THE BUMPY ROAD TO THE FUTURE…

Abstract

AbstractAt the end of 2021 and the beginning of 2022, the IPCC released its three reports on the state of the climate, the impacts and mitigation. After thirty years the message could not be clearer. The world was warming more than 1.1°C, and the world would likely miss its 1.5°C target if it did not drastically reduce its emissions. Massive changes in the way we use and produce energy are required to achieve the temperature target. We have to stop dependence on coal almost immediately and very quickly reduce our dependence on oil and gas. This requires the developed countries to immediately change their technologies and practices, while the less developed nations should not embark on high-emission technologies while building new wealth and enhancing wellbeing. That transition is still possible through the increased use of renewables: wind and solar energy. Reliance on yet unproven technologies such as Carbon Dioxide Removal to release the burden on immediate reductions puts the burden on future generations. 370 years after the discovery of carbon dioxide as a wild spirit we are hitting 420 ppm (summer 2022), way above the normal range for the Pleistocene, and 50% more than the preindustrial level. With every tenth of a degree further warming the impacts will be more severely felt. We need everyone and every tool to help us in reducing emissions before carbon dioxide becomes truly van Helmont’s wild spirit and puts our environment on a direct path to catastrophe. It can be done…