Turner, Australia be brought back into print and read worldwide, way ahead of its time.
Odds against tomorrow by Nathaniel Rich, USA, is a tragic someday about Manhattan underwater in the near future and completely flooded by a fierce hurricane of untold proportions. Shackles tons man goes south by tony white, UK is a literary novel, released by the Science Museum in London.
Polar City Red, by Jim Laughter, USA, a little-known cli-fiThe thriller from 2021, that describes the desperate lives of people in a doomed polar city in Alaska in 2070, is set after Mexico. Central America and the lower 48 states of the USA have been abandoned, as millions of Climate refugees seek survival in Canada and Alaska. It is in the film James Havelock, 2006 vision of future humans serving a breeding pairs in the Arctic takes literary form.
Notable cli-fi works
The water will come, rising seas, sinking cities, and the remaking of the civilized world. World, by Jeff Goodell, is a non-fiction work that explores the impact of rising sea levels on coastal cities, providing a stark and factual account of the consequences of climate change.
The Windup Girl by Paola Bacigalupi, set in a future world ravaged by climate change, Bacigulapi's delves into issues of biotechnology, corporate power, and environmental collapse.
The Overstory by Richard Powers, while not strictly Cli-fi, is a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel that weaves together the lives of various characters and their connection to trees, shedding light on the importance of nature in our lives.
Climate cli-fi is a genre that has emerged as a powerful tool for addressing and understanding the profound implications of climate change. Through storytelling, authors in this genre raise awareness, humanise environmental issues, and advocate for a sustainable future. As our world grapples with the ongoing climate crisis, codification stands as a testament to literature's ability to engage with, reflect upon, and inspire action on the most pressing issues of our time. It’s a genre that invites us to consider the future we are shaping and challenges us to take responsibility for the planet we call home. As early as the 1980s, it was understood what global warming was doing to our planet. No more clocks that strike 13 and starships to Mars. We need to save the Earth first.
References