Working Group II report says taking action now can secure our future
BERLIN, GERMANY — Human-induced climate change is causing dangerous and widespread disruption in nature and affecting the lives of billions of people around the world, despite efforts to reduce the risks, said scientists in the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, released on Monday.
The IPCC Working Group II report, “Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability”, noted that people and ecosystems least able to cope are being hardest hit.
IPCC Chair Hoesung Lee said: “This report is a dire warning about the consequences of inaction. It shows that climate change is a grave and mounting threat to our well-being and a healthy planet.
“Our actions today will shape how people adapt and nature responds to increasing climate risks.”
The world faces unavoidable multiple climate hazards over the next two decades, with global warming of 1.5°C (2.7°F). Even temporarily exceeding this warming level will result in additional severe impacts, some of which will be irreversible.
Risks for society will increase, including to infrastructure and low-lying coastal settlements.
The Working Group II report is the second instalment of the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report (AR6), which will be completed this year.
“This report recognizes the interdependence of climate, biodiversity and people and integrates natural, social and economic sciences more strongly than earlier IPCC assessments,” said Lee.
“It emphasizes the urgency of immediate and more ambitious action to address climate risks. Half measures are no longer an option.”
Safeguarding and strengthening nature is key to securing a livable future
The IPCC said there are options to adapt to a changing climate, with its report providing new insights into nature’s potential not only to reduce climate risks but also to improve people’s lives.
IPCC Working Group II Co-Chair Hans-Otto Pörtner said: “Healthy ecosystems are more resilient to climate change and provide life-critical services such as food and clean water.
“By restoring degraded ecosystems and effectively and equitably conserving 30 to 50 percent of earth’s land, freshwater and ocean habitats, society can benefit from nature’s capacity to absorb and store carbon, and we can accelerate progress towards sustainable development, but adequate finance and political support are essential.”
Scientists point out that climate change interacts with global trends such as unsustainable use of natural resources, growing urbanization, social inequalities, losses and damages from extreme events and a pandemic, jeopardizing future development.
IPCC Working Group II Co-Chair Debra Roberts said: “Our assessment clearly shows that tackling all these different challenges involves everyone — governments, the private sector, civil society — working together to prioritize risk reduction, as well as equity and justice, in decision-making and investment.
“In this way, different interests, values and world views can be reconciled. By bringing together scientific and technological know-how as well as Indigenous and local knowledge, solutions will be more effective.
“Failure to achieve climate-resilient and sustainable development will result in a suboptimal future for people and nature.”
A narrowing window for action
The report clearly states climate-resilient development is already challenging at current warming levels. It will become more limited if global warming exceeds 1.5°C (2.7°F).
In some regions, it will be impossible if global warming exceeds 2°C (3.6°F).
This key finding underlines the urgency for climate action, focusing on equity and justice. Adequate funding, technology transfer, political commitment and partnership lead to more effective climate change adaptation and emissions reductions.
Pörtner said: “The scientific evidence is unequivocal: climate change is a threat to human well-being and the health of the planet.
“Any further delay in concerted global action will miss a brief and rapidly closing window to secure a livable future.”
