Our Time: Finding Hope in a Climate Crisis

Geologist Skelton’s off-kilter debut combines memoir and science to explain the climate crisis and offer solutions. Melding firsthand accounts of geological expeditions with descriptions of Earth’s 4.5-billion-year history, Skelton posits that, since its salad days, the planet has experienced multiple climate-related catastrophes. For example, he cites the Snowball Earth hypothesis that ice covered the globe more than 600 million years ago. Earth is good at adapting to climate disasters, Skelton explains, but recently its resilience has been challenged by human activities, such as the burning of fossil fuels, which have accelerated climate change to the point of no return. Skelton declares that either humans act now with solutions such as reducing greenhouse gas emissions and using technology to remove carbon from the atmosphere, or face annihilation. Unfortunately, this declaration comes across as trite and his attempt to argue the point falls flat. He elaborates extensively on his adventures as a nature lover, like his time telemark skiing through Scotland’s “wildest and most beautiful parts,” overshadowing more essential information, such as how granite, as it weathers, removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Though the Earth-related science is accessible and intriguing, as a call to action, this is off-pitch. B&w photos. (Jan.)