Comment and Earth

Wildfires give a window into our planet's future

25 August 2021

2GC5BGB Afidnes, Greek capital of Athens. 6th Aug, 2021. Firefighters and volunteers try to put out a fire in Afidnes, some 30 kilometers away from the Greek capital of Athens, on Aug. 6, 2021. Greek authorities said on Friday that three people have been arrested for suspected arson, as devastating wildfires continue to scorch thousands of hectares of forest land across the country.TO GO WITH — Marios Lolos/Xinhua/Alamy

IF EVERYTHING goes to plan, by the time this is published, I will be on a beach. My family and I are heading to Pelion, on the Greek mainland.

Ah, Greece… how I have missed you! I feel a bit guilty about jetting off at this difficult time, but the emissions are offset, we are all double-jabbed and will act responsibly. There’s still a lot that can go wrong, of course. Positive covid-19 tests. Sudden changes to quarantine rules. A careless failure to jump through a bureaucratic hoop. And, of course, wildfires.

The village we are staying in is directly…