{"id":2748,"date":"2022-03-23T10:53:31","date_gmt":"2022-03-23T09:53:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greens-efa.eu\/opinions\/?p=2748"},"modified":"2022-04-08T16:26:44","modified_gmt":"2022-04-08T14:26:44","slug":"understanding-the-latest-ipcc-report","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greens-efa.eu\/opinions\/understanding-the-latest-ipcc-report\/","title":{"rendered":"Understanding the latest IPCC report: How will the climate crisis affect you?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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FRIDAY 8 April<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>

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The IPCC on climate mitigation: How can we save humanity from itself?<\/h2>\n<\/div>
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\"Giacomo<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>
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Giacomo Zattini, Climate Justice Activist at Fridays for Future<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>

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Yesterday we saw the release of the third part of the sixth IPCC climate report. Why is it so important?<\/p>\n<\/div>

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In December the first part was released, which tells us about the damage to the planet. A month ago the second part came out, which talks about the damage we are doing to ourselves. This last part talks about mitigation, about the solutions to the climate crisis.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Good climate news: yes, there are solutions.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>

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We know how to produce clean, low-cost energy. The technologies are there, what is needed is political will and investment.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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\"cost<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>
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Cost of the main renewable energy sources and increase in their use over the last 20 years. Source: 6th IPCC report, 2022.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>

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But there is one thing we do not have: time to waste. In his opening speech, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres made it clear: “Some governments and business leaders say one thing and do another. Simply put, they are lying. And the result will be catastrophic, this is a climate emergency”.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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The IPCC report on climate mitigation: \u201cIt\u2019s now or never\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>

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The peak of climate-changing emissions must be reached by 2025. After that, it will have to fall dramatically. By 2030 we should have reduced net emissions by 43%, and this is possible if we make a serious effort. That’s eight years. There is no one solution for every context, but every context (energy, cities, transport, food) has its solutions. “Now or never” says the IPCC. There are no more excuses. Today the obstacles are only political and financial. We have to unblock finance<\/a><\/ins> and the IPCC says it clearly, the money is there, but it is being diverted elsewhere. Where? Here:<\/p>\n<\/div>

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This graph shows the thousands of billions that financed coal, oil and gas from 2016 to 2020<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>

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It is clear that every time we hear the phrase “it can’t be done”, they are actually telling us that they don’t want<\/em> to do it. Immediately after the release of the IPCC report, many people on social media also noted that \u201cscience is cautious\u201d and that this report \u201chas been watered down by nations in negotiations\u201d, said Greta Thunberg in a tweet.<\/a> One more motivation to act.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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We don\u2019t need fear, but the courage to act<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>

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 Guterres: \u201cClimate activists are sometimes depicted as dangerous radicals, but the truly dangerous radicals are the countries that are increasing the production of fossil fuels. Investing in fossil fuels infrastructure is moral and economic madness.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>

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This report shows us what we could do, if we wanted to. It confronts all of us, politicians and citizens, with a crossroads in history. There will be no other major IPCC reports in the next few years, we will have to make do with this one to find the courage we need to change.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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WEDNESDAY 23 March<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>

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Understanding the latest IPCC report: How will the climate crisis affect you?<\/h2>\n<\/div>
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\"Helena<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>
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Helena Wiel\u00e4ndner, Climate Justice Activist at Fridays for Future<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>

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The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has published their latest report on climate change<\/a>. With everything going on in the world right now, many people missed it. But the facts in the report are chilling and cannot be ignored. It\u2019s time to face them together.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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The report looks at the ways humans and nature are vulnerable to the climate crisis – and what we need to do to protect ourselves. It provides evidence for what climate activists are already fighting for: there is a rapidly narrowing window of opportunity to reduce global warming down to 1.5\u00b0C.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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The IPCC report is written very technically. It\u2019s more for scientists and policymakers than for \u201cnormal people\u201d. But it affects all of us – yes, even in the European Union. It\u2019s about our survival. About whether our planet will remain habitable for us and for the plants and animals we share it with. It\u2019s so important that we understand what\u2019s coming. How can we manage the climate crisis? What can we do to stop it?<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Continue reading to find out what the IPCC report says about how the climate crisis will affect us – and what we can do about it.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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What is the IPCC climate report and what does it say?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/div>
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What is the IPCC?<\/h4>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the world\u2019s authority on climate science. It is a body of the United Nations (UN) and was founded in 1988. Scientists from all kinds of different disciplines work together to better understand the effects of climate change. The IPCC advises politicians and policymakers on what climate change means for humanity and the planet, and how we can prevent the climate crisis from getting even worse.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>

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Every 7 years, the IPCC publishes an assessment report on climate change. There have been six full reports since it was established in 1988. The reports are split into four parts from different Working Groups (WG). Now, in February 2022, the WG2 presented their part of the 6th assessment report. The latest IPCC report concentrates on the impacts of climate change and how we can adapt to the climate crisis<\/a>. It also looks at human vulnerability. It forces us to think about how climate change is affecting people\u2019s lives right now, instead of \u201conly\u201d talking about future changes to nature, biodiversity and the weather. Maybe this finally makes it possible for us all to grasp how urgent this topic is and that there\u2019s no time to waste anymore.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Generally speaking, the report repeats what we already knew: we\u2019re going to face immense sea level rise leading not only to unknown islands drowning but also cities, like London, or even whole countries, like the Netherlands, vanishing beneath the sea. Heatwaves will hit the most vulnerable people more frequently. Food security and water availability will decrease. Biodiversity loss and extreme weather events won\u2019t be rare anymore. Up to 3.6 billion people will be extra vulnerable due to their age, where they live, poverty and so on. Yes, billion<\/em>, you read that right. It\u2019s almost every second person on the planet.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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<\/a>The climate crisis is here – What will it mean for you?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/div>
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Okay, now we know what to expect. We also know that the Western world is responsible for most CO2 emissions<\/a>, even though they won\u2019t feel the harshest consequences. But, as we said, climate change affects everyone. Yes, there will be other countries that are much more vulnerable to the immediate impact of the climate crisis. But in Europe, we must work on our resilience against recurring natural disasters too.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Just to pick one example, the projected sea level rise would put cities next to rivers (like London) and Low Elevation Coastal zones (like in the Netherlands) at an extreme risk of regular flooding\u2026 and eventually sinking<\/em>. Here you can see the shocking sea level rise map of London projected for 2030. It shows that large parts of the UK\u2019s capital will be underwater in only eight years\u2019 time (click on the image below to open the interactive in a new window)<\/em>:<\/p>\n<\/div>

