WRI Climate’s Post

Next spring, countries are required to put forward stronger national climate commitments (#NDCs) under the Paris Agreement. These plans are critical to limiting global warming to 1.5°C. New WRI Climate research published today finds that in their previous commitments, major emitters didn’t take full advantage of a powerful tool to rapidly drive down emissions – promoting pro-climate behavior changes. The paper finds that only a few of the world’s highest-emitting nations are using their NDCs to induce pro-climate behavior changes. Of nine critical behaviors analyzed, only three are consistently addressed by at least half of these countries: encouraging electric or hybrid vehicle purchases, encouraging public transport use and reducing household energy use. Alarmingly, high-impact shifts such as decreasing air travel were missing from all 20 major emitters’ NDCs, while only the United Kingdom mentioned shifting to more sustainable diets. Read the full paper here: https://bit.ly/47VoBNZ

We need to act now. To keep global warming to safe levels (the 1.5C climate threshold) and protect nature. 🌱 🌳 🌎 How can financial institutions help reshape our food and energy systems to benefit climate, nature and people? Dafina Nonkulovska, CFO Lead Sustainability at Rabobank: “The majority of business for banks is financing clients. And that's also the biggest portion of overall greenhouse gas emissions for banks.” That means we need to stimulate technologies, services and tools that can mitigate, remove and avoid GHG emissions. Want to know what this looks like in practice? Check out this production from Financial Times where Dafina Nonkulovska from Rabobank and Kate Beddoe from farmer cooperative Silver Fern Farms Ltd in New Zealand highlight our cooperation that is supporting the food and energy transitions. Read more stories on the FT Food Revolution channel about how people and businesses work together to create a more sustainable food system: https://lnkd.in/eJs5cEBM

The concept of global warming overshoot, in which the world warms past a target and greenhouse gases are later brought back down, is baked into most energy plans. But it is a dangerous pathway that risks extinctions, amplified biodiversity loss, and more human tragedy from super storms, drought, wildfire, and other climate hazards. Assuming we can safely exceed 1.5C for a few decades and then return to lower temps puts at risk too many social and natural biophysical systems.

Why is net zero important? The science shows clearly that in order to avert the worst impacts of climate change and preserve a livable planet, global temperature increase needs to be limited to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. To keep global warming to no more than 1.5°C  – as called for in the Paris Agreement – emissions need to be reduced by 45% by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050. Are we on track to reach net zero by 2050? No, commitments made by governments to date fall far short of what is required. Current national climate plans – for 195 Parties to the Paris Agreement taken together – would lead to a sizable increase of almost 9% in global greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, compared to 2010 levels. Getting to net zero requires all governments – first and foremost the biggest emitters – to significantly strengthen their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and take bold, immediate steps towards reducing emissions now. Start your green journey with Blue Lobster today! ------------------------- 🌏 Blue Lobster Track today, act tomorrow, reduce your carbon footprint #BlueLobster #LobsterTechnologies #ClimateTrackers #CarbonCutters #MitigateForTomorrow #GreenFootprintApp #TrackToReduce #ClimateActionNow #SustainableSteps #ReduceYourPrint #ClimateWarriors #CarbonCapture

We are proud that the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) has validated our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction targets as in line with a 1.5°C trajectory (limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, the most ambitious goal of the Paris Climate Agreement). Tackling #ClimateChange requires ambitious action from the food & beverage industry. Our new science-based targets – to be delivered by 2028 – prove our commitment to building a sustainable economy, by doing not what is easy, but what is necessary. That’s why we have committed to delivering a greater reduction at a faster pace. Learn more about our new 2028 targets here: https://lnkd.in/egSQnsqZ. Science Based Targets initiative #ScienceBasedTargets #Sustainability #ScienceSolutionsSociety #CaringForOurPlanet

🌍 Happy World Environment Day! 🌱 This World Environment Day, the latest climate data reveals alarming global warming trends. Key Findings: - There’s an 80% likelihood that within the next five years, the world will temporarily exceed the 1.5°C limit set by the 2015 Paris Agreement. - UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that at current emission rates, the world will permanently breach the 1.5°C limit before 2030. - New data from the #WMO and the EU’s Copernicus Climate Observatory shows the remaining carbon budget to limit warming to 1.5°C is now around 200 billion tons, potentially being surpassed before 2030. - Clean energy investments outside China have stagnated since 2015. - Record high sea temperatures are altering ocean and air currents, bleaching corals, and threatening ice caps, accelerating climate tipping points. Just a few solutions: - Joint efforts and collaboration at all levels, from young people to civil society, cities, regions, businesses, and others to lead the transformation. - Shifting subsidies from fossil fuels to renewable energy, storage, and grid modernization, with support for vulnerable communities. - Implementing Climate Action Plans aligned with the 1.5°C goal, with interim targets and transparent verification. - Increasing education and access to the latest climate data to support policy shifts. - Supporting high integrity carbon markets that are credible and consistent with limiting warming to 1.5°C. It is possible to drive the change needed to ensure a healthier planet for future generations 🌎 🌲 🌿 #WorldEnvironmentDay #ClimateAction #Sustainability #ParisAgreement #UN #ClimateChange #EnvironmentalProtection #1Point5Degrees

CGIAR has significantly contributed to the global endeavor to mitigate climate change in alignment with the Paris Agreement, a treaty binding world leaders to limit the rising temperatures (greenhouse gases) that cause global warming. CGIAR has made significant strides in research and innovation, supporting countries in meeting their development goals without compromising the Paris Agreement. An evaluation finds that although CGIAR’s commitment to climate change research is valuable, it still needs to integrate nutrition and food security considerations to answer the world’s escalating demand for sustainability. Read the full analysis here: https://lnkd.in/evq5gxum Find CGIAR Low-Emission Food Systems Initiative research papers here: https://lnkd.in/eP2J649W

According to a new working paper by economists at the US's National Bureau of Economic Research (NNBER), the world's GDP would be 37 percent higher today had no global warming occurred between 1960 and 2019. The paper is unequivocal that the costs of transitioning from fossil fuels, though considerable, pale in comparison to the costs imposed by global warming. While the impact of global warming, which is now manifested in the form of scorching heat waves, devastating deluges, crippling droughts, and catastrophic storms, affects people's health, reduces productivity, and affects livelihoods, the fallouts of climate change on rangelands that include desert shrublands, mountain pastures, tundra, and plateaus do not receive the same attention as forests in environmental conservation discourses. Considering the fact that more than 50 percent of these ecosystems have degraded, which apparently acts as carbon sinks, concerted steps are required to protect them from further deterioration. Policy measures aimed at building the resilience of people against climate change by increasing funding for climate change adaptation are the need of the hour.

Led by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), World Environment Day highlights that annual greenhouse gas emissions must be halved by 2030 to keep global warming below 1.5°C this century. At Lewis Woolcott we work together with the construction industry to minimise waste and emissions. Plant alone is a significant contributing factor, and it can be better managed using new technology that gives full site and plant visibility. We can now better plan plant quotas, reduce idling and work towards reducing emissions from our industry. Read more: https://lnkd.in/g2jtYFJm 💚 #WorldEnvironmentDay #ActNow #EmissionReduction #Construction

Based on current policies alone, we’ll likely end up with a world that's warmed by 3.1° C by the end of the century. Actually meeting our unconditional pledges (made at Paris 2015) would leave us with 2.8° C. In both those cases, the world won't reach net zero and warming would continue well into the 22nd century.