In his book , Bruno Latour argues that the contemporary political landscape is defined by three interconnected phenomena: exploding inequalities, massive deregulation, and a coordinated effort toward climate change denial . He posits that global elites, realizing the planet cannot sustain universal modernization, have effectively "seceded" from the world, choosing to prioritize their own survival over a shared future. Core Arguments & Concepts
: To navigate this crisis, Latour proposes a new political orientation toward the Terrestrial . This means treating the Earth not as a backdrop for human activity, but as an active agent that human societies must learn to inhabit alongside other living species. Book Details Author Bruno Latour Publisher Polity Press Publication Date November 20, 2018 Length Approximately 140 pages Key Themes Anthropocene, political ecology, migration, globalization Availability & Purchase You can find this book at various retailers, including: Amazon (Paperback/E-Book) Bookshop.org (Supporting independent bookstores) Walmart and Target Down to Earth: Politics in the New Climatic Regime Down to Earth: Politics in the New Climatic Regime
: He uses the election of Donald Trump and the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Accord as evidence of a new political attractor—the "Out-of-This-World"—where the goal is to continue consumption at any cost while denying the shared existence of a threatened planet. In his book , Bruno Latour argues that
: Traditional politics has long been torn between the Local (nativism, traditions, borders) and the Global (progress, universalism, development). Latour argues neither is currently grounded in the biophysical reality of the Earth. This means treating the Earth not as a
: Latour connects deregulation, rising inequality, and the denial of ecological reality as a single phenomenon. Powerful groups invest in climate denial as "moral cover" for their refusal to share a common world.