在决定地球命运时，科琳·戈尔贾一直认为科学和理性会在谈判桌上占有一席之地。直到去年九月某个早晨，她在伦敦参加了一系列战争游戏中的第一场。目标是防止一场失控的全球竞赛，以开发旨在降温地球但伴随巨大未知风险的技术，这种风险可能重塑地球上的生命。
When it comes to deciding the fate of the planet, Colleen Golja always thought science and reason would have a seat at the table. That was until one morning last September in London, when the climate researcher took part in the first in a series of war games. The goal: to prevent an uncontrolled global race to develop a technology aimed at cooling the planet but that comes with vast, unknown risks that could reshape life on Earth.
“我以为这会是件很容易的事。比如，我们都能同意进行道德研究，确保它造福全人类，”她对《WIRED》说。“结果我大错特错了。”该模拟名为《探索地缘政治临界点与气候降温策略》，来自世界各地的几十位外交关系专家、科学家、军事人员和前政府官员在伦敦玛丽女王大学的会议室聚首。在咖啡和小酸奶中互相介绍后，他们围坐在方形排列的桌旁，桌上标注着每个人所扮演的国家或组织名称：各国政府、气候非政府组织和非营利机构、土著群体以及科技公司。戈尔贾被分配为提供技术建议，以帮助参与者做出科学素养水平的决策。
“I thought that would be such an easy thing. Like, we can all agree to do ethical research and make sure it's for the better of all humans,” she told WIRED. “And boy, was I wrong.”The simulation, titled Exploring Geopolitical Tipping Points and Climate Cooling Strategies, saw a couple dozen foreign-relations experts, scientists, military personnel, and former government officials from across the world convene in a meeting room at Queen Mary University of London. After making introductions over coffee and little yogurts, they sat at tables arranged in a square with the name of the country or organization each person was playing: national governments, climate NGOs and nonprofits, indigenous groups, and tech companies. Golja was assigned to provide technical advice to help participants make scientifically literate decisions.