Advice on how to prepare for global warming from climate change survivalists

Barbara Heggen

IMAGE: HEAVY RAINS POUND NORTHERN CALIFORNIA FOLLOWING THREE YEARS OF DROUGHT (GEORGE ROSE/GETTY IMAGES)

If you believe the overwhelming body of science predicting a two-degree increase in global surface temperatures over the next 50 years, you might want to start preparing. Luckily much of the hard work has been done for you and collated into a handy guide book, as Barbara Heggen reports.

Tasmania is one of the world's hot spots (pun fully intended) for climate change survivalists.

One of the most helpful things in a crisis situation is having people around you who care about whether you live or die.

JANE RAWSON, AUTHOR

'You want somewhere that's going to be comfortable when it gets warmer, and that might have decent amount of rainfall. In Australia that's Tasmania,' says James Whitmore, one of the authors of The Handbook: Surviving and Living with Climate Change.

However, as much as the idea of moving there may be appealing, it's simply not going to be possible for everyone.

Whitmore's co-author, Jane Rawson, is quick to warn that even if you could afford it, moving may not necessarily be the best way to survive the impacts of climate change.

'One of the most helpful things in a crisis situation is having people around you who care about whether you live or die,' she says.

So if you're planning a move to Tassie, she recommends you do it now and start making lots of friends.

Rawson and Whitmore both have a background in environmental journalism and have spent years editing articles written by reputable and renowned climate change scientists.

They both started writing to-do lists in preparation for the changes ahead, and soon realised that perhaps others would be interested .

'I'm the sort of person who likes to be prepared for things, I want to know the worst possible thing that can happen and know that I've done what I can,' says Rawson. 'Why not make it into a book for other people who are also worried?'

The first thing Rawson and Whitmore recommend is assessing your risk. Depending on where you live, climate change may bring more floods, more storm surges, longer heatwaves or more severe storms.

'It's mostly about learning to do things yourself if things stop working intermittently,' advises Rawson. 'It's good to know how to fix things, how to grow your own food, collect your own water.'

The book includes chapters on how to build houses that are flood-resistant, fire-resistant, and heat resistant. It also offers renters and others on low incomes cheap ways to retrofit existing homes.

But Whitmore emphasises again that it's perhaps most important to make friends with your neighbours. In the event of a disaster you're more likely to be saved by a neighbour or co-worker than someone wearing a badge, he says.

You might also want to consider moving from a big city to a large provincial town equipped with hospitals and other important emergency services.

Rawson says that city dwellers rely on infrastructure that can make life extremely unpleasant when it fails.

'When transport fails, if water supply fails, if getting rid of sewage becomes an issue, then the city becomes a lot less liveable.'

The book also spends time exploring the psychological impact of climate change. Whitmore suggests this may be even more damaging for many people than the physical impact.

'Climate change implies that things that you knew in the past are going to be different in the future,' he says. 'That involves an element of loss, and that loss is really difficult to cope with and comprehend.'

Whitmore suggests that you should plan for climate change in the same way you would prepare for any other life changing event, like a new baby, a new job or a move to another city.

'Think about the challenges you might face, how might you plan for them, and implement those plans. It's common sense really.'