The newest IPCC report is out And how could I not talk about it? The IPCC is the Intergovernmental panel on climate change, is the United Nation body for assessing the science of climate. Divided up in three main working groups (a ‘physical science’, an ‘impacts, adaptation and vulnerability’ and a ‘mitigation’) plus a task force on inventories.. The latest report was all about mitigation of climate change. The full report is 63 pages long but there is also a summary for policymakers available The key points? Action is URGENT (but I have been saying this for many years, like this post on the ocean-specific IPCC report , so, is it really?) - and the 1.5 °C scenario is not really achievable (unless, really, we act immediately, even though we should have acted yesterday…)
Mitigation is necessary - and that involve shifting all sectors of the global economies. Some of the biggest changes (figure 7 of the full report) come from renewables (wind, solar) , carbon sequestration (agriculture, but also ecosystem restoration, fuel switching) and switching to balanced, sustainable, healthy diets.. Tree planting alone definitely won’t be enough, albeit necessary. The costs are also highlighted for each mitigation, and it’s striking how with renewables the costs are actually low. It’s becoming cheaper and cheaper. I think (and that’s me saying it) that we need to question the ‘cheapness’ of it, to ensure there is no exploitation involved, but also it’s possibly a good news, especially in light of gaining independence on energy production. So "acting now" will take better policies, but also some smarter individual choices. While it’s true that putting all of the responsibility on individuals is wrong, I believe that individuals should also start taking some responsibility, yes, me and you, and not keeping on going like nothing is happening. We are reaching the ‘1.5’ scenario by 2035 so actually, me and you will see it, and its effects, and it’s not going to be pretty or easy… How? I think just weighing climate impacts in everyday choices, without reaching the ‘climate anxiety’ level, but at least acknowledging it and considering it as a factor in our choices.. Just to conclude, here are some resources and further reading on the topic I recommend Outrage and optimism podcast episode with Ko Barret This guardian article The Scientific American take Carbon brief summary and in depth analysis And just for further thinking Why ‘learning to live with’ is equal to ‘doing nothing about it’
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