It's a nightmare moment for climate change activists like me as we head for the next conference of parties change activists like me as we head for the next conference of parties (COP27) this time being organised in the coastal city of Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt. The rich world, which has to act decisively to cut fossil fuel emissions and to finance transitions in the rest of the world, is going through its own economic crisis. Energy prices are high; this winter, it will be tough for households to stay warm. Climate change sceptics and the fossil fuel industry are close to taking a victory lap as they whip up public opinion against the needed energy transition out of fossil fuel and into cleaner sources. The rich countries are already moving towards reinvestment in fossil fuels, although they say this is temporary and that they will go back to meeting their commitments to decarbonise. It's going to be a hard winter and beyond.
This is when every region has experienced the pain of extreme weather disasters from floods to heatwaves, and from forest fires to the changing intensity and frequency of cyclones and hurricanes. We are seeing a glimpse of what awaits us as temperatures increase further from the 1.1°C rise now since the pre-industrial era. It is the revenge-of-nature moment that we have brought on ourselves by years of procrastination.
This story is from the November 01, 2022 edition of Down To Earth.
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This story is from the November 01, 2022 edition of Down To Earth.
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