David Wallace-Wells

David Wallace-Wells: Author, "The Uninhabitable Earth: A Story of the Future"

David Wallace-Wells

New York Magazine Deputy Editor David Wallace-Wells argues that climate change must be framed through the realities of its unprecedented speed, scope, and severity, citing projections of $30 trillion in economic contraction and irreversible ice sheet melting that redefine the 2-degree warming threshold as a likely baseline. To address this existential threat, Wallace-Wells advocates for a World War II-scale global mobilization focused on systemic policy shifts and green technology innovation rather than individual lifestyle changes, emphasizing the rising influence of China and youth-led movements in driving the necessary geopolitical transformation. This approach challenges the outdated consensus that climate action hinders economic growth, presenting data that rapid decarbonization could instead generate $26 trillion in new economic value by 2030 while preventing billions from becoming climate refugees.