As massas mobilizam-se para a liderança climática

Sep 10, 2018 Christiana Figueres , May Boeve

LONDRES – Este ano, condições climáticas extremas devastaram o nosso planeta, sujeitando comunidades vulneráveis ao redor de todo o mundo aos impactos cada vez maiores das alterações climáticas. A cada dia que passa, aprendemos mais - e somos directamente afectados pelas consequências perigosas da extracção e queima de combustíveis fósseis. As inundações, secas e incêndios florestais estão a tornar-se mais mortais e os padrões meteorológicos estão mais graves.

Ainda este ano, o Painel Intergovernamental sobre as Alterações Climáticas (IPCC), o grupo de trabalho científico das Nações Unidas nesta matéria, apresentará o seu primeiro grande relatório em quatro anos. O relatório descreverá pormenorizadamente as consequências devastadoras que nos aguardam se não mantivermos as temperaturas globais médias no limite de 1,5 °C relativamente aos níveis do período pré-industrial. Apesar dos actuais compromissos dos governos e das indústrias, já atingimos o nível 1 °C e os impactos são terríveis. É necessária uma mudança urgente.

Felizmente, a acção imediata no sentido de reduzir as emissões de gases com efeito de estufa confere benefícios imediatos. Quando oito centrais eléctricas alimentadas a carvão e gás foram encerradas na Califórnia entre 2001 e 2011, a taxa de fertilidade das mulheres que viviam perto das centrais aumentou no período de apenas um ano.

To continue reading, register now.

As a registered user, you can enjoy more PS content every month – for free.

Subscribe now for unlimited access to everything PS has to offer.

Already have an account? Log in

Subscribe to Project Syndicate

Enjoy unlimited access to the ideas and opinions of the world’s leading thinkers, including long reads, book reviews, topical collections, short-form analysis and predictions, and exclusive interviews; every new issue of the PS Quarterly magazine (print and digital); the complete PS archive; and more. Subscribe now to PS Premium.

Christiana Figueres

Writing for PS since 2015
11 Commentaries

Christiana Figueres, a founding partner of Global Optimism, is a co-author of the bestselling book The Future We Choose: The Stubborn Optimist’s Guide to the Climate Crisis, and a co-presenter of the Outrage + Optimism podcast. She was executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change from 2010-16, overseeing the landmark Paris agreement on climate change, adopted by 190 countries and the European Union.

May Boeve

Writing for PS since 2018
2 Commentaries

May Boeve is Executive Director of 350.org.

new comment has been posted. new comments have been posted.

0 Comments on this paragraph, 3 Comments on this article

Jose Antonio Vanderhorst Silverio Sep 10, 2018

If we were still under the Industrial Civilization to restore institutions of The Wealth of Nations where economic knowledge was clear cut, "The Masses Are Mobilizing for Climate Leadership" has precedents that it would be the best unique alternative.

However, here is a complementary unprecedented alternative, for whether or not having already overshot the global carrying capacity of the Industrial Civilization in a variety of key areas, including GHGs [greenhouse gases], nitrogen, phosphorus, fresh water, and use, and biodiversity. The reason to trust the alternative beyond scientific number is that systemic delays are so long that instead to continue “Wasting the crisis” we must start as soon as possible “Grasping the opportunities” to create institutional innovations of the #SystemicCivilization under #TheWealthOfGlobalization.

The above is one of the arguments that supports the Medium story "Get a friend to RT & Like an #MCGA Secular Stagnation Generative Dialogue." which is available in my personal Project Syndicate website temporarily, in order to get the support, for example, the example of the economists writing here in Project Syndicate. This complementary alternative approach would benefit greatly from the masses that "Are Mobilizing for Climate Leadership."
A new reply to this comment has been posted.
Peter Schaeffer Sep 10, 2018

The "masses" are going to stop China from mining and burning coal? Really? What color is your sun? The "masses" are going stop India from following China?

At some (very important) level, the entire global warming debate is an exercise in futility. Developing countries now account for most CO2 emissions (63% as of 2015) and all of the growth. Of course, they are not about to restrict fossil fuel use (at least at this time). In other words, there is nothing the U.S. or Europe can do to control global CO2 output.

A few useful (but generally unknown) statistics. China now produces twice as much CO2 as the U.S. Of course, it is sometimes argued that the U.S. and Europe have been emitting CO2 for a long time and it is (therefore) unfair to focus on developing countries. That’s not an entirely bad argument. However, China has produced more CO2 in the last few decades than Europe has since the start of the Industrial Revolution.

Trump pulled the U.S. out of the Paris Accord. The Paris Accord imposed no substantive controls on developing countries Indeed, it generally ratified existing plans for massive increases in CO2 output from developing countries. Bjørn Lomborg estimated that the Paris Accord would reduce global temperatures by 0.05 C in 2100. An MIT study came up with 0.2 C in 2100. Other studies have claimed higher numbers for the Paris agreement. However, they assume additional post-Paris restrictions on CO2 output.

The bottom line is that Christiana Figueres and May Boeve simply aren't addressing the reality/realities at hand.
A new reply to this comment has been posted.
Michael Public Sep 10, 2018

The coal plants are already built, the gas guzzling cars are on the roads, the republicans are in power. I think this could be a bigger problem than we imagine.
A new reply to this comment has been posted.