Even though the catastrophic scenarios of climate change are well-known it is useful to recall them from time to time so that one never forget the compelling and urgent need for adaptation. In this essay, Sivan Kartha begins with a clear and comprehensive assessment of what is at stake from ecological, societal, economic, and political angles. He underlines the dire uncertainty as to what precise climatic conditions humankind will face and the difficulty to plan adaptation and mitigation in such a volatile environment. Then he summarizes some technologically feasible and economically viable options with which the challenge could be successfully met provided that less consumptive and less resource-intensive lifestyles be adopted across the world. Paying close attention to the fact that climate change will impact far more the poor than the rich, the author proposes an equitable global response based on four principles―equality, need, responsibility, and capacity―whose realization would involve significant transfers of financial and technological resources from wealthier to poorer regions.