Beside a once-frozen lake on the Arctic Circle, an alligator slithers through the lush vegetation and into the warm water of a tropical swamp. Overhead, macawsLarge, brightly coloured parrots with huge hooked beaks, which they use to crack open large nuts. call to each other from the top of palm trees, while howler monkeys fill the air with frenzied chatter; a three-toed slothA tree-dwelling animal found in Central and South America. Because it moves so slowly, it is equated with laziness. hangs from a vine-draped branch. A turtle dives where wolves used to walk across impenetrable ice.

This, according to some scientists, is how the coldest part of our planet could look 200 years from now unless the climate emergency is checked. The latest data from Siberia suggest that they are right: this Saturday, the town of Verkhoyansk registered the highest temperature in the Arctic since records began: 38C.

The scientists argue that, thanks to our use of fossil fuels, CO2 levels in the atmosphere could reach a point not seen since dinosaurs walked the earth.

And, says Professor Dan Lunt of Bristol University, the consequences might be worse. "Due to nuclear reactions in stars like our Sun, over time, they become brighter. This means that, although carbon dioxide concentrations were high hundreds of millions of years ago, the net warming effect of CO2 and sunlight was less."

That is not the only threat. Dramatic fluctuationsAlternate rises and falls. The term comes from a Latin word meaning to move like waves. in temperature could damage our immune systems and affect the behavioral patterns of animals and insects, making it easier for them to pass on deadly diseases like Covid-19.

But, as Pope FrancisThe head of the Catholic Church since 2013. An Argentinian, he is the first non-European to hold the position since the 8th Century. writes in a new essay, a crisis is also an opportunity: "We have to slow down our rate of production and consumption, and to learn to understand and contemplate the natural world [...]. I see early signs of an economy that is more human. This is the time to take the decisive step."

The former governor of the Bank of England, Mark CarneyA Canadian economist who was governor of the Bank of England from 2013 until March this year. He is now the United Nations's special envoy for climate action and finance., agrees. He argued in an interview yesterday that, since the pandemic is forcing businesses to rethink their futures, it is logical for them to accelerate moves to become carbon neutral.

"It can be part of the solution to the economic challenges [...], bending the emission curve and in the process creating greater prosperity."

He believes, too, that the pandemic has made businesses more aware of their responsibilities to society.

The end, pessimists say. It is too late for the climate crisis to be reversed. As the ice caps melt and the ground beneath becomes accessible, it will just give people more terrain to exploit. Rising water levels will force an expanding global population closer together, making deadly diseases even more likely. We are caught in a vicious cycle.

A new beginning, say the optimists. Humans are brilliant at adapting to emergencies. The true story of the pandemic is incredible co-operation, miraculous science, and a resetting of the natural balance. If we address the climate crisis in a similar way, we have every chance of beating it.