Book list - Rising Risks: Navigating the Modern Risk Society

I’m a big fan of the concept of the antilibrary or tsundoku—collecting books that I’m interested in, sometimes even before I have time to read them all. My goal is to build and share themed collections from my antilibrary, organizing books around key ideas that shape our world. In the future, I’ll also write chapter-by-chapter reviews of specific books and host a community book club to discuss and explore book themes in depth.

Books listed here can be viewed and purchased from my Bookshop.org store. As an affiliate, I earn a commission, but all profits from this specific list will be donated to the California Fire Foundation’s Wildfire & Disaster Relief Fund to support recovery efforts in my hometown, Los Angeles.

What is the risk society?

Complex risks, fueled by somewhat abstract and sometimes interrelated crises, are becoming a common feature of the world and our political conflicts. For example, climate change is no longer a distant threat; it is a present crisis affecting communities worldwide. A growing number of individuals face exposure to extreme weather events that result in billions of dollars in damages and increase health and safety risks for vulnerable people.

This isn't just about natural disasters, though. Climate change and our responses to it are shaped by political, economic, and technological choices. These choices ultimately determine who creates risk and who bears its costs. My first book list, Rising Risks, focuses on climate change, but it is framed around a deeper idea: the Risk Society.

This concept, developed by German sociologist Ulrich Beck, argues that modernity is defined not just by progress but by how society anticipates and manages risks—especially those of its own making. Much of the technocratic state and corporate managerial class exist to contain these risks, whether environmental, financial, or social. In short, modernity generates new problems, societies adapt, and these adaptations create even newer challenges.

I stumbled upon Beck’s work by accident but was immediately captivated. I’ve long been interested in economic externalities—hidden costs like pollution that burden the public. While Beck wasn’t solely focused on externalities, his theory recognizes how both public and private institutions create risks that shape society at large.

Who manages and bears risk in the risk society?

Perhaps the most central political question of our time is not just how we address risks but who has the power to create them—and who must live with the consequences.

As the climate crisis accelerates, societies must navigate the interplay of climate, inequality, urban management, and ecological change. The trajectory of these crises will depend on decisions made by governments, corporations, climate migrants, and individuals like you and me working toward resilience and change in our communities.

This book list explores how climate risk is created, distributed, and managed—and how we can use this knowledge to work toward a just and sustainable future.

1. The Politics of the Risk Society

The Politics of the Risk Society is an anthology of articles responding to Beck's original work, The Risk Society. Written in 1998 The Politics of the Risk Society feels oddly modern as it reflects on potential technologies and risks emerging at the turn of the millennium. The contributors discuss how society might grapple with escalating risks and navigate an era of increasing uncertainty.

2. Megafire: The Race to Extinguish a Deadly Epidemic of Flame by Michael Kodas 

In Megafire Pulitzer-Prize-winning journalist and forest fire expert, Michael Kodas talks to scientists, firefighters, and other experts on the frontlines of battling some of the worst fires in recent history. Kodas' investigation is meant to lay out the facts about trends driving the growing intensity of fires in the 21st century.

3. Ecology of Fear: Los Angeles and the Imagination of Disaster by Mike Davis

The late Mike Davis, a Southern California activist and scholar, examines how both real and imagined disasters have shaped Los Angeles. Written in 1998, Ecology of Fear explores the political, social, and economic forces that define the city and will influence its future.

4. Extreme Cities: The Peril and Promise of Urban Life in the Age of Climate Change by Ashley Dawson

For social theorist Ashley Dawson, cities are a juxtaposition of extreme tensions, from inequality to increasing climate vulnerability. Through Extreme Cities Dawson untangles the social, political, and economic realities that affect city development and how they may shape our response to climate change.

5. Storming the Wall: Climate Change, Migration, and Homeland Security by Todd Miller

Investigative journalist Todd Miller explores the intersection of climate change, migration, and national security. Storming the Wall explores how climate-driven displacement is already shaping border policies and geopolitical conflicts.

6. Disaster by Choice: How Our Actions Turn Natural Hazards Into Catastrophes by Ilan Kelman

Climate researcher Ilan Kelman demystifies disasters, revealing how human choices and systemic vulnerabilities turn natural hazards into devastating catastrophes

7. Slow Violence and the Environmentalism of the Poor by Rob Nixon

Rob Nixon highlights the often-overlooked environmental damage suffered by impoverished communities. Slow Violence urges us to reconsider how environmental destruction unfolds over time, disproportionately affecting the world’s most vulnerable populations.

8. Pandora's Toolbox: The Hopes and Hazards of Climate Intervention by Wake Smith

In Pandora's Toolbox Wake Smith, Senior Fellow at Harvard's M-RCBG, provides a detailed discussion about multiple climate intervention techniques that industry and governments are likely to deploy in the latter half of this century, if not sooner. Regardless of your feelings on solar radiation management or geoengineering more broadly, this is useful reading.

9. Under a White Sky: The Nature of the Future by Elizabeth Kolbert

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Elizabeth Kolbert takes readers on a journey through the technological efforts aimed at stabilizing the climate, the players proposing these solutions, and the unintended consequences they may bring.

10. The Case for Carbon Dividends James by K. Boyce

Economist James K. Boyce presents a compelling argument for carbon dividends as a climate policy tool, outlining how they can drive emissions reductions while promoting economic equity.

11. Futureproof: How to Build Resilience in an Uncertain World by Jon Coaffee

Urban geographer Jon Coaffee analyzes historical disasters to uncover essential risk management strategies for the modern world. Futureproof explores how societies can build resilience against growing global threats.

12. A Finer Future: Creating an Economy in Service to Life

Written by experts in business, economics, and sustainability, A Finer Future outlines the principles of a regenerative economy—one designed to serve both people and the planet.

Navigating the risk society

The Rising Risks book list is an invitation to think critically about the risks shaping our world and the decisions that determine their impact. By engaging with these works, we can better understand the forces driving the climate crisis and work toward solutions that prioritize resilience and justice. Stay tuned for book reviews, discussions, and more!

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