Between a deadly virus, social unrest, and geopolitical uncertainty, you could be forgiven for thinking the state of the world is getting downright Biblical.
A study appeared in the journal Sustainability in July 2021 that ranked various locations according to how resilient they would be in the event of an apocalypse, which could be triggered by financial collapse, the continued spread and mutation of the coronavirus, climate change, you name it.
What stopped it from ranking higher was the very small amount of agricultural land and indigenous energy sources, but its low population and direct access to the South China Sea and Indian Ocean made this island city-state a place to consider when riding out Armageddon.
Its low population and relatively large amount of agricultural land are definitely selling points, but the country itself is teeny tiny, which means its agricultural capacity is limited.
Austria is a small, landlocked country with a low population and high fraction of agricultural land. Its indigenous renewable energy sources are described in the study as “abundant,” and it also received good marks for its manufacturing capacity.
At the same time governments have a tendency to collapse in the event of an apocalypse, so maybe that’s just as well. The country was given this ranking based in part on its direct access to the East China Sea and Sea of Japan, direct connection to the Eurasian land mass, and moderate indigenous renewable energy sources.
The Netherlands has a lot going for it as a place to escape the end of civilization. It offers direct access to the North Sea and is centrally located within major European population centers. However, its high population and low total land area means that there’s not much agricultural land to go around.
The less good news is that the country is very small and therefore has little agricultural land to go around. But its moderate indigenous renewable and non-renewable energy sources, and high-tech economy with moderate manufacturing capacity are definitely selling points.
It has close proximity to large European population centers, abundant indigenous renewable energy sources, a modern high-tech economy, and moderate manufacturing capacity. It’s only its small total land area that stops it from scoring higher.
Modern high-tech economy with moderate manufacturing capacity? Check. Low agricultural land per capita? Unfortunately, also check. Also, its high northern latitude means it’s far from large population centers, but if the coming apocalypse is a zombie apocalypse, then that’s a good thing, we guess?
France has quite a bit going for it as a place to live out humanity’s last days. It has moderate agricultural land per capita, direct access to the North Atlantic Ocean, abundant indigenous energy sources, and a modern high-tech economy with a large manufacturing capacity.
France has quite a bit going for it as a place to live out humanity’s last days. It has moderate agricultural land per capita, direct access to the North Atlantic Ocean, abundant indigenous energy sources, and a modern high-tech economy with a large manufacturing capacity.