Warning to navigators: IPCC report on climate change mitigation

Publications

Keywords: Climate Change, Mitigation, IPCC

Author(s): Mikel González-Eguino and Iñaki Arto

Date: 2014-13-05

Issue: PB2014/Special Issue-02

Keypoints

Despite the proliferation of climate change plans and strategies, global emissions have accelerated over the last
decade.
If the present trends continue, temperatures will have risen between 3.7 and 4.3ºC by the end of the century.
To stabilise temperatures at 2ºC, emissions must be reduced between 40 and 70% by 2050 and have dropped to almost zero in 2100. This will imply a radical change at technological and institutional level; it will also mean an
important transformation in lifestyles.
Fortunately, there are several stabilising options which are technically viable and economically assumable.
Nevertheless, it is important that investments are materialised in the coming decades (2010-2030) to avoid having to use technologies to capture emissions in the atmosphere (negative emissions) that would entail higher costs and greater risks.
International cooperation and the search for fair agreements are essential for making progress with and maintaining mitigation efforts.