The Y2K problem was a formative period for the modern technology industry. Software developed prior to the 1990s often used only two digits to store the year, for example ‘87’ to mean 1987, and would not properly handle years after 1999. Living through this time, the progression of attitudes twoard the Y2k problem in the mass culture progressed from:

• late 1980s: ignore the bleating about Y2k, just some nerd thing.
• early 1990s: realization that there might actually be a problem. Maybe.
• mid 1990s: mild panic that Y2K would disrupt power grids and transport and end civilization.
• mid-to-late 1990s: innumerable projects to correct or replace computing systems. No central coordination needed, individual efforts proceeded independently.
• 1/1/2000: civilization survived.

Climate change is akin to a Y2K problem with a fuzzier deadline. It is large, and unforgiving if ignored, but is in the end solvable by a large collection of efforts which are individually manageable. We don’t have to coordinate a single, massive response. We just have to not be overwhelmed by it.