Kick It Into High Gear
Make A Plan To Cool Your Planet
By Tracey MacDermott
Chair, GPHN, Inc.
In August, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released its 6th assessment report. It is grim. The time is up.
We must achieve net zero emissions by 2050 to avoid a climate disaster. Our current goals and policies will not achieve this requirement. Without immediate and large-scale reductions, the world will not keep global warming to under 1.5 degrees Celsius — and it is possible that we will go over 2 degrees Celsius. Without deep reductions in CO2 the planet will exceed 2 degrees Celsius this century. The report highlights several key takeaways:
1. Scientists are 95 percent sure that human activity is the cause for rising temperatures
2. We have not seen this high of carbon dioxide levels in over 800,000 years
3. Sea levels will continue to rise
4. Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets are melting, and glaciers are receding on all parts of the globe
5. Human-induced climate change is already affecting many weather and climate extremes in every region of the globe
In June, the International Energy Agency (IEA) issued this statement: “The world has a viable pathway to building a global energy sector with net-zero emissions in 2050, but it is narrow and requires an unprecedented transformation of how energy is produced, transported and used globally.” The use of internal combustion engines, the agency notes, must end by 2035, including all investments in fossil fuels.
We did not arrive to where we are today without being warned for decades.“Half of the carbon dioxide currently in the Earth’s atmosphere was emitted over the last 30 years,” notes the site 350.org. Further, “the fossil fuel industry has been wasting our time with misinformation, just to make profits at the expense of peoples lives.”
Next month the United Nations Climate Change Conference will host the 26th Conference of the Parties in Scotland, with approximately 30,000 expected in attendance. The goal of this year’s conference is to focus on keeping warming within the 1.5 degree reach. Key goals will focus on:
• Focusing countries on ambitious phase-out of coal, curtail deforestation, accelerating the switch to electric vehicles and investing in renewables
• Protecting and restoring ecosystems and building defenses, warning systems and resilient infrastructure and agriculture to avoid loss of homes, livelihoods, and lives
• Developed countries must make good on their promise to mobilize $100 billion in climate finance
• Finalizing the Paris playbook and accelerating action
As much as the IPCC report is warning us that we are on the brink of irreversible change — and yes, we do need to panic — we still have a small window of time. Hopefully this bit of panic drives each of us to dramatic changes personally, to new innovations in technology and demand for meaningful policy.
It is vital that each of us taps into the power we each hold to change the outcome. We all vote for companies every day when we choose to purchase their products. Are you researching what environmental policies they uphold? Do they have a plan to reduce their own emissions and how will they do that? Will you walk away from some of your favorite places if they continue to contribute to the problem?
Upgrade your own home to energy efficient appliances. Begin writing your plan to convert your house to a zero-carbon home. Turn your yard into a low-water maintenance natural space. Think about purchasing an electric vehicle. Utilize public transportation.
Buy less and buy second hand. Ditch the bottled water. Turn down the thermostat. Buy from local organic farmers. Vote!
Individual actions are needed and needed in collective critical mass and we must also demand immediate and thoughtful policy change from local, state and federal government today. While you use your purchasing dollars please also use your power to vote. The scale and speed in which we need to reach net zero cannot happen without you.
Let’s work together to create the future we want for those we will leave behind.
Tracey MacDermott is chair of the board of Greater Park Hill Community, Inc. She was trained as a Climate Reality Leader in 2017, and is currently the Statewide Co-Chair of the Climate Reality Project for the 100% Committed Campaign.