This article was originally published on World Economic Forum.
“This year didn’t start with a good omen for the planet. Meanwhile, 2018 came in as the fourth-hottest year since records began, and the second-costliest year ever for extreme weather impacts. Previous years don’t provide solace either. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) the 20 warmest years on record have all occurred since 1995; the five hottest have all come in the 2010s.
For climate change, it means the stakes couldn’t be higher and the need to act couldn’t be clearer. The final wake-up call came from the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Special Report late last year, which told us we have just 12 years to keep global warming within 1.5˚C if we are to avoid dangerous climate change.
That raises two important questions: One, how, if at all, can we meet this crucial deadline? And two, if we do, does it mean that all will be well with Planet Earth?
On climate change, the good news is that many studies, such as the New Climate Economy and the Business and Sustainable Development Commission, note that a more environmentally sustainable economy will also create jobs and secure better growth for the future. This work shows there is a win-win to be had, if we can organise ourselves better across business, government and civil society to work together more smartly.
Given the scale, urgency and interconnected nature of the environmental crises we face, these sorts of new collaborations will be vital. Everyone agrees that it will take more than Ministries of Environment alone to fix these problems, no matter how much money they are given. The entrepreneurism and resources of businesses large and small, civil society groups, innovators, banks, investors, mayors and many, many others also need to be tapped into.
To help do this, mobilising commitments to act – in line with the science – from the private sector, the finance community, cities and states, as well as from governments and NGOs, is key. Each of our organisations is deeply involved in making this new environmental action agenda come alive, as are many others too…”
Read on at: World Economic Forum.
