we have ample evidence from history that cities can survive in adverse environments. The people of Çatalhöyük outlasted a drought by changing their diets. Even after Angkor had been parched, then flooded, a large population persisted there for centuries, patching up infrastructure. Refugees from Pompeii moved to new cities where they enjoyed prosperity, living alongside their former neighbors. Cahokia went through multiple droughts while its city grid expanded and fragmented, but that wasn’t enough to drive populations away for good.
