Innovation can help us through the climate crisis The choices we make in the next decade will determine our future According to reports from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)’s sixth assessment cycle, the world is currently under-prepared for the coming impacts of climate change, particularly beyond 1.5°C global warming. If we are to address the climate crisis, transformative mitigation and adaptation measures are needed. Average annual greenhouse gas emissions were at their highest level in human history between 20102019.2 Based on current projections, limiting warming to 1.5°C is beyond our reach unless there are immediate and deep emission reductions across all sectors.
More than three billion people already live in hotspots of high vulnerability.3 Increases in temperatures as well as the frequency and severity of extreme events such as droughts, floods, wildfires, crop failure and continued sea level rise have already pushed many ecosystems, people and infrastructure to the limits of their adaptive capacity. While the level of climate vulnerability varies across regions, nowhere is untouched by the impacts of climate change, which are even more widespread and disruptive than the IPCC predicted 20 years ago. We need urgent, accelerated and ambitious action in adaptation efforts alongside significant cuts in greenhouse gas emissions across all sectors.
2.
H. Ritchie et al., CO₂ and Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Our World in Data, (2020).
3.
H.-O. Pörtner et al., Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability, IPCC
Globally, we are starting to see evidence of change and ambition to change. Zero emissions targets have been adopted by at least 826 cities, 103 regions and 1,565 companies across all continents.4 Some countries have already achieved a steady decrease in emissions consistent with limiting warming to 2°C, and many cities and countries have designed and implemented adaptation plans to address things like food production, water conservation and extreme weather. The IPCC has also identified options in every sector which could at least halve emissions by 2030. We think that focusing innovation around a diverse set of outcome-focused challenges can turbocharge innovation to deliver on these ambitions.
(2022). 4.
T. Day et al. Navigating the nuances of net-zero targets, NewClimate Institute & DataDriven EnviroLab, (2020).
Climate Possible: How funders can accelerate innovation for a resilient future
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