85 Seconds to Midnight

Preparing for the collapse

Opinions expressed within the content are solely the author’s and do not reflect the opinions and beliefs of any listed websites, their affiliates, any entity—physical or otherwise—anything, anyone, or any other form of matter that isn’t completely and uniquely me.

30 January 2026

The Doomsday Clock has been running since 1947. It was set up by the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists with midnight representing the time of nuclear disaster. Even with all the wars and the threat of a nuclear explosion, the clock was never as close to midnight as it is today.

In 2002, the clock was moved forward to seven minutes to midnight after the India and Pakistan nuclear tests and Russian and US refusing to empty their nuclear stockpiles.

The clock uses the imagery of a nuclear explosion to illustrate threats to humanity and our planet. It is now a global indicator of our vulnerability to a global catastrophe that will be caused by man-made technologies.

On January 27, 2026, the Doomsday Clock was set at 85 seconds to midnight, the closest the Clock has ever been to midnight in its history.

Even with all the sustainability strategies, the meetings in Davos, the conference of the parties (COP), the certifications, carbon accounting, energy transition, green new deals, electric vehicles, carbon storage, green hydrogen … we’re closer to catastrophe now than during the times of global war and mayhem.

"What if we knew (in our skin, flesh and bones, not just in our heads) that a great social and ecological collapse is inevitably on the horizon and that, in 10 to 20 years (or less), what is familiar will no longer be viable because we have crossed 6 of the 9 planetary boundaries? What if we could respond collectively today from a cultural space of emotional serenity, relational maturity, intellectual discernment and intergenerational responsibility?"

- Vanessa Andreotti

There is a collapse coming.
Whether it be international war, climate change, a meteorite, nuclear bombs, a global recession … something.
And you can feel it too.

We’re teetering on the precipice - more worried about leaving our comfort zones, than the spiky, jagged rocks that await us at the bottom if (when) we should fall. Social constructs have taken over common sense.

We worship money, and those who have it. We come up with all kinds of schemes to get rich and laud those who already are. We don’t care whose toes we step on, and ethics, morality, equity - well, do those words, let alone concepts exist anymore?

We sit in our living rooms and watch the news. Completely unfazed by the chaos happening outside our geographical borders (if we’re lucky). Children shoot people in video games, and then swipe on their phones to see actual children being shot - because now all they have is a post that says, “Viewer Discretion Advised”.

Censorship, stewardship, responsibility, moral code, loyalty, camaraderie … so many values that made us human, and helped us to stay that way - they’re gone. And they’re being replaced with greed, individualism, narcissism, hate, competition, and a complete disconnect from everything that makes us truly, blissfully content, happy, and fulfilled.

And that’s why - we’re very fast approaching midnight. We don’t even care if our entire species dies or not. Just that I’m not losing out if we’re all going. We saw it clearly during COVID. Instead of looking out for one another, people were beating each other up in supermarkets over toilet roll. This global pandemic was just the first.

We live on a finite planet. Water, food, minerals, space, air … if we waste them, if we pollute them, if we hoard them … there will not be enough.

2025 already saw the worst air qualities in Bangladesh, Pakistan, and India, with Delhi reaching an AQI of 530 in December. The UN recently published a report on water bankruptcy.

And who’s to blame?

Us.

The report clearly states that this decline in available water is because humans are living “beyond their hydrological means”.

In 2025, carbon emissions went through the roof (again) with a record of 38.1 billion tonnes - increasing from the highest recorded rates (ever) in 2024. Singaporeans are up in arms already about the S$25 increase per tonne from 2024 to S$50 a tonne of carbon this year. But being as small as we are - in 2024, we emitted 53.92 tonnes of carbon. And now … new science shows that the social cost of carbon has been very incorrectly calculated for a very long time. They estimate that the real harm of emitting one tonne of CO₂ is actually around USD$700-900 per tonne.

This figure comes from hundreds of studies that calculate how climate change hurts crops, health, buildings, economies and future generations. Because these harms are so large and uncertain, the damage cost has been rising over time as models get better. In other words, charging only $45 per tonne doesn’t even begin to cover the real costs that society will pay for climate damage.

And this my friends … is why we’re standing on 85 seconds to midnight.

It’s 2026 - 4 years away from 2030, when they said they’d have it kinda figured out.

It’s 2026 - 24 years away from 2050, when they said they would have it figure out.

The planetary overshoot day in 2025 was July 24th. The day when we have used ALL the resources allocated for that year. We haven’t got the global date yet for 2026, but we do have the country ones and … Singapore’s overshoot day is FEBRUARY 23 2026.
For a country of only 6.11 million people and 736.3 square kilometers.

And we wonder why, and how … how can we be 85 seconds to midnight?

We all refuse to stop their sprint to infinite growth. We point fingers in blame. We categorise and ‘other’ - someone else’s problem to fix. Human lives are no more sacred. Non-human lives were thrown under the bus many years ago - and now ethnicities and nationalities are put under those same wheels.

They’re making more money. They own the media, they own the government, they own your attention … and they’re blatantly lying to all of us.

You decide. What you want to do with your life.

Because they’re not going to stop.

But you can say - I’m not buying into this bullsh*t any longer.

Read. Think. Discuss.

Figure it out.

Step away from the system.
It’s going to collapse, and you’ll be there - under the rubble.

You have 85 seconds.

What I can offer: HERE

💌 Let’s talk: change@theecochapter.com

In service of our planet,
💚 Marla Lise, Earthling at The Eco Chapter