Abstract
Climate change poses the most significant challenge facing the world today and should be more than sufficient to mobilize the world and its many communities to respond meaningfully and quickly. However, response must be made to conditions not yet fully realized, presenting the challenge of preparing instead of simply reacting. It is likely that only after global societies are restructured by human altered natural processes will we see the rise of a new focal point for our discipline. Most people, especially in the rich and powerful Northern countries, do not really feel like they are living on the edge. Environmental concerns have become and continue to be seen as no more than background noise.