The issue of sea level rise is an emotional, politically charged one. And we simply don’t want to believe that our actions might put beloved places like New Orleans or Venice under water in the not-so-distant future.

But what if we take the emotion out of it and simply look at the facts? What if we focus on adapting to rising sea levels by way of sound economic principles?

John Englander is the oceanographer and economist behind the Rising Seas Institute, a think tank dedicated to understanding and explaining the latest science around long-term rising sea levels. He also serves as a consultant helping corporations, government agencies, communities and individuals adapt to the risks of sea level rise. John’s latest book is called Moving to Higher Ground: Rising Sea Level and the Path Forward.

On this episode of The Wiggin Sessions, John joins me to share the data on sea level rise, explaining how melting glaciers cause it and why it’s accelerating at an exponential rate.

We explore the relationship among CO2 concentration, global temperature and sea level, discussing how humans have altered the natural cycle of warming and cooling—and why we’re so resistant to accepting our impact on climate.

Listen in for John’s fiscally conservative, market-driven approach to addressing sea level rise and learn how the phenomenon is likely to impact the economy and property values in coastal communities around the globe.

Key Takeaways

How glacier calving causes sea levels to rise + how that natural process is accelerating in our warmer world

What sea level rise means for communities like Baltimore Harbor

How humans have altered the natural cycle of warming and cooling (and why we’re so resistant to accepting our impact on climate)

The relationship among CO2 concentration, global temperature and sea level

What drove natural heating and cooling cycles prior to industrialization and how those cycles have changed with the burning of fossil fuels

How sea levels and shorelines are NOT permanent (and why we struggle to comprehend that)

How satellite data reflects a doubling of sea level rise every decade for the last 30 years

John’s experience working with the military and municipalities on the impact of sea level rise and why their responses differ

Why property values and insurance premiums should reflect the risk associated with sea level rise

John’s fiscally conservative, market-driven approach to addressing sea level rise and why the government should not subsidize flood insurance costs

How the unsustainability of our current economic policy parallels that of CO2 emissions

What makes Greenland the best place to observe the extreme melting of the world’s glaciers

Connect with John Englander

Moving to Higher Ground: Rising Sea Level and the Path Forward by John Englander

Connect with Addison Wiggin

Consilience Financial

Be sure to follow The Wiggin Sessions on your socials. You can find me on—

Facebook @thewigginsessions

Instagram @thewigginsessions

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Resources

John’s Greenland Expeditions

The Long Emergency: Surviving the End of Oil, Climate Change, and Other Converging Catastrophes of the Twenty-First Century by James Howard Kuntsler

John’s Chart of CO2, Temperature & Sea Level

Green New Deal

Bill Bonner’s Diary

Books by David M. Walker

Rising Seas Institute

John’s Graph of Satellite Data on Sea Level Rise

Google Earth Timelapse of Columbia Glacier in Alaska

Google Earth Timelapse

Agora Financial