The Surge -- Jeevan Vasagar on How We Can Protect Ourselves From A World of Floods.

In his book THE SURGE, Jeevan Vasagar explores how we can protect ourselves from a world of floods. In this talk given for the Guild, Jeevan introduces some of the themes of the book, looking back at the human manipulation of water and wet landscapes since the 1600s, in the UK, India and on the European continent, the social, political and economic forces that are at play, and what this tells us about the options available to global communities in the face of climate change and rising sea levels.

Jeevan Vasagar is the author of THE SURGE, about floods and how they have shaped humanity, which was published by HarperCollins in 2026.

His first book LION CITY, about Singapore, was published by Little, Brown in 2021. He is an editor at The Observer, where his work focuses on the environment and climate change. He is a former Singapore correspondent for the Financial Times, where he covered flows of illicit money, a dynastic feud in the ruling family and why Singapore's children are so good at maths.

Before joining the FT, he was a reporter for the Guardian, including stints as education editor and Nairobi correspondent.