One book on the topic is, 'On the Future: Prospects For Humanity', by Martin Rees, (2018). In this he speaks of the risks which affect human beings, future generations and the planet. He suggests the importance of global and long term effects being taken into consideration in thinking about threats which are apparent. He suggests that the,
'future depends on making wise choices about key societal challenges: energy, health, food, robotics, environment, space, and so forth. These choices involve science. But key decisions shouldn't just be made by scientists; they matter to us all and should be the outcome of wide public debate.'
Rees was thinking of catastrophes and risks prior to the time of the pandemic of Covid_19 and the war tensions in Ukraine. One of the key issues was climate change. In creating this thread, I am thinking of all these significant issues and how catastrophes, disaster and risks can be thought about in terms of science, ethical and political values. I am hoping that in linking these together that I am not creating a topic which is too wide in scope or overwhelming. However, the rationale for linking them is that the various catastrophies, including war, ecological crisis and impending risks have profound implications for the future, dependent on how they are approached, especially by political leaders.
What are your thoughts and ideas about the areas of concern at this particular point in history? How useful is philosophy in thinking about science, ethics and politics in these matters and in thinking about the future?