This disconnection calls for alternative modes of representation capable of translating abstract data into experiential and emotionally resonant forms. Within this framework, literature emerges as a crucial medium for rendering the climate crisis perceptible, imaginable and affectively resonant. This seminar examines two contemporary Italian novels, La seconda Mezzanotte by Antonio Scurati (2011) and Nicoletta Vallorani’s Noi siamo campo di battaglia (2022), both set in near-future urban environments, respectively Venice and Milan. By combining spatial analysis and ecocritical perspectives, this seminar highlights the capacity of literature to intervene in contemporary climate discourse. These texts not only make the crisis experientially accessible but also render it imaginatively inhabitable. In doing so, they can open up alternative ways of perceiving and engaging with the climate crisis, underscoring the distinctive potential of literature to expand the horizons of climate awareness and response.