Itโs Now or Never on Climate
Part III: Climate Inequality & Indifference
Table of Contents
๐ค Bite-Sized Knurd: A new global climate report shows we only have 3 years to act if we hope for a โlivable planet.โ We have the solutions yet governments and businesses arenโt taking the necessary steps.
Read on for moreโฆ
Time is running out.
The game clock is ticking down.
Will humanity hit a buzzer-beater before itโs too late?
Last week's climate report by the IPPC (the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) makes clear that we must take drastic action immediately.
If youโve been following climate news, you know full well that we are hurtling towards a planet that cannot sustain human life.
This is not an exaggeration.
โIโm lacking words for this. Itโs beyond immoral. Itโs suicidal,โ climate diplomat Christiana Figueres
Hereโs what the report had to say:
- We have three years (until 2025) to start lowering emissions or weโre screwed
- Coal must be completely phased out or weโre screwed
- Cut oil and gas use by 60-70% or weโre screwed
- The entire global economy needs to change or weโre screwed (energy, transportation, manufacturing, food, etc.)
- It is โalmost inevitableโ that global temperatures will rise to 1.5C (where the effects of climate change will become irreversible)
- You canโt adapt your way out of this. If action isnโt taken, humanity is screwed.
Notice a pattern?
If the message hasnโt gotten through yet, now would be a good time to get it.
Why Isnโt Climate Action Happening?
Simply put, too many people in power benefit from the status quo.
"Some government and business leaders are saying one thingโbut doing another. Simply put, they are lying. And the results will be catastrophic" - UN Chief Antonio Guterres
The biggest barriers to addressing the climate crisis are the consequences of a world order that has been taking shape for centuries. Capitalism asks that we keep producing and growing the economy, but doesnโt stop to ask if the planet can sustain constant growth. Weโre only in the beginning stages of seeing how this mindset cannot be sustained.
Top 5 Reasons We Canโt Act:
- Change is hard; status quo is easy
- Powerful people profit from climate disaster
- Companies value stock prices more than humanity
- Short-term thinking infects governments
- The Empathy Gap is too deep
What is required to address the climate crisis is nothing short of a complete transformation of the world economy and society.
I get that that is really scary. Most people donโt like change.
I raise up the truth about the climate crisis and the hurdles that climate activists face not to scare you, but so more people are aware of what we actually face.
The media, government, and businesses are incentivized to keep the status quo. If we are to have any hope for our lives and future generations, anyone that cares must do everything they can.
Iโll end with a hopeful note: We have more power than we realize. We just have to start using it.
Up Next:
๐ฑ the roots of change agency ๐ Newsletter
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