Climate change: IPCC scientists report five ways to save the planet
The dangers of climate change have been well reported for years. But what's had less attention is how the world could effectively tackle the issue. Yesterday, UN scientists laid out a plan that they believe could help people avoid the worst impacts of rising temperatures. The report, by the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), essentially calls for a revolution in how we produce energy and power our world. To avoid very dangerous warming, carbon emissions need to peak within three years, and fall rapidly after that. Even then, technology to pull CO2 from the air will still be needed to keep temperatures down. Here are five key ideas that the researchers say are critical to keeping the world safe. The 63 dense pages of this IPCC report are littered with qualifications and dense footnotes. But all the verbiage can't hide the scientists' central message. If the world wants to steer clear of dangerous warming, fossil fuels are toast. Keeping the world under 1.5C requires emissions to peak by 2025, the researchers say, and shrink by 43% by the end of this decade. The most effective way of making that switch is to generate energy from sustainable sources like wind and solar. The authors point to the collapse in costs of these technologies, down around 85% across the decade from 2010. And while the war in Ukraine is making governments in Europe flirt with carbon-rich coal once again, there's wide political acceptance that cheap, sustainable energy is the only road to Putin-free power. So for the temperature of the planet (as well as the politics of the present), the IPCC believes that coal should finally be retired for good.
India targets net-zero carbon emissions by 2070, says Modi
India’s economy will become carbon neutral by the year 2070, the country’s prime minster has announced at the COP26 climate crisis summit in Glasgow. The target date is two decades beyond what scientists say is needed to avert catastrophic climate impacts. India is the last of the world’s major carbon polluters to announce a net-zero target, with China saying it would reach that goal in 2060, and the United States and the European Union aiming for 2050.
COP26: What climate summit means for one woman in Bangladesh
China's carbon emissions are vast and growing, dwarfing those of other countries. Experts agree that without big reductions in China's emissions, the world cannot win the fight against climate change. In 2020, China's President Xi Jinping said his country would aim for its emissions to reach their highest point before 2030 and for carbon neutrality before 2060. His statement has now been confirmed as China's official position ahead of the COP26 global climate summit in Glasgow. But China has not said exactly how these goals will be achieved.
Why China's climate policy matters to us all
China's carbon emissions are vast and growing, dwarfing those of other countries. Experts agree that without big reductions in China's emissions, the world cannot win the fight against climate change. In 2020, China's President Xi Jinping said his country would aim for its emissions to reach their highest point before 2030 and for carbon neutrality before 2060. His statement has now been confirmed as China's official position ahead of the COP26 global climate summit in Glasgow. But China has not said exactly how these goals will be achieved.
Deliver on promises, developing world tells rich at climate talks
A crucial U.N. conference heard calls on its first day for the world's major economies to keep their promises of financial help to address the climate crisis, while big polluters India and Brazil made new commitments to cut emissions. World leaders, environmental experts and activists all pleaded for decisive action to halt the global warming which threatens the future of the planet at the start of the two-week COP26 summit in the Scottish city of Glasgow on Monday. The task facing negotiators was made even more daunting by the failure of the Group of 20 major industrial nations to agree ambitious new commitments at the weekend.