The rapid climate change and  – to a point where researchers believe has no point of return is rather ominous for the future. Just imagine what would it be like decades into this century – all the water sources would deplete, turning the currently habitable lands into an oasis of sands. This threatens the survival of our species, as well as countless other animal species that already have a bleak future due to human-induced climate change. David Wolter from Umeå Institute of Design peeks into the future, in the year 2090 when human settlements will constrict to the last inhabitable pastures on planet earth. The concept artist imagines the exponential spread of deserted lands around the equator, and how humans will make their last-ditch effort to restore the planet.

His concept centers around Terra Nova, a lighter than air propelled solution for hauling people and cargo in the barren lands without impacting the environment. When we’ll be pushed to the extreme, the role of biodiverse restoration efforts will be more or less dependent on mobility. This will play a pivotal role in slowing down desertification, initiating large-scale reforestation with the help of high-end technologies. The air propelled rig has soft organic shapes and a bold sharp design is, and is powered-assisted by the sun’s energy and is made from biodegradable materials to keep the environmental impact down to the minimum. It carries cargo and people from one station to the other – with docking capability onto the drone docking station having the autonomous capability to carry out replantation, water management, and organic pesticide control. It has operational capacity for four days, after which the Terra Nova drones, bring in the needed supplies for revitalizing the desertified landscape.

The crux of this project is to build a transportation system that has minimal or no impact on the environment – as already so much damage would have been done. After all, we are talking about a time in the future, less than seven decades from now. Terra Nova multi-functional vehicle is going to be one of the many efforts humanity needs to take up to somehow save the planet from doom.

Designer: David Wolter from Umeå Institute of Design