NCW calls on the international community to co-operate to radically strengthen climate action plans on both demand and supply for urgent and transformative action. The UN says that “˜with a climate cataclysm looming”¦ current plans are wholly insufficient.’
Because the effects of climate change cannot be attributed to each specific country that causes greenhouse emissions, all countries both cause and suffer from the problem so need to act in concert. Lack of global cooperation, lack of governance of the required energy and land transformation, and increases in resource intensive consumption are key impediments to tackling climate change.
Action is urgent because the 2022 IPCC report on impacts says the risks of tipping events are “higher at both recent and projected warming” than assessed to be the case in its previous reports. At our current global pace of carbon emissions, the world will burn through its remaining “carbon budget” by 2030.
To maintain liveable conditions on Earth and enable stable societies, we must avoid crossing tipping points ““ they are likely to help trigger others, producing cascades. Examples are destabilisation of the Amazon rainforest, the Greenland ice sheet and the Gulf stream currents.
The international community must double down on efforts to reduce warming – the future of our planet is at stake.
Sources: IPCC, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and Exeter University
Speech on climate change
Most people are worried about climate change but they feel frustrated and pessimistic about it.[i] The overwhelming feeling people express in surveys about climate change is powerlessness. 45% young people globally say their feelings about climate change negatively affect their daily life and functioning.
And the feeling that governments aren’t doing enough is linked with climate anxiety[ii].
So let’s focus on what can be done internationally, and by the UK setting an example. Certainly there are enough reasons for action.
What worries me most about climate change are the tipping points. They, in themselves escalate risks. Critical moments in time where a small change has large, potentially irreversible impacts. For example, the melting of the permafrost increases emission of Co2 and methane as the carbon rich soils thaw.
Increasing heat itself exacerbates a number of other ecological problems, including melting glaciers, extreme storms and extinctions. As temperatures rise higher, the heat’s impact gets harder to reverse. Wildfires caused by the heat themselves release CO2. Studies suggest that women more likely to suffer as a result of extreme weather events.[iii]
Almost a million plant and animal species are currently at risk, threatening our life-support systems. These extinctions have the potential to cause ecosystem collapses, because species are largely interconnected.[iv]
The effects are already hitting us. Floods, wildfires, drought and the onslaught of extreme weather are driving a global health crisis, says the WHO. A series of tropical cyclones in quick succession led to the worst cholera outbreak in Malawi’s history and left a trail of destruction affecting more than 2 million people. Catastrophic floods have killed thousands in Libya. “The climate crisis is a health crisis; it drives extreme weather and is taking lives around the world’, says the WHO.
Many climate records were broken by enormous margins in 2023, including global air temperature, ocean temperature and Antarctic sea ice extent. The highest monthly surface temperature ever recorded was in July and was probably the hottest the planet has been in 100,000 years.[v]
So, no wonder people feel pessimistic. But that doesn’t generate action. We need people to feel that there’s plenty we can all do. And there is! Especially we call on governments internationally to act and here are some areas for action.
With renewables now the cheapest power source, solar and wind energy are loosening fossil fuels’ grip on the global economy. The IEA’s Outlook also shows that governments now plan to deploy around two-thirds more renewable energy by 2030 than they did this time last year, according to energy think tank Ember. There’s a need to set a time limit to phase out fossil fuels by international treaty, scientists say.
The IEA now expects electric heat pumps to be outselling fossil fuel boilers globally by the end of the decade. And it has already seen the adoption of electric vehicles accelerate, with EVs making up one in five cars sold this year compared to one in 25 in 2020. To be successful, the IEA says countries need to triple renewable energy capacity globally and triple investments in clean energy in developing economies.[vi]
Insulating homes, especially the poorest housing stock, is a win, win. It reduces fuel poverty and improves comfort. Germany has a ten year insulation programme[vii]. We need to invest in R and D for renewable energy. We need to find alternatives to air conditioning which uses electricity and CFCs (which are potent greenhouse gases). For example, water from the Seine is being used for cooling in Paris. [viii]
Local people can be involved in green energy projects and reap the benefits, but consumers need guidance and protection. Ireland has a national body to help consumers navigate the complexity.
Educating citizens about climate change and what they can do is very patchy globally. Most information is in English. Governments need to make sure information is available in their own languages so people understand why and how they need to act. [ix]
We also need to invest in nature which helps wellbeing as well as climate change. Planting diverse and native trees, creating and retaining green spaces has a cooling effect in mitigation and also absorbs CO2. Wetlands naturally absorb CO2. Rewilding the sea beds benefits marine life, sea birds, fishing and absorbs CO2. Governments can support climate friendly farming and wealthy countries can eat more healthily, relying more on plants.
Making cycling safer and investing in public transport reduces emissions. A 15minute rule in some towns and cities aims that all key amenities can be found within 15 minutes so that cars are not needed.
Governments can test their spending plans against the net zero commitment. There is plenty that can be done to tackle climate change. The UK can improve wellbeing and create jobs by going green ““ and set an example to the rest of the world.
SOURCES
[i] Survey Report (yougov.com)
[ii] Climate anxiety in children and young people and their beliefs about government responses to climate change: a global survey – The Lancet Planetary Health
[iii] Mapped: How climate change disproportionately affects women’s health | UNW WRD Knowledge Hub (unwomen.org)
[iv] 6 looming climate tipping points that imperil our planet (msn.com)
[v] 2023 state of the climate report: Entering uncharted territory | BioScience | Oxford Academic (oup.com)
[vi] IEA World Energy Outlook 2023
[vii] WI Climate conference October 2023
[viii] Planet now podcast
[ix] Planet now