Climate Engineering in German Cultural Representations—the Anthropocene 2.0 [Klimaengineering in deutschsprachigen kulturellen Darstellungen—das Anthropozän 2.0]

Abstract

This introduction first presents the theme of climate engineering and then outlines the political narrative and history of weather manipulation more specifically. It offers an overview of research on German climate fiction, claiming that within this field the matter of climate engineering has so far received little scholarly attention. It argues that climate engineering could be called “the Anthropocene 2.0,” because it is a strategy to counter the climate catastrophe caused by man-made technologies by means of further technology, driven by economic power and military interests. This immensely dangerous strategy follows from the desperate conviction, or vested interests, that despite the enormous risks involved, there is no alternative for preventing the destruction of the environment necessary for human survival. The introduction closes by surveying the contributions and their relation to the issue as a whole.