There is nowhere to run from the climate crisis faced by all humanity. A stark, authoritative study from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change makes that abundantly clear. The IPCC – the world’s top body of climate scientists – says we are on the brink of a global warming tailspin.
We are almost certain in the coming years to crash through a 1.5C global warming limit “guardrail” previously set by world leaders. And when that happens, the risk of “tipping point” events - like massive sea rises wiping whole territories off the map – will grow alarmingly high.
But what worries scientists even more is if we don’t stop relentlessly heating up our atmosphere, 1.5C will just be the start. Based on the current policies of world governments, the planet is projected to warm by well over 2C by the end of this century. But a rise of 2C is considered the most the Earth could tolerate without risking catastrophic changes to food production, sea levels, fishing, wildlife, deserts and water supplies.