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\"Map<\/a>
Map of potential flooding of London \/ Source: climatecentral.org<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>
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Map of potential flooding of The Netherlands<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>
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It is not a secret that – being mostly built on water – more than half of the land of the Netherlands is already at flood risk. It is unimaginable what the country would look like after a drastic sea level rise. This map of the Netherlands shows which parts of the country are already on flood-prone land:<\/p>\n<\/div>

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As the climate crisis worsens, let\u2019s also not forget that we\u2019ll face problems with our food and water supplies due to droughts and extreme weather events. The IPCC FAQs<\/a> state that:<\/p>\n<\/div>

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\u201cChildren aged ten or younger in the year 2020 are projected to experience a nearly four-fold increase in extreme events under 1.5\u00b0C of global warming by 2100, and a five-fold increase under 3\u00b0C warming. Such increases in exposure would not be experienced by a person aged 55 in the year 2020 in their remaining lifetime under any warming scenario<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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All these catastrophes will cost trillions of dollars each year. <\/em>And, most importantly of all, an uncountable number of human lives.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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<\/a>The IPCC says we need to act NOW. What needs to change to stop climate change?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/div>
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Yeah, we know. This sounds terrible. But we aren\u2019t powerless – on the contrary! The IPCC says we still have time to prevent the worst scenarios. We can still adapt to climate change and grow resilience towards natural disasters. <\/p>\n<\/div>

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“The only condition is that we act now!” <\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>

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First and foremost, let\u2019s be really clear: it\u2019s not everyday people who are responsible for climate disasters. We all do what we can, but changing our own behaviour doesn\u2019t make sense without supporting policies and harsh restrictions on big companies. More than 70% of CO2 emissions come from just 100 companies. No prizes for guessing that most of them are oil suppliers.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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That doesn\u2019t mean that we shouldn\u2019t do our best to consume consciously. But it\u2019s the politicians who must act now! They hold the power to turn the tide. A first step would be to carry out changes that will help us adapt to climate change and lessen its effects, known as climate adaptation<\/em> and climate mitigation<\/em>. Climate adaptation has its limits. Just for visualisation: when we\u2019re hot, we can only take off so many clothes before we\u2019re naked. So there needs to be an even stronger focus on slowing down climate change. <\/p>\n<\/div>

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We need to hold global warming under 1.5\u00b0C. To achieve this we need strong climate laws for the EU and for our home countries. We need restrictions on companies that emit too much CO2. We need subsidies for companies to become more sustainable. The solutions are actually already there. What we really need are politicians willing to make these solutions into laws.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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<\/a>The IPCC report and now what? What you can do to take action<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/div>
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But what to do if my politicians don\u2019t act<\/em>, you ask? Well, most of them won\u2019t take urgent  action on their own. They\u2019ll need people putting pressure on them. They need to see that enough people care deeply about the climate. We need them to know that we won\u2019t be tricked by greenwashing in politics (like when the European Commission recently suggested adding gas and nuclear power to their list of \u201csustainable investments\u201d<\/a>). They need to feel that they have to address the climate crisis to stay in power.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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One strategy in politics is to overcomplicate things so people won\u2019t understand enough to complain.  But they don\u2019t know our generation – we won\u2019t stop fighting for our right to a socially just and liveable world.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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So, let\u2019s be clear here: every fraction of a degree that we keep below the 1.5\u00b0C limit matters. Every degree saves lives, and every saved life is worth the fight. So, it\u2019s always worth fighting. We have a duty to stop a catastrophe. But we also have an opportunity to do things differently. To change our world and improve our quality of life. Not only for us, but for everyone who shares this planet.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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If you want to support the protest, channel your energy, be loud and show your frustration, join the Global Climate Strike organised by <\/strong>Fridays For Future<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>

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The next one takes place on Friday 25th March 2022<\/strong>. Find out where the nearest Climate Strike is to you<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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See you there!<\/h4>\n<\/div>
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The IPCC Report \u2013 Glossary<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Climate Mitigation<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Mitigation aims at limiting global warming so the harm is not going to be too bad. It\u2019s the sword in our fight against the climate crisis.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Climate Adaptation<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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To adapt to climate change means trying to reduce the expected harm and taking advantage of beneficial opportunities. It\u2019s like building the right armour for the fight.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Climate Resilience<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Resilience is needed to withstand the expected climate catastrophes. Like a shield that protects us.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Vulnerability to the Climate Crisis<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Vulnerable people are especially exposed to climate change impacts, like heat, drought and floods. One cannot simply break this down by gender or age. It\u2019s about an intersectional approach<\/a> which takes diverse aspects into consideration. Vulnerable people might face challenges to hold a sword, a shield or wear armour which is why we need to protect them even more.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>

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