The consequences of the climate emergency will damage economies. This damage could be so severe that it triggers recessions. Economic recessions are significant declines in activity across an economy that last for many months. 

Recessions could be triggered by climate impacts that affect entire systems. For example, extreme weather events hitting key food growing areas could lead to price increases that negatively impact economies across the world, pushing some into recession. Another example is a financial crisis caused by the failure of insurance companies due to too many insurance demands in the wake of climate impacts. Like in the 2007/8 financial crisis, this could soon become a wider economic problem. 

There is also a risk that climate action is deprioritised in favor of tackling short-term problems caused by recessions, such as unemployment. But it doesn’t have to be this way: the most effective form of economic recovery involves investing in clean technologies and green jobs. 

Overall, the continued failure to act on the climate emergency will inevitably cause recessions: a hotter, more chaotic world will be severely damaging to economic activity. Conversely, stopping this from happening is one of the greatest economic opportunities in history, as a cleaner, fairer world can be more prosperous.

Every player must discard 1 card per Temperature Band, from their hand and/or play area.

Players can reduce this effect by 1 for each Social Resilience token in their player board.

For example: 3 Temperature Bands – 2 Social Resilience = discard 1 card.

Cards discarded from the play area can come from anywhere in any stack, including the front card. If a player discards the front card from a stack, the action on the card directly beneath it becomes available.
Resilience tokens are not discarded.

• Climate Change Could Spark a Recession With No Recovery (Time) 

• Climate economics — costs and benefits (Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, ECIU)

• Climateflation and food price instability (Positive Money)

• Delivering climate action in response to recessions — a green recovery — is the best way to repair the economic damage. 

• Support organizations championing new forms of banking and money system that are more resilient to a changing climate, like Positive Money.