IPCC’s Sixth Report: We’re ‘Unequivocally’ Responsible for Climate Change
Released this past Monday as the sixth installment in a series of increasingly alarming analyses, the IPCC’s Assessment Report paints a chilling picture of our present and future. Sponsored by the United Nations, these reports, released every six to seven years, require the approval of 195 different countries before publishing, frequently drawing criticism for being overly conservative as a result. Yet in this case, conservatively-influenced or not, the implications are more dire than ever before. With the full report spanning nearly 4,000 pages, the IPCC has consolidated its key findings into three primary categories: the Current State of the Climate, Possible Climate Futures, and Limiting Future Climate Change. The following article will explore each of these unique categories, highlighting the key risks to our tomorrow, and the potential solutions necessary for our survival.
The Current State of the Climate
This section presents multiple points suggesting an acceleration in climate change and its effects; an acceleration which is undoubtedly caused by humans: “it is unequivocal that human influence has warmed the atmosphere, ocean and land.” While such a statement may at first appear simple, and likely for many of our readers, obvious, it takes on a new gravity when the circumstances of the report and its history are taken into account. While previous editions have suggested such a reality, the Sixth Assessment Report states it as a fact; a declaration made all the more concerning when considering the typically more conservative outlook of the IPCC’s reports, given the necessity of mass agreement across countries. Furthermore, it is posited that these changes in the climate are not only undoubtedly human-made; but that the “Earth is likely hotter now than it has been at any moment since the beginning of the last Ice Age, 125,000 years ago” (The Atlantic). Beyond drastic average temperature rise, the report additionally suggests that there is an increasing amount of evidence linking climate change to heavy precipitation, heatwaves, tropical cyclones, and droughts.
Possible Climate Futures
Looking to the future, the report states that global temperatures will continue to increase in all forecasted scenarios until the 2050s at the earliest -- the goal of limiting global warming to an increase of 1.5 to 2 degrees celsius nearly impossible, unless drastic carbon reduction measures are taken immediately. This future will only exponentially spiral out of control, given the positive relationship between global warming and extreme events, such as the melting of the polar ice caps, which as temperatures increase, will release higher and higher volumes of trapped greenhouse gasses, accelerating the process. Such changes are irreversible for centuries, even millennia, and in the end, will not only raise sea levels, but increase all of the negative factors explored above.
Limiting Future Climate Change
As has been the case since the dangers of climate change were first exposed, some hope remains, but for how much longer? At a broad level, human-emitted carbon dioxide must at least reach net zero (the “at least” implying the need for the reduction and offset of significantly more metric tonnes of carbon than are emitted each year), while similar limitations to other greenhouse gas emissions, such as CH4, or methane, are equally paramount. These changes require a combined effort mirroring the approach taken at RyeStrategy: reducing emissions first, and offsetting more than what remains second. Should humanity achieve a zero carbon or near-zero carbon future before it’s too late, it is expected that discernible changes in temperature patterns and other climate change effects will occur within 20 years. If we do not achieve this goal, however, the damage may be irreparable. While the emissions currently created by humanity can be squarely assigned to the world's largest corporations and the governments who support their activities, we all have a role to play. It is up to us as individual persons and organizations to not only call for action, but to set the standard for climate conscious-behavior, leaving those who emit the most no choice other than to make the difference necessary for our very future. Start acting today.
Learn about our affordable carbon footprint solutions for small and medium-sized businesses
Book a free strategy session to discuss your climate goals with a sustainability manager.
About RyeStrategy
Based in Seattle, RyeStrategy is a CDP-accredited, mission-oriented company specialized in carbon accounting, mitigation coaching, and climate disclosure solutions for organizations at any point in their sustainability journey. Learn how RyeStrategy helped Salesforce, Ideascale, and Wazoku achieve their sustainability goals.
From exhaustive carbon footprinting and mitigation coaching, to setting science-based targets and reporting climate data to CDP, SBTi or custom reporting platforms, RyeStrategy acts as a hands-on extension of the team, custom-tailoring services to fulfill climate disclosure requirements easily and accurately.
Meet with a sustainability specialist to learn more about RyeStrategy solutions.
