14,000 scientists warn of ‘worrying’ deterioration in Earth’s vital signs and called for urgent changes on three fronts

The climate crisis, that “indefinite” threat looming over the horizon of humanity and the planet, about which we all speak but many of which remain in disbelief, was the common cause that brought together 14,000 scientists representing 1,990 jurisdictions in 34 countries to issue an Attention: life conditions on Earth are deteriorating at an alarming rate.

This devastating principle is clarified in a new report published by this vast group of experts: “We are approaching or have already passed tipping points associated with critical parts of the Earth system. “

This includes, according to scientists, the ice caps of West Antarctica and Greenland, warm water coral reefs and the Amazon rainforest.

“In view of these alarming developments, we need short, frequent and easily accessible updates on the climate emergency.”, they highlight.

A similar warning had already been issued in 2019, when 11,258 scientists published a report in the journal BioScience, explaining to the world the serious climate emergency we face. Almost two years have passed and things have not changed, on the contrary, they continue to deteriorate at an accelerating rate.

“The increase in climate-related disasters, including the Australian mega-fires of 2019-2020, and the fact that the three main greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide) have set record concentrations in the atmosphere in 2020 and again in 2020 are of particular concern. 2021 ”. University of Sydney environmentalist Thomas Newsome said.

“This despite changes during the COVID-19 pandemic”, he stressed.

The new report, also published in BioScience, added the names of 2,800 scientists to the growing pool, noting that 1,990 jurisdictions have officially declared or recognized a climate emergency, and this has provided a political focus to be able to mitigate some of the damage we are doing to our rapidly warming planet.

Researchers suggest a “Three-pronged short-term policy approach”: a significantly higher global carbon price, a phase-out and eventual ban on fossil fuels, and the development of climate reserves to protect and restore biodiversity and carbon sinks (such as the Amazon rainforest).

Of course, climatologists have been screaming everywhere about the dangers of anthropogenic climate change since at least the 1960s, and they have been offering various solutions in different ways since the 1980s.

Despite knowing what the rampant use of fossil fuels is doing to Earth’s climate, lHumanity’s greenhouse gas emissions have continued to increase, and global warming has increased as a result. Now scientists are warning that we have no more time to waste.

“We suggest an urgent need for transformative change to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and, more generally, human overexploitation of the planet”, Newsome dice.

“There are still opportunities to convert pandemic-related monetary support measures into climate-friendly activities; it is encouraging to see divestment from fossil fuels and fossil fuel subsidies improving at a record rate ”, adds.

Yet even though many of the 31 “vital signs” or landmarks – such as changes in the ocean, numbers of livestock, and snowmelt – have reached horrific heights, there are also some glimmers of light. hope.

Between 2018 and 2021, solar and wind energy increased by 57% (even if it is still 19 times less than the consumption of fossil fuels).

In addition, between 2018 and 2021, there was a sharp increase in divestment from fossil fuels. And since 2019, there has also been a slight decrease in energy use from fossil fuels, although the researchers note that it is likely due to the pandemic and is likely to increase again.

The new report has been released to align with the latest report from the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) due out next week, which will hopefully be even more of a wake-up call . The IPCC reports of past years were not wrong.

Scientists are hopeful that there is sufficient political will to make the policy changes necessary to literally save the world.

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