ABSTRACT
If we do not change current policies immediately and radically, global temperature will climb another two degrees by 2090. In that world with millions of starving refugees, failed states, and desperate wars, democracy might not survive anywhere. Preventing this requires management of the atmosphere as a global commons, with users represented by nation-states. Among nation-states, only democracies and oligarchic republics have cooperated in durable alliances, indeed hardly ever warring on their own kind. The reason is their political culture: equal rights under law, conflict resolution by vote or consensus, devotion to the common welfare. Imbued with this culture at home, leaders practice it abroad where possible, creating peaceful international regimes. Authoritarian states can also work within alliances when it is in their interest, such as facing a common enemy in war; climate change is a comparable threat. But long-term commons management can only succeed when it is dominated by republican norms. That requires many democratic states, each with a citizenry united in the work of preserving a livable climate. Nationalism (patriotism, not chauvinism) can unite citizens to make sacrifices for the survival of their country—its traditions, its customs, its landscapes. Where a national ideal of freedom and equality prevails, citizens will also rally to preserve democracy, opposing elites who use the climate crisis to augment their power even while blocking government action on climate. The climate fight and the fight for liberty and justice are inseparable.
