On this edition of Your Call’s One Planet Series, we discuss the latest report by the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which lays out sobering facts about the climate crisis and what needs to be done to avoid a climate catastrophe. The report calls for major reductions in greenhouse gases and a rapid transition away from fossil fuels.
Human activities, principally through emissions of greenhouse gases, have unequivocally caused global warming, according to the report. Global greenhouse gas emissions have continued to increase from 2010-2019, with unequal historical and ongoing contributions arising from unsustainable energy use, land use and land-use change, lifestyles and patterns of consumption and production across regions, between and within countries, and between individuals.
Human-caused climate change is already affecting many weather and climate extremes in every region across the globe. This has led to widespread adverse impacts on food and water security, human health, and on economies and society and related losses and damages to nature and people. Vulnerable communities who have historically contributed the least to current climate change are disproportionately affected.
The authors conclude that we needs to cut emissions by 60 percent by 2035 — compared with 2019 levels. A U.N. report last year found that global temperatures are set to rise 2.8 C under countries’ current policies, according to Scientific American.
Guests:
Dr. Michael Mann, presidential distinguished Professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Science at the University of Pennsylvania, with a secondary appointment in the Annenberg School for Communication, and author of The New Climate War: The Fight to Take Back Our Planet
Dr. Kristina Dahl, principal climate scientist for the Climate & Energy program at the Union of Concerned Scientists
Web Resources:
The Union of Concerned Scientists: Can We Still Limit Global Warming to 1.5°C? Here’s What the Latest Science Says
The Wall Street Journal: Time Is Running Out to Curb Climate Change, IPCC Report Says
Heat Map: The Fraught Negotiations Behind the New IPCC Report
Inside Climate News: Corporate Interests ‘Watered Down’ the Latest IPCC Climate Report, Investigations Find
Quartz: The meat industry blocked the IPCC’s attempt to recommend a plant-based diet
