Climate and the collapse of Maya civilization

The rise and fall of the Classic Maya provides a textbook example of human social evolution. It is therefore significant to discover that the history of theMaya was so closely tied to environmental constraints. If Maya civilization could collapse under the weight of natural climate events, it is of more than academic interest to ponder how modem society will fare in the face of an uncertain climate in the years ahead. An understanding of how ancient cultures responded to climatic changes in the past may thus provide important lessons for humanity in the future.